FLOTUS Michelle Obama Sets Her Sights on Reelection in 2012

Pictured shopping at Target, the White House is putting its strongest asset into high gear

Thursday, First Lady Michelle Obama made it known she was gearing up for a tough re-election campaign in support of her husband. To prove her support, she sent out an email asking for as little as a $3 contribution to the Obama campaign. The incentive? Win a dinner with Barack Obama. Her note was as short and sweet as it was deliberate and designed.

“Not everyone knows how to prepare for a dinner like this. As someone who's eaten countless meals with my husband, I want to tell you the one thing to do if you're selected to join him...Just relax. Barack wants this dinner to be fun, and he really loves getting to know supporters like you.

I hope you'll take him up on it before Friday's deadline."

With the weakened economy and approval ratings for her husband at an all-time low, she will have a heavier workload in the months to come campaigning for her husband. One of the party’s strongest assets, Mrs. Obama tells audiences, “He needs you to work like you've never worked before. Every day. And that's what I plan on doing."

Apparently, she’s taking the commitment to heart.

The AP has more details about Mrs. Obama’s rigorous dedication to staying in the White House:

The first lady always ends her speeches to Democratic donors with two questions: “Are you in? Are you fired up?” It’s a call to arms that the Obama campaign needs more than ever this election, when the combination of a weak economy and dampened enthusiasm for the president are creating a tougher climate for raising money.

Since mid-May, the first lady has headlined more than a dozen fundraisers for her husband and the Democratic Party, at sites from Burlington, Vt., to Berkeley, Calif. She's cramming in three more events in Maine and Rhode Island within six hours on Friday, the last day of a closely watched reporting period for quarterly campaign fundraising. She's also blasted out a number of mass emails to party faithful trying to recapture the energy that has waned since her husband's 2008 campaign.

If the can recapture any of its magic from 2008, the First Lady -- carrying groceries or her husband’s message -- will be a big part of the reason why.