Michelle Obama had to put up with public scrutiny, which she did not sign up for during her husband’s time as President. Barack Obama recently revealed how the former First Lady dealt with the constant criticism thrown her way.
The former president appeared on Marc Maron’s WTF podcast, where he spoke about his life as President and after. The comedian especially flew down to Washington, D.C. to film the episode with Obama.
In the episode, he shared how he tackled problems in his personal life that arose after he left office. One of them was the “deficit” he had with his wife that he had to work out. While getting candid, he revealed how there was “a big deficit with my wife that I kind of had to work my way out of.”
The 64-year-old shared how the solution they found was to go on lots of trips with Michelle and hang out whenever they could. “You know, had nice dinners and slept in,” he added.
He also spoke about the public criticism that his family had to deal with while he was in office. “Michelle and I talk about the fact that a lot of our friends, we used to call them civilians, cause if they got criticized on the comment page about something, they’d be freaked out,” Obama shared.
The former President went on to note how he and Michelle have had “so much incoming” over the course of the decade. “Or at least I chose it, as Michelle will point out, and she was subjected to it – that you do get a tougher skin,” he quickly added.
Happy Anniversary to one of the best presidents in modern history and his amazing wife. Barack and Michelle Obama! pic.twitter.com/WAgqCT6f2V
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) October 3, 2025
Barack sympathised with his wife and said he understood how difficult it is to have your phone filled up with “hostile, nasty, trolling garbage.” The former First Lady herself has previously spoken about how she was reluctant to the idea of her husband running for president.
Michelle discussed the same with her brother, Craig Robinson, on the IMO podcast. She noted how she often relied on her brother to “get through” and thanked him for being there for her when she needed him.
“Being married to the president of the United States (is a) thing that none of us kind of banked on. We knew Barack was smart and ambitious, but, you know…” she added.
She also admitted that she was not keen on her husband running for President. Michelle revealed how it was her brother Craig who “talked her” into supporting her husband’s run.
The former First Lady revealed how her husband was smart enough to talk to her brother and “sell” him on the idea. “Because I was definitely like, no, no way,” the 61-year-old shared on the IMO podcast.
