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One minute, President Barack Obama<\/strong> is calling President-elect Donald Trump<\/strong> loopily old<\/a>, saying \u201cIf your grandpa was acting like this, you\u2019d be worried,\u201d referring to him as \u201ca fucking lunatic<\/a>,\u201d and taking the stage to diss him at the Democratic National Convention<\/a>. The next minute, he appears to be laughing at the guy\u2019s jokes and engaging in cordial conversation with the once and future President Trump.<\/p>\n Obama and Trump were seated next to one another at Thursday\u2019s state funeral for former President Jimmy Carter, who died in hospice<\/a> on December 29, 2024, at 100 years old. All five living former presidents\u2014George W. Bush<\/strong>, Bill Clinton<\/strong>, and current president Joe Biden<\/strong>, in addition to Trump and Obama\u2014were in attendance at Washington National Cathedral to pay their respects<\/a>. Though these functions typically have a boy-girl-boy-girl seating chart, Michelle Obama<\/strong> was unable to attend the service, meaning that while Melania Trump<\/strong> sat on the outer aisle of the row, Barack and Donald were right next to each other, no spouse buffer in sight.<\/p>\n Asked about her absence, a spokesperson for Michelle Obama told Vanity Fair<\/em>, \u201cFormer First Lady Michelle Obama is not in attendance at President Carter\u2019s National Funeral Service. Mrs. Obama sends her thoughts and prayers to the Carter family, and everyone who loved and learned from the remarkable former President.\u201d<\/p>\n With the exception of Obama, all the former presidents\u2019 spouses attended the service with them. Former Trump Vice President Mike Pence<\/strong> and wife Karen Pence<\/strong> were also at the service, marking the first time Pence and Trump have publicly met since the January 6 riots, as were Trump\u2019s 2024 opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris<\/strong>, and her husband Doug Emhoff<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Given the history and years of past barbs traded between the pair\u2014Trump originated the birther myth<\/a> and claimed that Obama wasn\u2019t qualified to lead the country; Obama called Trump<\/a> a \u201cracist, sexist pig\u201d\u2014it wouldn\u2019t be so surprising to see the two sit side-by-side in stoic silence. Instead, they appeared to have a cordial chat<\/a>, even sharing a laugh. Harris sat in the row in front of the pair, staring straight ahead. When Bush, whose wife Laura Bush<\/strong> sat between her husband and Obama, headed to his chair, he ignored the Trumps completely and greeted Obama with a friendly swat as he passed his successor.<\/p>\n One social media user likened Obama<\/a> to a parent entertaining a child \u201cor they get cranky or may even whine,\u201d while another pointed to the interaction as evidence of how \u201cunserious\u201d<\/a> Democrats are. Oklahoma Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin<\/strong> interpreted it as Obama \u201ckissing the ring\u201d<\/a> because \u201cTrump is the most popular man in the world.\u201d Sir, please share your sources and whatever you took that\u2019s fueling such a flight of fancy. Of course, we have no way of knowing what the two actually said. It could easily have been a \u201claughing at\u201d situation rather than a \u201claughing with,\u201d and there’s plenty<\/em> that can be said through clenched teeth shaped into a camera-ready smile. Try it: You don’t even have to part your teeth to tell someone to go to hell, if you put your mind to it.<\/p>\n Carter, who will be buried in his Georgia hometown in a private service Thursday afternoon, voted in his last presidential election in 2024, casting his vote via an absentee ballot for Harris. His family told the press<\/a> that while in hospice Carter said he was \u201conly trying to make it to vote for Kamala Harris.\u201d<\/p>\n