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Barack Obama and Michelle Obama had the unique privilege of raising their two daughters, Malia and Sasha, in the White House—a situation that presented a wide range of emotions and even some unexpected challenges.
Indeed, during the latest episode of her podcast, "IMO," which she shares with her brother, Craig Robinson, Michelle Obama revealed that despite sharing the same famous parents, her daughters, Malia and Sasha, are polar opposites.
While speaking with Robinson, Michelle said that her youngest daughter, Sasha, who turned 23 in June 2025, was very independent and reclusive during her younger years, likening her to a "cat."
"She's like, 'Don't touch me, don't pet me. I'm not pleasing you. You come to me,'" the former First Lady said.
Consequently, those around her, including her father, would sometimes refer to her as "difficult." However, Michelle always defended Sasha, explaining that she just wasn't as interested in pleasing other people as her sister, Malia.
According to Michelle, when the family was in the White House, Malia made a point to discuss current events with her father as a way to connect with him.
"She'd go into the Treaty Room and be like, 'Tell me about Syria,'" Michelle explained, adding that the former POTUS would later say, "I just had an amazing conversation with Malia."
Despite their children's different personalities, however, Michelle previously gushed about how great a father Barack was to their children. During a conversation with Bruce Springsteen, Michelle explained that it took considerable effort for the former Commander-in-Chief to leave the trappings of his job, including press, Secret Service, and chefs, at the door when they were trying to raise young, humble daughters.
"... so finding that balance of, you know, when you've got the nuclear code in your grasp and world leaders calling you and big, important, heavy decisions coming at you every day and valets and aides and on and on, and security, and oh, it's just all grandeur," she said.
"Trying to wipe all that stuff away and leave it at the door before he would enter the residence of the White House to sit at a dinner table with his two daughters and only talk about them," Michelle continued. "It was important for both of us, for me and Barack, to carve out that time in those eight years when our girls were in their formative years, you know."
Happy birthday to my baby girl! Sasha, you bring so much light and joy to our lives—always have, always will. I’m so excited to see what this new year will bring you. Love you so much! ???? pic.twitter.com/HvVCeNg1A8
— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) June 10, 2023
According to a previous report from The Blast, when Malia and Sasha were living in the White House, Michelle admitted that trying to keep their lives somewhat contained wound up becoming "a lot of work" as they got older.
In fact, the "Becoming" author once called the task a "nightmare," explaining that she and the White House staff worked tirelessly to keep Malia and Sasha's coming-of-age experiences out of the media.
"They had to drive and they had to go to prom and they were on teams and they traveled to other schools and they had to do college searches, and they went to parties and they had drinks, and they tried out smoking and they did all the things," Michelle said, "and every weekend was a nightmare, because we had to work to make sure that them being regular teenagers didn't wind up on Page Six."
Michelle admitted that shielding her children from some of the negative aspects of living life in the public eye required immense "intentionality" and also recalled the unique struggles of navigating life with the Secret Service.
"Imagine setting up the first play date or the first time the kids get invited to a play date. The process of having my children at your house meant that an advanced team had to come and question and search your house and ask if you had drugs and guns."
