That means she will. Guaranteed. Rep or Senator from Hawaii.
She's never lived there. Not for longer than a vacation. I get that something like that didn't stop Hillary Clinton, but Hillary's been angling for top political office for years. Michelle Obama -- not so much.
And Hawaii is different from New York or Illinois. Smaller and more clannish. It would only take one Asian-American or Pacific Island-American politician to knock her out of the race.
Michelle Obama may be more political than Laura Bush or Pat Nixon, but that's not saying much. There are people who have strong political opinions who'd never run for office. She's seen what it takes to get elected and she knows her own limitations.
After this year, I'll never say "never" to anything in politics, but I don't think she's got the drive or the passion or the resilience for a real political career. I think she knows that the more voters hear her, the less they'll like her (and the less patience she'll have with them).
If she does dip her feet in elective politics, she'll end up more like Caroline Kennedy than Hillary Clinton. That doesn't close the door to her staying in the public eye, though.