Michelle Obama talked about the White House East Wing getting torn down during an event on Wednesday night in Washington. She was at Sixth and I synagogue and arts center to promote her new book The Look, which she wrote with her stylist Meredith Koop. While she never said Trump’s name, it was pretty clear who she was talking about when discussing how presidents should treat the White House.
Last month, the East Wing got demolished to make space for a huge ballroom that Trump wants to build using private money. This part of the White House used to have the first lady’s office and other important work areas. Obama used this moment to talk about how she and her husband saw their time living there.
According to The Hill, Obama said that every president has the right to do what they want in that house, but then added that this is exactly why people need to think carefully about who they vote for. She talked about how different her approach was when she lived there, explaining that she and Barack Obama wanted to make the place more open and welcoming to everyone.
She basically said the White House isn’t yours to keep
The former first lady made it clear that she and Barack Obama never thought of the White House as their own property.
“Our view was this is not our house. We are here to do a job. We’re here for a turn. We’re here for a moment. We are caretakers of this history, and it’s about bringing more people in,” she explained.
She connected this idea to her childhood in Chicago. Growing up on the South Side, Obama said she often felt like she wasn’t welcome in fancy places around the city.
People would follow her around in big stores downtown, and when she went to museums, she got the sense that others thought she didn’t belong there.
Being the first Black first lady, she remembered what it felt like to be that kid standing outside looking in. The new White House ballroom has drawn criticism from various commentators, with some questioning the decision to demolish historic office space.
“When Barack and I were there, we were thinking about those kids like us who were outside of the gates of the South Lawn looking in,” she continued.
“Every president has the right to do what they want in that house, so that’s why we got to be clear on who we let in.”
Obama also brought up another topic about presidential behavior during the event. She told a story from when her husband first got into politics. Oprah Winfrey had sent her a really generous gift after doing an interview. The package had three suits, seven sweaters, and other clothes from Ralph Lauren’s first collection. Obama described it as an Oprah-sized gift because it was so big.
But Barack Obama quickly shut that down. He told Michelle she couldn’t keep any of it because they had a rule about not accepting gifts while he was in office. Obama joked with the crowd when she said this, asking them to imagine having that kind of rule.
She went on to explain why this matters. Obama said that when you’re the president, you need to set an example for everyone in the country.
A lot of these rules aren’t even actual laws. They’re just things you do because you don’t want regular people thinking that rich folks get special treatment or better access to those in power.
Trump’s recent White House activities have sparked various reactions, reflecting broader debates about presidential conduct and image. Obama laughed when she told the audience that their motto back then was simple: if something looked fun, they probably couldn’t do it.
Published: Nov 13, 2025 08:45 pm