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News.com.au
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
‘She took me back': Barack and Michelle Obama jokingly address divorce rumours
Former President Barack Obama and wife Michelle have finally sought to shut down the long-running rumours they're headed for divorce – even though they've barely been seen together in months. The former first couple jointly addressed the speculation swirling around their three-decade marriage for the first time on Wednesday, The New York Post reports, joking on the latest episode of the ex-first lady's podcast that it was 'touch and go for a while'. 'He made time in his busy schedule. We are honoured,' Ms Obama, 61, told listeners before her co-host and brother, Craig Robinson, shot back, 'Wait, you guys like each other?' 'She took me back,' Mr Obama, 63, quickly chimed in. 'It was touch and go for a while.' Mr Robinson went on to note it was nice to have the couple in the same room together, prompting Ms Obama to say, 'I know. Because when we aren't, folks think we're divorced.' The Obamas had previously tried to quell speculation by posting cute photos on social media – even as they seemed to live mostly separate lives in public. The whispers hit fever- pitch when the former first lady noticeably skipped two high-profile events earlier this year: former President Jimmy Carter's funeral and President Donald Trump's inauguration. 'There hasn't been one moment in our marriage where I thought about quitting on my man,' Ms Obama said during the episode. 'And we've had some really hard times, and we've had a lot of fun times, a lot of adventures, and I have become a better person because of the man I'm married to.' To which her husband responded: 'OK, don't make me cry now, right at the start of the show.' The show of unity came despite the pair rarely being seen side-by-side in public for months. They were last pictured stepping out for a date night at The Lowell Hotel restaurant in New York City on May 27, and cosying up for dinner at the bustling Osteria Mozza in Washington, DC in April. Before then, the Obamas hadn't been seen together since December 14 when they were snapped leaving the Mother Wolf restaurant in Los Angeles. They did, however, share the rare photo or two on social media to mark birthdays, holidays and anniversaries. During the podcast, Mr Robinson acknowledged that he, too, had been dragged into the apparent marriage-woe saga, recalling one moment when a woman in Wichita, Kansas, asked him point-blank if the couple were still together. 'This woman came up to me. She was so nice. (She asked), 'Can I have a picture?',' he recalled. 'You know how you get the side hug? She was like, 'What did (Barack) do? … He did something, didn't he?' When Mr Robinson assured the woman that the couple was still going strong, 'she was so happy, you would have thought I gave her a Christmas gift', he added. Mr Obama, for his part, said he was largely unaware of the speculation. 'These are the kinds of things I just miss. I don't even know this stuff is going on and then somebody will mention it to me, and I'm like, 'What are you talking about?',' he said. Ms Obama has repeatedly addressed the rampant speculation surrounding her marriage in a spate of podcast interviews, blaming the whispers on the couple's age and her new-found independence. 'The fact that people don't see me going out on a date with my husband sparks rumours of the end of our marriage,' she told NPR's Wild Card podcast host Rachel Martin in one interview. 'It's like, 'OK, so we don't Instagram every minute of our lives. We are 60. We're 60, y'all'.'
Daily Mail
26-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Michelle Obama pours fuel on fire with latest remarks about Barack divorce rumors
Michelle Obama 's latest attempt to tame the rumor mill has only further fueled speculation that her marriage to Barack is on the rocks. The former first lady addressed the swirling divorce rumors head on in an interview with Rachel Martin, host of NPR's Wild Card podcast, released Thursday. But instead of dismissing the rumors altogether, Michelle deflected and instead left fans wondering if the famous couple really do have something to hide. 'The fact that people don't see me going out on a date with my husband sparks rumors of the end of our marriage,' she told Martin, who jokingly claimed the behavior was the 'apocalypse'. 'It's the apocalypse,' Michelle, 61, echoed, before offering up a rather lackluster excuse: 'We don't take selfies.' 'It's like, "OK, so we don't Instagram every minute of our lives." We are 60. We're 60, y'all. You just are not gonna know what we're doing every minute of the day.' But Michelle stopped short of issuing a full denial that her marriage is over. Rumors that the couple's 33-year marriage had unraveled began circulating after Michelle was noticeably absent from several high-profile events earlier this year; including the presidential inauguration and funeral of former President Jimmy Carter. They were further exacerbated last week when Michelle was spotted having lunch with her daughters and another, somewhat surprising companion at an exclusive beach club in Mallorca. Barack, however, was noticeably absent. Michelle, during her chat with Martin, admitted her 'major decision' not to accompany Barack at these events has sparked 'backlash' - but she has no regrets. 'One of the major decisions I made this year was to stay put and not attend funerals and inaugurations and all the things that I'm supposed to attend, Michelle explained. 'That was a part of me using my ambition to say, "Let me define what I want to do, apart from what I'm supposed to do, what the world expects of me." And I have to own that. Those are my choices. 'Whatever the backlash was, I had to sit in it and own it. But I didn't regret it, you know? It's my life now, and I can say that, now.' The public, however, is not at all convinced by Michelle's explanation, with several claiming it 'makes no sense'. 'Michelle Obama says that she's 60 so she doesn't go on dates with her husband. But for heaven's sake people in their 80s go on dates,' one X user wrote. 'So the mystery continues about the divorce.' 'I see couples older than them out together all the time,' one person echoed, while another added: 'My husband and I are both 71 and still have date nights.' 