On Thursday, January 9, 2025, all 5 living presidents were in attendance for the funeral of former president Jimmy Carter, but one of their spouses wasn’t present at the event, catching the eye of the internet. The person whose absence became the topic of discussion was the former First Lady Michelle Obama.
Michelle, who is known to adhere to all protocols and make appearances everywhere important, was found missing from the National Funeral Service of President Carter as former President Barack Obama was seen sitting alone in the front pew for the service. Speculations about her health or any family emergencies started running wild soon after.
The former First Lady’s office confirmed her absence in a statement in which Crystal Carson, her spokesperson, said, “Mrs Obama sends her thoughts and prayers to the Carter family and everyone who loved and learned from the remarkable former President”. However, her office has not made any statement clarifying her absence during the service.
Why Michelle Obama missed Jimmy Carter’s funeral as Barack appears alone at National Cathedral https://t.co/MSGpaZZZGO pic.twitter.com/WphC1bU45h
— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) January 9, 2025
Both sides of the internet reacted to Michelle missing the event. While the Republican side talked about the potential mayhem that could have ensued if Melania had missed the service, the Democratic side joked that she decided to sit out of the prayer service to avoid sitting next to President-elect Donald Trump.
Due to Michelle’s absence from the service, Barack Obama and Donald Trump sat next to each other, as the latter attended the service with his wife, Melania Trump. Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband, Douglas Emhoff, were also in attendance for the prayer service.
At the beginning of the event, both Mr and Mrs Trump greeted former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton,after which they were shown to their seats. What began as a cordial interaction between Obama and Trump soon turned into a full conversation. Midway through it, Obama was seen laughing at something Trump said. The photographs of this highly unlikely moment then went viral as the story broke.
Former Pres. Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump spoke inside Washington National Cathedral at the state funeral ceremony for former Pres. Jimmy Carter.
Read more: https://t.co/xdQ5hl8H63 pic.twitter.com/7o7lxZ0nKh
— ABC News (@ABC) January 9, 2025
After the service, when Trump was asked by Fox News about the viral moment, the President-elect said that the moment looked very friendly. He said it looked like these two people liked each other. He went on,” And we probably do.”
Trump and Obama sitting next to each other was neither a deliberate attempt nor a faux pas by the organizers. The seating protocols for the living presidents and their spouses are very rigid and are followed every time an event requires their presence. Due to these protocols, Michelle Obama is always seated next to Former President George W. Bush with whom she even developed a friendship. Both of them are seen talking, exchanging looks, and even trading candies at different events.
Michelle and Bush have talked about the comfort they feel knowing who their seatmate is going to be. Though President Barack has joked about missing out on candies as Michelle does not share those with him.