Biden pays tribute to former First Lady Michelle Obama's late mother

President Joe Biden on Saturday paid tribute to former First Lady Michelle Obama's mother who passed away at age 86.

"We knew Mrs. Marian Robinson as a devoted mother and grandmother with a fierce and unconditional love of her family," Biden wrote on the social media platform, X. "With the blessing of friendship, we felt that love ourselves – with every quiet smile or warm embrace she shared with us."

The Obama family announced Friday that Michelle's mother Marian passed away at age 86.

The cause of her death was not immediately clear, but she was praised by her family as a wise woman and a hard-worker who had a loving relationship with her family, including the grandchildren. Robinson even moved into the White House in 2009, when former President Barack Obama was elected. 

"There was and will be only one Marian Robinson," Obama wrote in an X post. "In our sadness, we are lifted up by the extraordinary gift of her life. And we will spend the rest of ours trying to live up to her example."

Biden said that Marian's gentle and kind spirit lives on in her family. 

"She moved into the White House to be there for her family when they needed her the most, and in so doing, she served her country right alongside them," Biden's post continued.