The Obamas have been out of the White House for over a year at this point, but that doesn’t mean that they have significantly faded from the public’s view. Many Americans continue to hold on to the memory of a time when someone occupied the White House who, quite simply, was an actually accessible leader who didn’t take to social media and other publicly visible venues to spar with his enemies like a schoolyard bully.
On Sunday, we got another reminder of the Obamas and their legacy, with both Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, tweeting out messages in honor of Mother’s Day.
The former president’s message was meant to honor both Michelle, with whom he has two daughters, and Michelle’s own mother, Marian Robinson.
Alongside a picture of his family, Obama wrote:
‘Happy Mother’s Day to every mom out there, especially the remarkable moms in my life,
@MichelleObama and my mother-in-law, Marian Robinson.’
Happy Mother’s Day to every mom out there, especially the remarkable moms in my life, @MichelleObama and my mother-in-law, Marian Robinson. pic.twitter.com/n65fyWg7O8
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 13, 2018
Michelle’s message also honored Marian Robinson and included an old photo of herself as a child with her mother and her brother, Craig Robinson.
She wrote:
‘It’s impossible for any picture to truly capture what my mother, Marian, has meant to me. Happy #MothersDay to all of the moms out there, and especially to my own.’
It’s impossible for any picture to truly capture what my mother, Marian, has meant to me. Happy #MothersDay to all of the moms out there, and especially to my own. pic.twitter.com/GfJdJJ8oPR
— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) May 13, 2018
Michelle Obama’s father passed away in 1991 due to complications with multiple sclerosis; both of her husband’s parents have passed away. His mother died in 1995 due to cancer.
Down the line, after the Obamas moved into the White House, Marian Robinson, mother to Michelle and mother-in-law to Barack, actually moved into the White House with the family, thus becoming the first grandmother to live in the White House alongside the First Family in decades.
The current president did offer his own message to honor Mother’s Day; posting a brief video message to his personal Twitter account honoring both American mothers throughout history and his own mother, Mary MacLeod.
Speaking of American mothers in history, President Trump commented:
‘Since the earliest days of our Republic, America’s strength has come from the love and courage and devotion of our mothers.’
Check out his video message below.
Happy Mother’s Day!!! pic.twitter.com/zw71dnT7TJ
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 13, 2018
The president did not, in his message, mention his current wife, Melania Trump, with whom he has a young son, Barron. For much of the already elapsed portion of the Trump administration, she stayed relatively out of the spotlight. Recently, however, she unveiled an awareness campaign meant to promote the well-being of American young people — and it subsequently came out that a document distributed in relation to that campaign was lifted basically straight from a document shared by the Obama administration.
Michelle Obama, for her part, occupied herself while in office largely with promoting both children’s health and the advancement of educational opportunities for girls around the world.
The Obamas, as mentioned, remain widely beloved political figures that the nation is largely holding onto as it grapples with how to deal with the threat of another four years of Donald Trump post-2020. Barack has maxed out his available time in office, but his vice president, Joe Biden, has been floated as a possible 2020 Trump challenger — we will just have to wait and see at this point.
Check out Twitter’s response to the Obamas below.
Featured Image via Mark Wilson/Getty Images
