President Barack Obama seems determined to prove that he is just like us.
Following the premiere of his starring role on Between Two Ferns on Tuesday morning, where he encouraged young people to sign up for health insurance while being interviewed by Zach Galifianakis amidst leafy foliage, the president went shopping at Gap.
Obama was “spotted” at the clothing store on 42nd Street in New York City, where he surprised shoppers by browsing through the neatly folded piles of clothes looking for something special for the women in his life.
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“It never hurts to bring something back when you’ve been on a road trip. You get points when you go home,” said the stylish president, after picking out a blue workout jacket for Michelle Obama and sweaters for daughters Malia, 15, and Sasha, 12. “I think the ladies will be impressed by my style sense,” he bragged.
The not-so impromptu shopping trip was to highlight how Gap has raised their employees’ wages, according to the White House Twitter page.
President Obama stopped by The @Gap today to highlight how they’re raising their employees’ wages. #RaiseTheWage, pic.twitter.com/5L8Dz5oJkQ
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 12, 2014
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The president has previously praised the retailer for committing to pay workers at least $9 per hour by this June, and $10 per hour by June 2015.
“In my State of the Union address, I asked more businesses to do what they can to raise their employees’ wages,” he said in a statement last month. “Today I applaud Gap Inc. for announcing that they intend to raise wages for their employees beginning this year. But only action from Congress can make a difference nationwide.”
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The shopping trip rounded off a successful day for Obama; his mock interview on Between Two Ferns — from the creators of Funny or Die — became the number one driver of traffic to HealthCare.gov. The potentially risky venture into pop cultural irony was hailed as a success by White House aides and was watched by over 3 million viewers within the first few hours that it was live on Tuesday morning.
During Obama’s scripted six-and-a-half-minute back-and-forth with Galifianakis on his satiric interview show, the president played the role of a stern, sometimes irritated straight man as the comedian deadpanned a series of questions that were alternately outrageous and inane.
