Michelle Obama Shares ‘Rare’ Casual Photo By Iconic Artist

A newly released Annie Leibovitz portrait of former First Lady Michelle Obama is making the rounds online, after Obama promoted the image as part of a new edition of Leibovitz’s book Women. The casual snapshot has generated considerable buzz across left-leaning social media circles, with one repost surpassing 250,000 views by mid-morning and depicting the outfit as somehow “rare.”

Leibovitz, now 76, rose to prominence decades ago through unconventional, personality-driven portraits for Rolling Stone. Her signature style emphasizes dramatic, theatrical settings meant to reveal a subject’s “authentic” side — a theme she brings into her new photograph of Obama.

In the latest image, Obama, 61, appears in worn jeans, boots, a wide belt, and a simple T-shirt, her braided hair pulled back as though she were standing in a rugged outdoor worksite. Outlets like USA Today praised the presentation as unusual for the former first lady, writing: “Dressed down in a dark gray henley shirt, lightly distressed blue jeans, a brown leather belt and complementing brown heeled suede boots, Obama’s eyes are closed peacefully as her braids flow in the wind for the photo.”

But while the photo stirred predictable enthusiasm from Obama’s admirers, her political comments last week were far less welcome to those still hoping she might rescue a Democratic Party struggling to find a viable path after multiple electoral defeats to President Donald J. Trump.

During a Nov. 5 event with Tracee Ellis Ross at the Brooklyn Academy of Music — part of the promotional tour for her new book The Look — Obama once again dismissed speculation that she may run for the White House in 2028.

She claimed the country “ain’t ready” for a woman to serve as president and insisted she had no intention of launching a campaign, People reported.

“Well, as we saw in this past election, sadly, we ain’t ready,” she said, pointing to Donald Trump’s decisive victory over Kamala Harris in the 2024 race. Of course, nothing suggests voters rejected Harris for any reason other than rejecting her policies.

“That’s why I’m like, ‘Don’t even look at me about running, ‘cause you all are lying,’” Michelle continued. “You’re not ready for a woman. You are not. So don’t waste my time.”

She added: “We got a lot of growing up to do, and there are still, sadly, a lot of men who do not feel like they can be led by a woman, and we saw it.”

Obama’s remarks reflect a pattern stretching back more than a decade. For years, some Democrats have treated Michelle Obama as a kind of political savior figure, floating her name whenever electoral prospects look bleak — from her husband’s presidency through the post-Obama era and into the current turmoil inside the Democratic Party. Calls for a “Michelle 2028” campaign have resurfaced at recent “No Kings” protests, where activists held up signs urging her to run.

But Obama has been consistent: she has no interest in public office. She famously attracted controversy in 2008 when she said she was proud of America “for the first time” as her husband secured the Democratic nomination. And throughout the years that followed, she has repeatedly shut down rumors of her own ambitions.

During a 2018 Today interview, host Savannah Guthrie asked whether Obama had any desire to enter politics. She answered bluntly: “Absolutely not.”

“I’ve never wanted to be a politician,” she said. “Nothing has changed in me. I want to serve. … There are so many ways to make an impact. Politics is not