Cast your minds back almost two years ago, to January 20th, 2017. Donald Trump had won the election two months prior, and the day had finally come for him to be officially inaugurated.

The weather was miserable, the turnout was disappointing (unless you ask Trump, who probably thought it was "tremendous"), and the nationwide reaction was pretty negative, on the whole.

While most of the attention was on the 45th president that day, a great deal of it was also given to his predecessor, Barack Obama, and his wife, Michelle. Throughout the ceremony, they looked cool and collected - but everybody knew a storm must have been brewing underneath.

And, sure enough, now Michelle has released a book and started to dish the real dirt on how she felt back then.

While speaking with Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show, Obama shared details about the process of writing her book, struggles she faced during her marriage, and how she felt right after Donald Trump was sworn in as president.

It was Fallon who raised this last topic, as he held up a picture of Obama with her husband waving from Air Force One on the day of the inauguration.

The talk show host was about to ask about her feelings in that moment, and started to say, "Can you just, walk me through..." but Obama cut him off with just two words:

"Bye, Felicia," she said, to rapturous applause.

"Is that what was going through your mind?" Fallon asked.

"Eh, a lot was going on that day!" Obama replied. "That was a day."

The former first lady also revealed that her daughter had a sleepover the night before the ceremony, in order to say goodbye to the White House for the last time, and that it had been stressful to get ready on schedule.

"I was like, 'Get out, we gotta go!' the 54-year-old said. "And then there was the Tiffany's box. That was a lot."

In her book, the mother-of-two actually admitted that she stopped pretending to look happy during the day.

"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, but in this case, maybe it did," she wrote. "Realizing it, I made my own optic adjustment. I stopped even trying to smile."

But not everything she had to say on The Tonight Show was pessimistic. After she'd opened up about the stress of leaving her position as first lady, she went on to tell Fallon about the optimism she has for the future, and how she believes that all people can build themselves up from nothing, just as she did.

You can check out the interview here.

Michelle Obama has accused incumbent President Donald Trump of spreading "racist lies" in a passionate Instagram post.

Per The Independent, taking to her official Instagram account, the 56-year-old former First Lady shared an image of herself and her husband Barack Obama attending Donald Trump's inauguration outside the White House back in January of 2017.

Michelle Obama once compared Trump's presidency to "living with a divorced dad":

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In an emotional caption addressed to her 44 million followers, Obama criticized Trump for pushing "groundless conspiracy theories", and reflected on how she was forced to put her personal feelings on the Republican leader aside in order to ensure a smooth administrative transition.

Michelle Obama wrote: "This week, I’ve been reflecting a lot on where I was four years ago. Hillary Clinton had just been dealt a tough loss by a far closer margin than the one we’ve seen this year. I was hurt and disappointed - but the votes had been counted and Donald Trump had won.

"We invited the folks from the president-elect’s team into our offices and prepared detailed memos for them, offering what we’d learned over the past eight years."

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She continued:

"I have to be honest and say that none of this was easy for me. Donald Trump had spread racist lies about my husband that had put my family in danger. That wasn’t something I was ready to forgive.

"But I knew that, for the sake of our country, I had to find the strength and maturity to put my anger aside. So I welcomed Melania Trump into the White House and talked with her about my experience, answering every question she had."

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Obama added: "I knew in my heart it was the right thing to do - because our democracy is so much bigger than anybody’s ego. Our love of country requires us to respect the results of an election even when we don’t like them or wish it had gone differently - the presidency doesn’t belong to any one individual or any one party.

"To pretend that it does, to play along with these groundless conspiracy theories - whether for personal or political gain - is to put our country’s health and security in danger."

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A number of Instagram users swiftly took to the comments to praise Obama for speaking so candidly.

For instance, one person wrote: "Thank you for the example you provided for what a real President and First Lady do during a time like this."

Meanwhile, someone else added: "This is what we all needed to hear. Thank you for constantly being a beacon of hope to all of us."

Michelle and Barack Obama have openly pledged their support for former VEEP and projected POTUS Joe Biden throughout the 2020 election.

But in a recent interview with Gayle King on CBS Sunday Morning, the former president claimed that his wife Michelle would "leave him" if he ever decided to join Biden's cabinet.

Michelle Obama has finally broken her silence on why she skipped Donald Trump’s January inauguration.

Michelle Obama has finally addressed the reason why she skipped Trump's inauguration. Credit: Julia Beverly / Getty

The former first lady sparked outrage in January after she failed to show up to the 78-year-old president's inauguration.

The move came shortly after she missed Jimmy Carter's funeral, where she would have been seated beside Trump.

