How Michelle Obama Avoided Talking Politics With Barack In The White House

It's likely very hard not to take your work home with you when you do a lot of work from your home — and when you have as important a position as president of the U.S. Former first lady Michelle Obama has said she does not like politics. When Barack was president and their family lived in the White House, how did he and Michelle avoid talking about politics? Michelle shared their trick on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" in 2018. 

"You know, I tried to make home a safe space from the policy talk," Michelle said. "I didn't want to be yet another person in his ear saying, 'You should do this' and 'You should do that.'" If she did have something to say regarding politics, Michelle wouldn't tell Barack directly. 

She told Colbert: "If I wanted to deliver a real message, I did it through staffs. So I had my chief of staff talk to his chief of staff. Which was the same thing essentially, but it avoided us having discussions about stuff at home." Michelle also pointed out that she and her husband were almost always in agreement.

Michelle Obama has made it crystal clear that she will not run for president on many occasions. That completely makes sense, especially because Barack Obama said in his book, "A Promised Land," that his political career and presidency negatively affected his marriage with Michelle. In an interview with People from 2020, Barack elaborated on his wife's feelings on politics: "Michelle very much believed in the work I did but was less optimistic about what I could get done. ... She's more skeptical about politics and more mindful of the sacrifices to the family."

Barack went on to explain how things changed after his presidency, saying, "It was like a big exhale right after we left office." The couple are now able to enjoy themselves more without as much stress in their life.

It's unlikely other members of the Obama family will enter politics. At a fundraiser in June 2024 before President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential election, Barack made it clear that Malia Obama and Sasha Obama wouldn't be pursuing politics. "That is a question I do not need to answer because [former first lady] Michelle [Obama] drilled into them so early that you would be crazy to go into politics," Barack said per ABC News, when asked if Malia or Sasha would be better as president. "It will never happen."