Michelle Obama continues to fuel divorce rumors with comment about feeling 'free' from Barack

Daily Mail​

09-07-2025

Michelle Obama made a frank admission about life at home with husband Barack Obama after spending months dodging divorce rumors.
The former first lady, 61, shared the insight about being an empty nester with a husband who is no longer serving as the President of the United States on Wednesday's episode of her podcast, IMO, which she hosts with older brother Craig Robinson.
'I mean at this stage in life for me, personally, is the first time I've been completely free,' the mother-of-two told guest Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
'There's been a release where every choice I make is not about my husband, not about his career, not about my family, not about what my kids need or where they're going, it's totally about me,' she admitted, quipping: 'This is when we start living ladies.'
Michelle and Barack share daughters, Malia, 26, and Sasha, 24.
The Obamas have been married for almost 33 years but have faced ongoing rumors about their marriage status over the last few months.
The rumor mill swirled after her decision to skip both Jimmy Carter's funeral and President Donald Trump's inauguration - with Michelle insisting they were decisions she made for herself.
Her absence at the high-profile political events stoked divorce rumors, as did President Obama's admission in April that he was in a 'deep deficit' with his wife.
But in May, the former first lady attempted to set the record straight during a podcast with entrepreneur and investor Steven Bartlett.
'If I were having problems with my husband, everybody would know about it,' she said, laughing.
The host mentioned how the media had speculated about pair's future after she skipped out on the public appearances.
Steven said her absence left some believing 'there's an issue with you and Barack, there's a divorce coming.'
'Let me tell you, he would know it,' Michelle said, directing a finger at her brother, Craig Robinson. 'And everybody would know it.'
She added that she is 'not a martyr' and joked about how she would address such marital strife publicly.
Michelle acknowledged that marriage is 'hard' for her and the former president but added that 'I wouldn't trade it,' calling President Obama, 'as the young people say... my person.'
'The beauty of my husband and our partnership is that neither one of us was ever really, ever going to quit at it, because that's not who we are. And I know that about him. He knows that about me.'
She said that young people give up on marriage too soon, in part because they see a false image of a perfect union between herself and her husband.
'I talk about these things because I think that people give up too quickly on marriage,' the Becoming author said.
'Because there is so much friction built into the equation. And if you're not getting help, talking about it, going to therapy, just understanding how things are changing, and how do you continuously renegotiate your relationship with your partner, I just see people quitting,' she said.
'Because they look at me and Barack and go, "#couple goals." And I'm like, it's hard,' Michelle added.
Michelle also spoke about a tough parenting conversation the couple had after they moved into the White House on Wednesday.
She explained that she told her husband he had to get their daughters' school used to the President of the United States being at events - and that she wanted him to still be as engaged with this daughters' lives as he was before he took office.
'It was like, "no, you got to go to parent-teacher conference" - and he wanted to go,' Michelle told Julia and Craig.
She stated that even if he was not necessarily required to go, she still expected him there.
'You have to get the school normalized to you being the type of engaged parent that you were before election night,' she recalled telling Barack.
'And you were the father that went to parent teacher conference, you were the father that would coach your girls' basketball game league,' she recounted.