Former first lady Michelle Obama is set to snub President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration next Monday after skipping former President Jimmy Carter’s funeral last week — where she would have sat next to the one and future commander in chief.
“Former President Barack Obama is confirmed to attend the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies. Former first lady Michelle Obama will not attend the upcoming inauguration,” the Office of Barack and Michelle Obama said in a statement to the Associated Press.
The former first lady’s team did not provide a reason for skipping the inauguration, but Michelle Obama, 60, has been an impassioned critic of Trump, 78, over the past eight years.
On Jan. 9, Michelle was a notable no-show to Carter’s funeral at Washington National Cathedral, with CNN reporting she had opted to stay “in Hawaii on an extended holiday vacation” instead.
Her advisers officially chalked up her absence to a scheduling issue, but did not provide further details.
Her husband, former President Barack Obama, sat next to Trump at the funeral and was spotted on camera laughing and bantering with his successor, drawing worldwide headlines.
All other former presidents and their spouses are expected to attend the Jan. 20 inauguration ceremony, including George W. and Laura Bush, Bill and Hillary Clinton, and Joe and Jill Biden.
Both Michelle and Barack Obama attended Trump’s first inauguration in January 2017.
The former first lady’s antipathy against Trump was on display during the 2024 campaign, in which she and her husband campaigned for Vice President Kamala Harris.
Despite coining the aphorism “When they go low, we go high,” Michelle Obama took swipes at Trump’s wealth, his demeanor towards women and his attitude towards minorities. She also pleaded with men to back Vice President Kamala Harris.
“I am asking y’all, from the core of my being, to take our lives seriously,” she said at one rally for Harris this past fall.
Both Donald and Melania Trump skipped President Biden’s inauguration in January 2021 as the soon-to-be 47th president argued that the 2020 election had been stolen from him.
The Post contacted the Trump transition team for comment.
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