Michelle Obama says 'loud and reckless' Trump put her family at risk with birther conspiracies

Former first lady Michelle Obama has remained somewhat tight-lipped about President Trump since the 2016 presidential election, but in her new memoir, she doesn't hold back.

In Becoming, which will be released on Nov. 13, Obama says Trump's false conspiracy theory that her husband, former President Barack Obama, was not born in the United States was "crazy and mean-spirited," with its "bigotry and xenophobia hardly concealed," but these "loud and reckless innuendos" were also "deliberately meant to stir up the wingnuts and kooks." Obama says this made her fear for her family's safety because "someone with an unstable mind" could drive to Washington with a loaded gun and try to harm her daughters. "And for this I'd never forgive him," Obama writes of Trump, according to an excerpt published by The Washington Post.

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.