Michelle Obama, the former First Lady, will not attend President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday after missing President Jimmy Carter’s funeral.
The Office of Barack and Michelle Obama confirmed to the Associated Press that former President Barack Obama would be attending the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies. The former first lady, Michelle Obama, will not attend the upcoming inauguration.
Citing a “scheduling conflict,” Michelle Obama skipped President Jimmy Carter’s funeral in the Washington National Cathedral on Thursday and continued her holiday vacation in Hawaii, the birthplace of President Barack Obama.
The former first lady has maintained a more low-key public persona since the death of her mother, Marian Robinson, in May. During the August Democratic National Convention, she talked about the deep effect her bereavement had on her. “I still feel her loss so profoundly—I wasn’t even sure I’d be steady enough to stand before you tonight,” she said in front of a packed United Centre in Chicago.
Despite her personal hardships, Michelle Obama showed her political participation by hosting a number of campaign events for Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris before Election Day.
Her husband, Barak Obama, will attend.
Barack Obama is expected to attend Monday’s swearing-in despite his wife Michelle’s absence, which should be surprising given that the couple normally attends these occasions together.
Obama and Donald Trump stirred up controversy on the internet Thursday after their uncharacteristically chatty appearances during President Jimmy Carter’s memorial service. Their encounter garnered attention because of their tense past.
Notably, before the event began, Obama was seen smiling at something Trump said at the Jimmy Carter burial, which sparked a lot of speculation about what they were talking about.
Why doesn’t she go?
It’s also “deliberate,” according to someone familiar with the Obamas’ inner circle who spoke to Page Six. She has consistently been sincere and real. The source claims that she has always been quite particular about where and how she shows up.
She went to the election reluctantly. She doesn’t need to unite around [Trump], even though they were united.