Barack Obama has once again added fuel to the divorce rumors surrounding himself and his wife, Michelle Obama, by openly admitting their marriage has been under strain since leaving the White House. During the London leg of his European speaking tour, the former president opened up about his relationship with Michelle amid rampant gossip that the pair has been having marital issues for some time now. In a candid conversation with historian David Olusoga about his life post-presidency, Barack seemed to address the speculation by telling Olusoga (via the Daily Mail), “I was digging myself out of the hole I found myself with Michelle. Now, I’m at about level ground.'”
Over the years, Michelle hasn’t shied away from speaking candidly about the ups and downs of her marriage to Barack. In 2022, the former first lady accidentally confirmed those Barack divorce rumors aren’t totally B.S. by admitting she could barely stand her husband for a good chunk of their marriage (which is never a good sign). Fortunately, Barack took the admission in stride instead of being defensive, telling Hamilton College President Steven Tepper in April (via Today), “I was in a deep deficit with my wife. So I have been trying to dig myself out of that hole by doing occasionally fun things.”
So much digging. He also previously admitted that leaving the White House has helped him get out of the dog house with Michelle and back to her good graces after years of failures and shortcomings. “She is a little more forgiving of all my flaws,” Barack told “CBS Mornings” host Gayle King regarding Michelle. “What she’s told me is, ‘Looking back, you did OK as a dad.’ And if I passed that test, then she’ll forgive me most of my other foibles.”
What they’ve said about the divorce rumors
To recap, what really started the rampant Obama divorce rumors was Michelle sitting out two major political gatherings at the start of 2025 — President Jimmy Carter’s funeral service and Donald Trump’s inauguration — leaving Barack to attend on his own. To help us understand the situation, we reached out to Susan Trombetti, a relationship expert and CEO of Exclusive Matchmaking, who said that while Michelle’s absence from the spotlight may certainly raise some eyebrows, it doesn’t necessarily indicate their marriage is in trouble. “As women, we are told to play nice and not rock the boat, but Michelle is a strong, opinionated woman,” stressed Trombetti. “Likely, she is just done with the obligations that come along with [being first lady].” She went on to add, “Normally, I do think skipping events with your spouse sometimes can spell relationship trouble.” (See also: Melania Trump can’t stop escaping to Florida and it says all about her sham marriage.) “But in this case, it’s understandable.”
Both Barack and Michelle have since addressed the divorce chatter in an episode of Michelle’s “IMO” podcast, which she co-hosts with her brother, Craig Robinson. When Robinson mentioned how great it was to see the couple together at the start, Michelle agreed, saying, “I know because when we aren’t, folks think we’re divorced.” For his part, Barack couldn’t resist cracking jokes. “She took me back. It was touch and go for a while.”
Look, marriage is hard, and there’s nothing wrong with saying that out loud when things get tough. “There hasn’t been one moment in our marriage where I’ve thought about quitting on my man,” Michelle boldly admitted on her podcast. “We’ve had some really hard times and we’ve had a lot of fun times … and I have become a better person because of the man I’m married to.”
