Barack Obama says wife Michelle was ‘bracing herself for calamity’ in the White House

The former US president admitted he repeatedly dreamt of escaping the high-pressure “bubble”
michelle-obama-barack-obama-081019.jpg
Getty Images

Former US President Barack Obama has revealed the anxiety he felt for wife Michelle when they lived in the White House, saying she was “bracing herself for calamity”.

Mr Obama disclosed his feelings in extracts from his memoir, A Promised Land, in The Sunday Times Magazine.

As President Donald Trump clings on in the White House, his predecessor admitted he repeatedly dreamt of escaping the high-pressure “bubble”.

He wrote: “There were nights when, lying next to Michelle in the dark, I’d think about those days when everything between us felt lighter, when her smile was more constant and our love less encumbered, and my heart would suddenly tighten at the thought that those days might not return.”

Mr Obama would duck out of the White House for the odd crafty cigarette, a morning workout and an evening walk on the South Lawn.

He describes how Michelle threw herself energetically into the role of First Lady during their eight years.  

But he continued to sense an “undercurrent of tension” that because of his job fundamental aspects of the First Lady’s life “were no longer entirely within her control”, from the security of her family to its future.

He added: “Nothing was fixed anymore. Not even close. And so, consciously or not, a part of her stayed on alert, no matter what small triumphs and joys a day or week or month might bring, waiting and watching for the next turn of the wheel, bracing herself for calamity.”

A Promised Land by Barack Obama
Viking

Mr Obama will make a virtual appearance at this year’s Booker Prize awards ceremony on Thursday.  

His pre-recorded message will be played at the ceremony when it takes place at the Roundhouse in London.

The Duchess of Cornwall will also share her thoughts on the importance of reading during the pandemic at the event.

The Booker Prize, first awarded in 1969, is open to writers of any nationality whose work is written in English and published in the UK or Ireland.

The Booker Prize award ceremony will take place on November 19 and will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 as well as being livestreamed on iPlayer.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in