Malia Obama safe in Mexico, White House confirms

President Barack Obama’s 13-year-old daughter, Malia Obama, is safe after the occurrence of Mexico’s 7.4-magnitude earthquake on Tuesday, the White House reported. Malia is currently in Oaxaca, located in southwestern Mexico, on a spring-break trip with a school group. Agence France-Presse, based in Mexico, and several media organizations published stories about the trip on Monday, but once the White House raised security concerns, many were taken down.

Kristina Schake, the communications director for First Lady Michelle Obama, said “In light of today’s earthquake, we can confirm that Malia Obama is safe and was never in danger.” Rick Santorum felt it necessary to criticize the Obama family’s decision to allow the first daughter to travel to Mexico when the State Department has issued travel warnings about the country. On Glenn Beck’s radio show, Santorum said, “If the administration is saying that it’s not safe to have people down there, then just because you can send 25 Secret Service agents doesn’t mean you should do it. You should set an example. I think that’s what presidents do. They set an example.” Meanwhile, the presidential hopeful is receiving criticism for comments he made on Monday about the unemployment rates, a crucial topic in the American economy. “I don’t care what the unemployment rate is going to be. It doesn’t matter to me. My campaign doesn’t hinge on unemployment rates and growth rates,” Santorum said.