Obama daughters are just dolls
Like many Americans, Beanie Babies bazillionaire H. Ty Warner was struck by the cuteness of Sasha and Malia Obama.
As such, Warner's Westmont-based Ty Inc. has launched two new dolls, "Sweet Sasha" and "Marvelous Malia."
"They're such adorable girls," company spokeswoman Tania Lundeen said Wednesday of the Obama sisters -- Sasha, 7, and Malia, 10. "How can we resist?"
The toys, retailing for $9.99, have soft hair and bendable bodies. They also come with a password to an online "virtual world" where real girls can decorate their dolls' room, change their clothes or go shopping.
Lundeen equivocated on whether the company got permission from the Obamas. No word on the dolls from the White House on Wednesday -- but public figures have a tough time protecting privacy rights.
Ty is tapping into a long tradition of American fascination with first kids.
Paper dolls were made in Caroline Kennedy's likeness. "Baby" Ruth Cleveland, the toddler daughter of President Grover Cleveland, was a national sensation, and the country mourned when she died of diphtheria, said Doug Wead, author of All The Presidents' Children.