Michelle Obama is refusing to campaign for Biden

In case you have not noticed, former First Lady Michelle Obama has not been campaigning for President Joe Biden. 

The big question is why not, and it appears that we now have the answer.

Axios reports that Obama is not campaigning for Biden because she is not happy with how the Biden family has treated a close friend of hers.

The close friend, believe it or not, is Kathleen Buhle, the former wife of Hunter Biden.

Michelle's out, but not Barack

At the outset, it is worth noting that Axios cites anonymous sources for its report. The sources are said to be "two people familiar with the relationship."

"Former First Lady Michelle Obama privately has expressed frustration over how the Biden family largely exiled her close friend Kathleen Buhle after Buhle's messy divorce from Hunter Biden," Axios reports.

It adds, "The family tensions — and the former first lady's disdain for partisan politics — are partly why one of the Democrats' most popular voices hasn't campaigned for President Biden's re-election, the sources said, even as former President Obama has been a willing surrogate."

Indeed, if you have been following Biden's 2024 campaign, then you will know that Barack Obama has been a major part of that campaign, appearing, among other places, at major fundraisers for Biden.

Apparently, though, Barack Obama is not too crazy about the situation with Hunter Biden either. Obama - back in 2017, when Hunter Biden, after his divorce from Buhle, started dating Hallie Biden, his deceased brother's widow - reportedly called the situation "weird s***," although he later denied this.

The Biden-Obama split

While the Bidens continue to insist that their relationship with the Obamas is "strong," according to Axios' sources, this is not the case.

The situation, these sources say, changed particularly in 2015 - after the death of Beau Biden and after Barack Obama discouraged Joe Biden from running for the presidency.

Regarding Buhle and Michelle Obama, Axios reports, "Michelle Obama, who had become friends with Buhle during the Obama administration, privately told others that she felt Buhle had been wronged [by the Biden family]."

The outlet adds, "Buhle had to deal with Hunter's drug use and infidelity — and then Biden family members blamed Buhle for some of the salacious details of his behavior becoming public."

Michelle Obama, despite all of this, has publicly announced support for Biden's reelection. She just has not been doing the same leg work that her husband has been doing to help Biden get over the line. And, if Axios' report is true, we now know why.