Barack Obama Quarantined With His Daughter Malia’s Boyfriend & Here’s What He Thinks of Him

The former President of the United States is a pretty cool dad—so cool, in fact, that Barack Obama quarantined with daughter Malia Obama’s boyfriend earlier this year. And now, he’s revealing what he really thinks of his eldest daughter’s beau.

Obama, who has been going through the interview circuit to promote his memoir A Promised Land, appeared on a Thursday, December 17 episode of The Bill Simmons podcast. While he was there, host Simmons asked the former POTUS about his time quarantining at home with his wife Michelle Obama, 56, and their daughters Sasha, 19, and Malia, 22. The 44th president, 59, surprised listeners with his response when he revealed that he wasn’t only quarantining with the ladies: Malia’s boyfriend actually stayed with the family for a time during their quarantine!

“I think, [like] a lot of families, we went through that first month where we were playing games every night and doing little arts and crafts projects and then slowly, you know, they started to get a little bored with us,” Obama said of his favorite time during quarantine. “Maybe teaching Malia and Sasha, and Malia’s boyfriend who was with us for a little while, spades.”

You read that right: Malia’s boyfriend. Host Simmons stopped Obama to call this slip the “biggest revelation of the podcast” before pressing him for more details. Obama went on to explain that Malia’s boyfriend (who we presume is Rory Farquharson, who she started dating in 2017 after they met at Harvard), stayed at their place because of travel restrictions. “He’s British … wonderful young man, and he was sort of stuck because there was a whole visa thing and he had a job set up,” Obama noted. “So we took him in and I didn’t want to like him, but he’s a good kid. The only thing you discover—this is not a surprise to you, Bill, because you’ve got a son—young men eat. It’s weird to watch them consume food. My grocery bill went up about 30%.” Ha!

Despite her taste in, well, hungry men, Obama couldn’t be prouder of his eldest daughter. In an interview with InStyle in November, he talked about just how “badass” she was. “Malia, she is just buoyant. She’s somebody who enjoys people, enjoys life, and enjoys conversation,” he said at the time. “She’s never bored, which is a badass quality that can take you places.”

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