Mr Viral
Michelle Obama’s Side-Eye At Donald Trump’s 2017 Inauguration Is Going Viral Again After It Was Announced She’ll Be Skipping His 2025 CeremonyThe side-eye heard around the world.
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Sorry for the jump scare, but President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration takes place in just a few days.
Ahead of the event, former first lady Michelle Obama’s office announced that she will not be in attendance on Jan. 20.
According to People, a source they say is familiar with Obama’s thinking told the publication, “There’s no overstating her feelings about [Trump]. She’s not one to plaster on a pleasant face and pretend for protocol’s sake… You’ll see her when she has a project or cause to promote but she doesn’t feel the need to be a public figure anymore.”
Following the announcement, netizens couldn’t help but think back to the last time Obama watched a Trump inauguration in 2017, and just how…uncomfortable the whole situation was. So, let’s take a journey back in time together, shall we?
To state plainly: Michelle Obama performed her role as a former first lady making room for the next.
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She accepted a kiss from Melania Trump…
…and Donald Trump.
She even accepted a gift from the duo.
But the whole thing had a thick layer of awkwardness underneath.
NBC News / Twitter: @jonnysun
In her memoir Becoming, Obama wrote that she “stopped even trying to smile” during Trump’s inauguration.
“The vibrant diversity of the two previous inaugurations was gone. … Someone from Barack’s administration might have said that the optics there were bad — that what the public saw didn’t reflect the president’s reality or ideals,” she wrote.
“But in this case, maybe it did. Realizing it, I made my own optic adjustment: I stopped even trying to smile.”
The emotions were palpable.
So, regardless of her rationale, many people say they can’t blame her for not attending.
Michelle Obama is doing the right thing!
In 2025.. who cares about the optics.
Standing on principles should be commended.
The people concerned about her not attending should be more critical and laser focused on the incoming felon assuming the presidency. pic.twitter.com/lnFaok6gVU
— Charli Huxley (@ImKnotTheOne) January 14, 2025
BET / Twitter: @ImKnotTheOne
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