Barack Obama Pens Sweet Mother’s Day Tribute After Michelle Squashed Divorce Rumors
The former first lady addressed the long-swirling divorce rumors earlier this month.
MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images
Barack Obama celebrated Mother’s Day with a sweet tribute to his wife, Michelle.
“Happy Mother’s Day to all the amazing moms and mother-figures!” the former president wrote on social media alongside a photo of Michelle and the couple’s two daughters, Sasha and Malia. “@MichelleObama, the girls and I are so lucky to have you in our lives. We love you.”
Earlier this month, the former first lady addressed long-standing rumors that she and her husband had secretly divorced, telling The Diary of a CEO podcast in a May 1 episode: “If I were having problems with my husband, everybody would know about it.”
Happy Mother's Day to all the amazing moms and mother-figures!@MichelleObama, the girls and I are so lucky to have you in our lives. We love you. pic.twitter.com/qmWAr50Z7F
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 11, 2025
“I’m not a martyr, I’m not,” Michelle continued. “I would be problem-solving in public, and be like, ‘Let me tell you what [Barack] did.’”
The former attorney also opened up on how she and her husband have made the past 32 years of their marriage work, explaining that neither one of them has ever seriously considered walking away.
Get the best of The Beast delivered right to your inbox
By clicking “SUBSCRIBE” you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
“That’s not who we are. And I know that about him. He knows that about me,” Michelle said.
Talk of marital strife between the couple began after Barack attended both Jimmy Carter’s funeral and President Donald Trump‘s second inauguration alone.
The former first lady shut down rumors that she and her husband had divorced in May.
Jean Catuffe/GC Images
In an April episode of her podcast, IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson, the author and activist explained her absence from Trump’s inauguration and said that she was making a decision that was right for her and was practicing the “art of saying no.”
“People couldn’t believe that I was saying no for any other reason, they had to assume that my marriage was falling apart,” Michelle said. “It took everything in my power to not do the thing that was perceived as right, but do the things that was right for me, that was a hard thing for me to do.”
See more of our coverage in your search results.
Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here.
Register below to read this article for free or subscribe
to unlock unlimited access to The Daily Beast.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Already have an account? Sign In
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.