Michelle Obama is opening on your decision to omit President Donald Trump’s Second inauguration earlier this year.
The former first lady was remarkably absent from the ceremony of January 20 and the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter was also lost a week and a half before January 9, where he would have sat next to Trump.
In the episode of April 23 of his podcast “In my opinion with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson“That Obama Co-Anfitriona with his brother, reflected on his absence during a sincere conversation with the guest Taraji P. Henson.
“My decision to omit the inauguration: you already know what people do not realize or my decision to make decisions at the beginning of this year that I was fine, they found themselves with such ridicule and criticisms,” he said.
“People could not believe that they were saying not for any other reason, they had to assume that my marriage was falling apart,” he continued. “While I’m here trying to own my life and intentionally practice the right decision for me.”
Michelle Obama speaks on stage during the Conference and the IMO Live Podcast 2025 SXSW Festival at the Austin Convention Center, on March 13, 2025, in Austin, Texas.
Marcus Ingram/Getty images, file
She added: “Everything was needed in my power to not do what was perceived as correct, but do the things that [were] For me, that was difficult for me. “
To help herself, Obama admitted that she had to “basically deceive” herself refusing to prepare for the event.
“He started having nothing to wear,” he said. “I mean, I had affirmatively, because I am always prepared for any funeral, anything. I walk with the right dress, I travel with clothes in case something appears. So I thought, if I’m not going to do this, I have to tell my team, I don’t even want to have a ready dress.”
“Because it is very easy to say: ‘Let me do the right thing,” he added.
In this archive photo of January 20, 2017, the first lady Michelle Obama greets the elected president Donald Trump when they arrive for the beginning of the oath ceremony in front of the Capitol in Washington, DC
Brendan Smialowski/AFP through Getty Images, Archive
The former first lady also shared that part of her motivation was to give an example to her daughters Malia Obama, 26, and Sasha Obama, 23, whom she shares with her husband, former President Barack Obama.
“I want them to begin to practice now the art of saying ‘no’,” he said. “Because I see it in them, please, noting, not wanting to give anything for granted, always showing gratitude, feeling that they are enough at this time, right? It is a practice. It is a muscle that you have to build, because if you do not constantly build it, do not develop it.”
Obama previously spoke about his change of mentality earlier this month during an episode of the “work in progress” podcast with Sophia Bush, where he emphasized how Women are often criticized for prioritizing your own needs.
“So much so that this year, people were, they could not even understand that I was making a decision for myself, that they had to assume that my husband and I are divorcing ourselves,” he said at that time.
“This could not be an adult woman simply making a set of decisions for herself, right? But that is what society does to us.” And if it does not fit into the type of stereotype of what people think we should do, then it is labeled as something negative and horrible. “
She added: “I feel that it is time for some decisions to be made about my life and possesses it completely.”
