By The Megyn Kelly Show | Created at 2025-01-15 23:13:17 | Updated at 2025-01-16 04:35:51
6 hours ago
Where in the world is Michelle Obama? That is the question many are asking after the former first lady has been noticeably absent from two high-profile events.
Obama was the only living first lady to not attend the state funeral service for former President Jimmy Carter last week, and it has now been confirmed that she will also skip Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday.
On Wednesday’s show, Megyn was joined by Victor Davis Hanson, author of The End of Everything, to discuss Obama’s absence and what may be the driving force behind it.
The No Show
Barack Obama and Trump certainly appeared to be enjoying each other’s company at the Washington National Cathedral last Thursday as they awaited Carter’s funeral service. The two men were seated directly next to each other in the row of former presidents and their spouses because his wife was not present.
CNN reported that the former first lady was in Hawaii at the time of the event due to a scheduling conflict, though there was never an official statement made. The same cannot be said for Inauguration Day.
On Tuesday, the Obamas released a formal statement that confirmed she would be a no show next week. “Former President Barack Obama is confirmed to attend the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies. Former first lady Michelle Obama will not attend the upcoming inauguration,” it read.
The Reason
No further explanation has been provided, but the statement came on the same day that reports dropped about Kamala Harris snubbing J.D. Vance by not inviting him to the vice president’s residence for a customary get together. “These are petty, bitter people,” Megyn said. “They are bitter about this victory, and it is manifesting in [several] ways.”
While Megyn accused both Obama and Harris of “behaving so badly,” Hanson said he is not surprised. “She spent the last three weeks of the campaign screaming that Donald Trump was Satan, and he was a racist, and he was mean, and he hated black people, and now she is going to have to sit next to him,” he explained. “She doesn’t know what Donald Trump would say to her in front of everybody.”
But the former first lady was not alone in her condemnation of the president-elect. “She and Barack both were out there saying Trump is a racist. Barack referenced Hitler,” Megyn noted. “Is the difference that Barack Obama didn’t actually believe any of that, but Michelle Obama did?”
Hanson thinks it is more strategic than that. “He is a transactional politician,” he said. “He is smart enough, like Bill Clinton, to know that the only reason that they have half a reputation is they feigned that they were centrist… He understands politics.”
The same cannot be said for his wife. “Michelle Obama is off the rails, and Hillary [Clinton] is even off too,” Hanson concluded. “That is what is in common between Bill and Barack. It’s almost as if, ‘Well, our wives are crazy… [but] we’re not going to engage in this feuding because it’s not transactional. It doesn’t help us.'”
You can check out Megyn’s full interview with Hanson by tuning in to episode 983 on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen. And don’t forget that you can catch The Megyn Kelly Show live on SiriusXM’s Triumph (channel 111) weekdays from 12pm to 2pm ET.
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