Michelle Obama doesn’t attend state funeral for Jimmy Carter
Former first lady Michelle Obama did not attend the state funeral Thursday for former President Jimmy Carter.
Except for Michelle Obama, all of the living former presidents and their spouses were at the funeral, including Barack Obama, sitting in the front pews of Washington National Cathedral behind only President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris and their spouses.
Michelle Obama’s office confirmed she did not attend the funeral but did not say where she was or why she was absent.
“Former First Lady Michelle Obama is not in attendance at President Carter’s National Funeral Service,” according to the statement from spokesperson Crystal Carson. “Mrs. Obama sends her thoughts and prayers to the Carter family, and everyone who loved and learned from the remarkable former President.”
CNN reported before the funeral that the former first lady had a scheduling conflict and remained in Hawaii, where she had been on an “extended vacation.”
State funerals for former presidents are among the few events that bring together the nation’s most prominent leaders of past and present, along with dignitaries from all branches of the U.S. government and representatives of foreign leaders.
Barack Obama, a Democrat, appeared to speak cordially to his Republican successor, Donald Trump. So did former Democratic President Bill Clinton and his Republican successor, George W. Bush. Trump shook hands with his own former vice president, Mike Pence, who was a loyal ally until he refused to go along with Trump’s efforts to remain president after losing the 2020 election to Biden, a Democrat.
The dignitaries will gather again in Washington on Jan. 20 when Trump is sworn in for his second term in the White House. Michelle Obama’s spokesperson did not immediately say whether the former first lady would attend the inauguration.
Associated Press writer Darlene Superville in Washington contributed to this report.
Here's Why Michelle Obama Skipped Jimmy Carter's Funeral
If you saw Jimmy Carter's funeral, you might have noticed how Michelle Obama wasn't in attendance.
Today, all five living presidents — Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton — gathered to pay their respects to Carter, who died last week at age 100. They were all joined by first ladies, including Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, Melania Trump, and Jill Biden — except Obama, who sat next to Trump (as you've likely already seen from the online reactions floating around).
According to CNN, Michelle was unable to attend due to a scheduling conflict. Her advisers told CNN reporter Jeff Zeleny that Michelle is currently "still in Hawaii on an extended holiday vacation."
"Former First Lady Michelle Obama is not in attendance at President Carter’s National Funeral Service,” Michelle's rep Crystal Carson added to People. “Mrs. Obama sends her thoughts and prayers to the Carter family, and everyone who loved and learned from the remarkable former president."
Though she was unable to attend his funeral, Michelle paid tribute to Jimmy in a loving statement shared shortly after his death.
In a joint post with Obama, they remembered Jimmy as a "remarkable man" who "taught all of us what it means to live a life of grace, dignity, justice, and service."
He'll be missed.
Michelle Obama Skips Jimmy Carter's Funeral and Is 'Still in Hawaii' for Extended Holiday: Report
Michelle Obama was not in attendance at President Jimmy Carter’s funeral on Thursday, Jan. 9, as the former first lady usually has for past presidents.
"Former First Lady Michelle Obama is not in attendance at President Carter’s National Funeral Service,” her spokesperson Crystal Carson confirmed to PEOPLE on Thursday morning. “Mrs. Obama sends her thoughts and prayers to the Carter family, and everyone who loved and learned from the remarkable former President.”
CNN's Jeff Zeleny reports that the former first lady is "still in Hawaii on an extended holiday vacation," saying her advisers credited the absence to a scheduling conflict.
All five living presidents and the other first ladies were present at Carter’s funeral Thursday, including Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton; George W. Bush and Laura Bush; Donald Trump and Melania Trump; and Joe Biden and Jill Biden. The group sat together, alongside former President Barack Obama, who notably arrived alone.
Michelle, 60, has often sat near former President Bush, 78, at other public events in which all living presidents gather, such as funerals for high-profile U.S. politicians.
The Democratic former first lady and the Republican former president have made headlines for joking with one another during those occasions and sharing a friendly, warm demeanor despite their political differences.
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The former first lady shares a tense relationship with President-elect Trump, however, who was seated next to Obama and where she would have likely been seated if the former first lady was present at Carter’s funeral.
PEOPLE reported earlier Thursday that Trump, 78, did not stand to greet former President Obama, 63, when the former first and second families were all seated in the front rows. However, the two former presidents, who served back-to-back terms, appeared to later share a lengthy conversation.
Obama spent the 2024 presidential campaign speaking out against Trump while rallying for Vice President Kamala Harris, who delivered a eulogy for Carter on Tuesday while he lay in state inside the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol building.
Carter, who served as the 39th U.S. president from 1977 to 1981, died at the age of 100 on Dec. 29. He was the longest living former president in U.S. history. His death comes roughly one year after his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, died in November 2023.
George W. Bush Belly Taps Barack Obama After ‘Partner in Crime’ Michelle Misses Jimmy Carter’s State Funeral
George W. Bush's unlikely friendship with the Obamas was on display once again at the state funeral for Jimmy Carter, even in former first lady Michelle Obama's absence.
On Thursday, Jan. 9, all of the living U.S. presidents and all but one of the surviving first ladies gathered in Washington to pay their respects to Carter — and while it's usually George's playful interactions with Michelle that go viral at formal events, Thursday's service spawned a different light-hearted moment between him and his successor, Barack Obama.
Related: Michelle Obama Skips Jimmy Carter's Funeral and Is 'Still in Hawaii' for Extended Holiday: Report
At the Washington National Cathedral, George and his wife, Laura Bush, went to take their seats in a row where Barack — whose wife was unable to attend — was already sitting beside Donald and Melania Trump. As George approached, Barack paused his conversation with Donald and stood up to allow his predecessor into the row.
When the Bushes entered the aisle, walking right past the Trumps, George gave Barack a friendly tap on the belly with his knuckles and kept on moving toward his seat. Video of the nonchalant greeting quickly circulated on the internet as new apparent evidence of the first families' comfort around one another.
The Bushes and Obamas, once at odds with each other as successive first couples from opposing political parties, have been characterized as friends since leaving the White House.
George, 78, and Michelle, 60, in particular have had a couple of fondly remembered funeral moments dating back to Sen. John McCain's service at Washington National Cathedral in September 2018, when the former Republican president took a mint from his wife and handed it to Michelle during a eulogy.
After accepting the treat quietly, the Becoming author appeared to express her gratitude by mouthing the words “thank you” to the couple with a smile.
At the time, footage of the gesture began trending on social media, earning comments like “George W. Bush sneaking a piece of candy to Michelle Obama is warming my heart,” and “I’d like to think that moments like this between W. Bush and Michelle Obama are what McCain was hoping for.”
Fans of the pair were further delighted when they reprised their kinship with a similar exchange months later while George was mourning his own father, former President George H.W. Bush.
At the service, George was greeting fellow first couples in the front row when he removed a mint from his pocket, reached across Donald and Melania, and handed it to a smiling Michelle.
Related: Michelle Obama Calls George W. Bush a 'Sweet Man' Even as She Doesn't 'Agree with Him on Everything'
Though Michelle and George made waves online with their 2018 candy exchanges, the world first witnessed their unlikely friendship when the pair shared a hug at the opening of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture back in 2016.
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Since then, Michelle has opened up about their relationship. In 2018, she said on Today that the former president “is my partner in crime at every major thing where all the formers gather.”
“So we’re together all the time, and I love him to death,” she said at the time, adding that George is a “wonderful” and “funny” man.
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