Michelle Obama made a snide jibe at her husband Barack as she shared how she is ‘so glad’ the pair never had a son because he would’ve been just like his father.
The former first lady made the shocking remark on Wednesday’s episode of her podcast IMO, which she co-hosts with her older brother Craig Robinson.
It came up as the siblings discussed societal views on masculinity and challenges parents face as raising boys with radio host Angie Martinez.
‘People say mothers raise their girls and love their sons,’ Michelle, 61, said. ‘And I’d say love your son, but raise him too – raise him to be as strong as you know he’s going to have to be.’
She rattled off a slew of tips for raising men before Martinez interrupted: ‘You should’ve threw a boy in the mix.’
‘I’m so glad I didn’t have a boy,’ she quickly shot back. Martinez, through her laughter, asked: ‘Why didn’t you throw in a third?’
‘Because he would’ve been a Barack Obama,’ the Becoming author replied.
‘Baby Barack! It would’ve been amazing!’ Martinez squealed, but Michelle doubled down, saying ‘oh, no, I would’ve felt for him’.
The remark comes amid swirling rumors about the state of the power couple’s 33 year marriage.
Earlier this week Michelle was spotted having lunch with a surprising date at an exclusive club in Mallorca. Barack, however, was noticeably absent.
Michelle last month dismissed speculation about marital issues and addressed the rumors head on during an episode of The Diary of a CEO.
‘If I were having problems with my husband, everybody would know about it,’ she told the podcast.
She also recently appeared on Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang’s Las Culturistas podcast and made it clear she doesn’t like being referred to as ‘Mrs. Obama’.
During their sit-down, Matt revealed that before cameras started rolling, Michelle had asked him not to call her ‘Mrs. Obama.’
‘Earlier I was like, “Thank you so much, Mrs. Obama,” and you said, “Michelle,”‘ Rogers said.
‘I did say that,’ Michelle responded with a laugh, before explaining why she likes to avoid the name. ‘We cannot have a real conversation if you’re saying, “Mrs Obama,” that’s too many syllables.’
Matt then asked if she is usually quick to ‘put down that shield for people,’ and Michelle claimed that she’s generally tries to appear less intimidating.
‘I was trying to do that when I was first lady because I just think… I am not that position. I am Michelle,’ she explained. ‘I’m always trying to break down that wall to say, “We’re just all here.” And the first thing to do is like, let’s drop that title, that’s a little heavy.’
The couple’s eldest daughter Malia has also dropped her famous surname and is now going by Malia Ann professionally.
Michelle has publicly supported Malia’s decision, emphasizing that she wants her daughter to ‘carve her own path’ and ‘make her way’.
Rumors that Michelle and Barack’s marriage is on the rocks were fueled by her noticeable absence from several high-profile events this year; including January’s presidential inauguration and the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter.
In March, Michelle also skipped their usual courtside seats at the NBA All-Star Game.
The couple were spotted out on a date night in NYC in May, after having also been seen going out to dinner in DC the month before.
Social media and the tabloids have all served to amplify claims that the couple may soon be heading for a split.
On a recent podcast Michelle revealed how she is in therapy to help her transition to what she thinks is the ‘next phase’ of her life.
During the episode, Michelle acknowledged that marriage is ‘hard’ for her and the former president but added that ‘I wouldn’t trade it,’ calling President Obama, ‘as the young people say… my person.’
‘The beauty of my husband and our partnership is that neither one of us was ever really, ever going to quit at it, because that’s not who we are. And I know that about him. He knows that about me.’
Michelle has been open about her marriage struggles throughout the years, particularly on her and Robinson’s podcast IMO.
She has also discussed being an ’empty nester’ and admitted to getting ‘some help’ as she heads into her 60s.
‘At this phase of my life, I’m in therapy right now because I’m transitioning, you know?’ she said on a recent episode of On The Jay Shetty Podcast.
‘I’m 60 years old, I’ve finished a really hard thing in my life with my family intact, I’m an empty nester, my girls are in – you know, they’ve been launched,’ she said.
Michelle said that she’s got ‘other voices’ to talk to and a ‘new person that’s getting to know me’ as she works through things.
Being out of public service, she now finds herself in a situation where ‘every choice that I’m making is completely mine.’
‘I now don’t have the excuse of, “Well, my kids need this” or “My husband needs that” or “The country needs that.”‘
She says that therapy is a ‘tune-up for this next phase’ in an attempt to ‘unwind some old habits and ‘sort through some old guilt,’ along with focusing on her relationship with her own mother.
