Former U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama announced on the 14th (local time) that she will not attend President Donald Trump's inauguration next week.
The former President Barack Obama and his wife stated in a press release that only former President Obama will attend President Trump's inauguration on the 20th. Michelle Obama did not disclose the reason for her absence from the inauguration.
Traditionally, in American politics, it is considered a long-standing custom for former presidents and their spouses to attend the inauguration of a new president together. Major foreign media outlets, including the AP and CNN, noted this culture and highlighted Michelle Obama's absence as unusual. Michelle Obama also did not attend former President Jimmy Carter's funeral held last week at the Washington National Cathedral and stayed in Hawaii.
Previously, Michelle Obama mentioned Trump's first presidential inauguration in a 2023 podcast. She criticized it by saying, "I had to sit on the podium and watch something that was the exact opposite of what we represented," adding, "There was no diversity, no color, and nothing that reflected the greater meaning of America." She also publicly condemned Trump's hateful rhetoric, stating it was "never forgivable."
On the other hand, former President George W. Bush and his wife, as well as former President Bill Clinton and his wife, are expected to attend President Trump's inauguration. At Trump's first inauguration in 2017, all current and former presidents and first ladies attended, including former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who lost the 2016 presidential election.
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