The back-to-back absences sparked a wave of rumors ranging from political bitterness to a potential rift in her marriage to former President Barack Obama.

But speaking on a recent episode of her newly launched podcast, which features actress Taraji P. Henson, the 61-year-old shared that the choice, which she said was met with "ridicule and criticism," had nothing to do with scandal and everything to do with self-care.

“I’m at this stage in life where I have to define my life on my terms for the first time,” she shared, per Today. “So what are those terms, and going to therapy just to work all that out?”

At the time, the Obamas’ office issued a brief statement about the former attorney's absence, which read: “Former President Barack Obama is confirmed to attend the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies. Former First Lady Michelle Obama will not attend the upcoming inauguration.”

The lack of explanation only fueled speculation that something deeper was going on. The mom-of-two directly addressed the rumors: “People couldn't believe that I was saying no for any other reason, they had to assume that my marriage was falling apart," cited by The New York Post.

“It took everything in my power to not do the thing that was perceived as right, but do the things that was right for me, that was a hard thing for me to do," she continued, adding that she is now trying to teach her daughters, Sasha and Malia, “the art of saying no".

“I want them to start practicing now the art of saying no, because I see it in them - pleasing, excelling, not wanting to take anything for granted, always showing gratitude,” Obama said. “Feeling like they’re enough right now. It’s a practice. It’s a muscle that you have to build. Because if you don’t constantly build it, you don’t develop it.”

Barack Obama was seated near Bill Clinton and George W. Bush at Trump's 2025 inauguration. Credit: Pool / Getty

Although the former First Lady did attend Trump’s 2020 inauguration, she’s made her opinions about the former president crystal clear.

She has previously described him as “a convicted felon, a known slumlord,” and “a predator found liable for sexual abuse," per The Independent.

Featured image credit: Julia Beverly / Getty

The reported reason behind Michelle Obama’s absence at Donald Trump's inauguration has been revealed.

Donald Trump is the 47th President of the United States. Credit: Saul Loeb - Pool/Getty Images

On Monday (January 20), Donald Trump was officially sworn in as the 47th president of the United States, making history as the first person since Grover Cleveland to serve non-consecutive terms as President of the United States.

The newly-elected leader's inauguration at the Capitol Rotunda was attended by a high-profile guest list including former presidents Joe Biden, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama.

As former first ladies Jill Biden, Hillary Clinton, and Laura Bush accompanied their spouses, viewers couldn't help but notice that Obama, who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017, was alone.

"I feel bad for Barack Obama! Homeboy is alone," one person wrote on X (formerly Twitter) while another chimed in: "Unexpectedly felt a bit sad for Barack Obama watching him walk in alone today without Michelle. She should be there."

A third user questioned: "Been seeing Obama attending events alone these past few months. Why is Michelle Obama not attending events with Barack?"

Barack Obama attended Trump's inauguration. Credit: Pool / Getty

The mystery surrounding Michelle’s decision not to attend Trump’s second inauguration has led to various theories.

Earlier this month, she also skipped former president Jimmy Carter’s state funeral, reportedly due to a “scheduling conflict.” It was later revealed she was vacationing in Hawaii at the time.

A source close to the former first lady told PEOPLE magazine that her decision not to attend Trump’s ceremony was more personal than logistical.

"There's no overstating her feelings about [Trump]. She's not one to plaster on a pleasant face and pretend for protocol's sake," they claimed. "Michelle doesn't do anything because it's expected or it's protocol or it's tradition."

The insider stated that the two-time leader's history of attacking the Obama family and making cruel comments about people of color has also contributed to her opinion of him.

Back in 2023, the 61-year-old reflected on attending Trump's first inauguration in 2017 on The Light Podcast, saying: “[T]here was no diversity, there was no color on that stage," cited by NBC News.

"There was no reflection of the broader sense of America. Many people took pictures of me, and they’re like, you weren’t in a good mood. No, I was not," she added.

The Obamas at Trump's inauguration in 2017. Credit: Mark Wilson / Getty

Michelle’s absence drew criticism from some conservative circles. Canadian businessman Kevin O’Leary voiced his disapproval on Fox News, saying: “This tradition has gone on for over 100 years... You have to respect it. I don’t like what she’s doing here. I’m against it. I think it’s wrong.”

Meanwhile, others pointed out the irony of Trump supporters criticizing the law graduate's decision, given the president's own actions in 2021.

After losing to Joe Biden, Trump became the first outgoing president since Andrew Johnson in 1869 to skip his successor’s inauguration. Melania Trump also chose not to attend.

Featured image credit: Erika Goldring / Getty