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Michelle Obama wants to ‘flee US for Europe WITHOUT Barack’ amid rising tensions after divorce rumors and podcast flop
Michelle finally addressed the persistent divorce rumors
MICHELLE Obama is yearning to detach herself from the spotlight as a public figure in America in exchange for a quiet life in Europe, and she's willing to do it without Barack Obama, a source has told The U.S. Sun.
The idea of escaping abroad for a few months has been playing on Michelle's mind since the end of 2024, though it's been a dream the former first lady, 61, has fantasized about since her teenage years.
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"Michelle has been wanting a lot lately to do things for her, to fulfill some dreams and life goals that she has been having but couldn't really fulfill due to her life and because of her husband's responsibilities," a source close to Michelle disclosed to The U.S. Sun.
"But lately, she has been doing things for her, and she has a dream that she has been having since she was a teenager about living out of America for a bit, and spend time in another continent, like Europe.
"To enjoy espresso at a terrace, eat some pastries, walking down the streets like a normal person and not get any attention, and get away from all the spotlights, that is one goal that she would like to do soon."
The source said Michelle has been exploring different options in southern Europe, including moving abroad temporarily to France, Italy, Greece, and Spain.
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"She loves France, Italy, Spain, Greece, all those Mediterranean countries where the pace of life is slower, and things are simpler," the insider added.
"She is really interested by this possibility, to go there for some months, I don't know if Barack would join her or not, but she really would love to live this kind of experience as soon as possible."
MICHELLE RESPONDS TO DIVORCE RUMORS
The source's shocking revelation comes as Michelle and Barack Obama's marriage has been the subject of divorce rumors since the end of 2024.
Concerns about the couple's marriage arose when Michelle was notably absent from former President Jimmy Carter's state funeral in January.
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Obama, 63, attended the funeral alone as he sat between President Donald Trump and former First Lady Laura Bush, the wife of former President George W. Bush.
Michelle then skipped Trump's inauguration on January 20, as cameras captured Obama entering the US Capitol Rotunda alone.
Michelle Obama finally addresses Barack divorce rumors and breaks silence on Jimmy Carter funeral & inauguration snubs
In late February, Michelle and her older brother, Craig Robinson, were pictured in Los Angeles out for dinner without Obama.
Michelle and Robinson even started a podcast on YouTube, IMO, where she discussed some pet peeves that irritated her about Obama, including his lack of punctuality.
She even revealed how she did not support her husband's presidential campaign and admitted she needed some convincing from her brother.
"You [Robinson] talked me into supporting his run cause I was definitely like, nope, nope, this is crazy, we've done enough crazy stuff," Michelle said in the podcast.
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But as the persistent divorce rumors continued to make rounds, Michelle evidently shut them down during an interview on Sophia Bush's podcast, Work in Progress.
Michelle revealed that she skipped the high-profile political events simply because she wanted to.
"That's the thing that we as women, I think we struggle with disappointing people," Michelle said.
"I mean, so much so that this year people were, you know, they couldn't even fathom that I was making a choice for myself that they had to assume that my husband and I are divorcing."
Michelle's full comments on divorce rumors
"We as women, I think we struggle with disappointing people. They couldn't even fathom that I was making a choice for myself. That they had to assume that my husband and I are divorcing. That this couldn't be a grown woman just making a set of decisions herself. But that's what that's what society does to us," Michelle Obama said during an interview on Sophia Bash's Work in Progress.
"Now is the time for me to start asking myself these hard questions of, Who do I truly want to be every day? Who do I want to have a lunch with? How long do I want to stay in a place? Do I want to travel? If a girlfriend calls and says let’s go here, I can say yes. And I’m trying to do that more and more.
"If it doesn't fit into the sort of stereotype of what people think we should do, then it gets labeled as something negative and horrible.
"I learned that I can really only control me."
SIMPLER LIFE
Meanwhile, the source told The U.S. Sun that Michelle has begun to live a little more selfishly to put "her needs and goals first."
"She has been thinking about this a lot lately, and the first conversations about this came up during the last months of 2024, where I really felt that she was a bit fed up and tired of many things," the insider said of Michelle's potential move east.
"She wants to explore, to live a simple life the way she wants, and be free to travel and spend time wherever she wants.
"She really would like a slower pace of life for a bit, to disconnect from some things in America, and to do things that she was never able to do in a simple way, go to the restaurant without being recognized, going to exhibitions, cultural events, visit museums and historical places, spend quality time and do really simple things for herself.
"I don’t know if Barack would join, but she feels the need to do things for her own experience, and be a bit more selfish, and putting her needs and goals first on some aspects of her life, like travelling and experiencing life in, a simple way without the whole spotlights and attention that she gets very often.
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"She wants to live a bit without being a public figure, and go somewhere that takes her out of America for a bit, like a mini break, a gateway from her life in the USA."
The office of Barack and Michelle Obama did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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