'What is the real reason you think?' one user questioned. Another argued Michelle's 'mindset only exists in "political marriages".' 'If your entire life is based around a political marriage, you probably shouldn't try to be a role model for young ladies who intend to marry the love of their lives,' the user hit out. 'Because you clearly didn't...' Michelle tried last month to dismiss the speculation about marital issues during an episode of The Diary of a CEO. 'If I were having problems with my husband, everybody would know about it,' she told the podcast. She also recently appeared on Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang's Las Culturistas podcast and made it clear she doesn't like being referred to as 'Mrs. Obama'. During their sit-down, Matt revealed that before cameras started rolling, Michelle had asked him not to call her 'Mrs. Obama.' 'Earlier I was like, "Thank you so much, Mrs. Obama," and you said, "Michelle,"' Rogers said. 'I did say that,' Michelle responded with a laugh, before explaining why she likes to avoid the name. 'We cannot have a real conversation if you're saying, "Mrs Obama," that's too many syllables.' Matt then asked if she is usually quick to 'put down that shield for people,' and Michelle claimed that she's generally tries to appear less intimidating. 'I was trying to do that when I was first lady because I just think... I am not that position. I am Michelle,' she explained. 'I'm always trying to break down that wall to say, "We're just all here." And the first thing to do is like, let's drop that title, that's a little heavy.' The couple's eldest daughter Malia has also dropped her famous surname and is now going by Malia Ann professionally. Michelle has publicly supported Malia's decision, emphasizing that she wants her daughter to 'carve her own path' and 'make her way'. After skipping out on Donald Trump's inauguration and Jimmy Carter's funeral in January, Michelle did not join Barack for their usual courtside seats at the NBA All-Star Game in March. The couple were spotted out on a date night in NYC in May, after having also been seen going out to dinner in DC the month before. Social media and news reports have all served to amplify claims that the couple may soon be heading for a split. On a recent podcast Michelle revealed how she is in therapy to help her transition to what she thinks is the 'next phase' of her life. During the episode, 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.' Michelle has been open about her marriage struggles throughout the years, particularly on her and Robinson's podcast IMO. She has also discussed being an 'empty nester' and admitted to getting 'some help' as she heads into her 60s. 'At this phase of my life, I'm in therapy right now because I'm transitioning, you know?' she said on a recent episode of On The Jay Shetty Podcast. 'I'm 60 years old, I've finished a really hard thing in my life with my family intact, I'm an empty nester, my girls are in - you know, they've been launched,' she said. Michelle said that she's got 'other voices' to talk to and a 'new person that's getting to know me' as she works through things. Being out of public service, she now finds herself in a situation where 'every choice that I'm making is completely mine.' 'I now don't have the excuse of, "Well, my kids need this" or "My husband needs that" or "The country needs that."' She says that therapy is a 'tune-up for this next phase' in an attempt to 'unwind some old habits and 'sort through some old guilt,' along with focusing on her relationship with her own mother.
Yahoo
23-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Michelle Obama says a line her mom used to repeat about parenting always stuck with her
Michelle Obama says her parents weren't afraid to admit their own shortcomings when raising her and her brother. Her mom, in particular, was upfront about being new to parenting and not always knowing the answers. "I don't know what it is, but Mom and Dad did a beautiful job of making themselves plain to us," she said. Michelle Obama says her mother's willingness to admit her own shortcomings was what made her a great parent. On Wednesday's episode of the "IMO" podcast, which she co-hosts with her brother, Craig Robinson, Obama reflected on their childhood and their parents' approach to raising kids. "I remember them talking about their parents. What went right in their parents' parenting and what went wrong," Obama told Robinson. "One of the beautiful things about Mom and Dad, and Mom more so, was that she was very upfront with us about her strengths, but also her weaknesses." The former first lady said their parents often explained how they were raised themselves, including what they felt their own parents got right and what they didn't. "What I remember so distinctly is Mom saying on more than one occasion, 'Hey, look, this is my first time being a parent, and I'm not sure if I'm doing it right.' And that always resonated with me," Obama said. Robinson added that it gave them a deeper understanding that their parents were just "regular folks" doing their best to figure things out. "And, as a future parent, the grace to be able to say, 'Well, I'm not sure how this works.' I think that makes you a better parent when you come into the game knowing that you're not an expert at this," Robinson said. Obama said their parents understood that showing their flaws to their children wasn't always a bad thing. "So many parents feel like they got to show up perfectly for their kids or else they won't get the respect or they won't have the authority," Obama said. "I don't know what it is, but Mom and Dad did a beautiful job of making themselves plain to us. Like not just being our parents, but being, as you put it, human beings," she said. Obama and Robinson aren't the only ones who've talked about seeing their parents as regular people who make mistakes. During a podcast appearance in March, Kate Hudson — who has 3 kids with 3 different dads — says she learned to apologize to her kids whenever she's in the wrong. In an early June interview, Miley Cyrus said she now sees her mom and dad as individuals outside their parent-child relationship. A representative for Obama and Robinson did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent by Business Insider outside regular hours. Read the original article on Business Insider
