Even Trump's Biggest Supporters Can't Deny The Presidential Allure Of Michelle Obama

Michelle Obama is among the very few people who have consistently been a contender for one of the top jobs in the world: President of the United States. After her husband, Former President Barack Obama, concluded his second term in 2017, people hoped that she would take the reins. Years later, President Joe Biden's poor performance at the first 2024 presidential debate had Michelle's name on everyone's lips once again. In fact, it seems like 2024 presidential hopeful Donald Trump was one of the few people who felt that the "Becoming" author wasn't a good fit for the role. Speaking at a campaign event in June 2024, the controversial politician claimed that the Democrats' search for a replacement for Biden had gone rather poorly, stating, "They polled everybody." 

Trump added, "They polled Michelle Obama, she polls very badly. No, she polls terribly," per Newsweek. However, even one of the former president's biggest supporters, Ted Cruz, disagreed with this statement. During an episode of his "Verdict" podcast, the Republican senator asserted, "If I were a Democrat, I'd have been all in on Michelle because Michelle would have been an incredibly formidable candidate." Then, Cruz posited that the former first lady wasn't interested in the position because she was too busy living her lavish life. He publicly endorsed Trump earlier in the year, ignoring the fact that he had once put forth a wild conspiracy theory suggesting that Cruz's father was friends with John F. Kennedy's assassinator and also retweeted a pic deeming his wife ugly. 

To better understand why Michelle Obama fared well among such a diverse group of people, we tapped into the expertise of Dr. Caroline Heldman, Ph.D., the executive director of The Representation Project and the chair of the Critical Theory and Social Justice Department at Occidental College in Los Angeles. Dr. Heldman attributed part of the former first lady's allure to the fact that "she has never served in a political position that required her to take formal policy positions. If she were more overtly political, her support amongst Republicans would fall." 

Furthermore, she reckons that Michelle got into certain Republicans' good books by being a more traditional first lady who focused on her daughters, alongside children's health across the nation. Dr. Heldman also noted that the "Becoming" star's charisma, confidence, and ability to hold a room's attention were all massive strengths, explaining, "She appeals to people from all walks of political life because of her authenticity, candor, and honesty." Additionally, Michelle won people over whenever she delivered a speech because her passion for the U.S. was always evident. 

And to top it all off, Michelle and Barack Obama generally encouraged people to be better versions of themselves for the benefit of the whole country. Ultimately, Dr. Heldman believes that Michelle's popularity is particularly impressive given that "Black women face an uphill battle in 'likeability' because they are so often stereotyped as unlikeable, aggressive, and threatening figures across sports, entertainment, and certainly politics."

Michelle Obama has shut down speculation that she will run for president several times. During an April 2023 chat with Oprah Winfrey, the former first lady admitted that she wasn't a huge fan of politics in general. "Politics is hard. And the people who get into it — it's just like marriage, it's just like kids — you've got to want it," Michelle argued (via Rolling Stone). "It's got to be in your soul, because it is so important. It is not in my soul." The "Light We Carry" author only ventured into politics to support Barack Obama, and the thought of running for office herself never even crossed her mind. 

Instead, Michelle shared that she was primarily driven to serve the public, and she could better accomplish her mission if she steered clear of politics because, "The minute you declare a party, you've alienated the other half of the country." Her decision to generally stay away better enabled her to help children from diverse political backgrounds. As for Michelle's own kids, Sasha and Malia Obama, we can count on them not following in their dad's political footsteps either. 

While speaking at a fundraiser for President Joe Biden in 2024, Barack revealed that his beloved wife had made it clear to their daughters from a young age that going into politics was a terrible idea, so they were understandably averse to it upon reaching adulthood. Unfortunately, it seems like we won't see another Obama family member in the White House anytime soon as a result.