Did Donald Trump Really Say That He Liked Barack Obama?
Former President Donald Trump has always made it known that he's not a big fan of his predecessor, former President Barack Obama. He has a long record of flinging insults and spreading lies about Obama, and until now, his motivations behind the public bashing remained unknown. According to Eugene Robinson, a columnist for The Washington Post, Trump harbors a "chronic and debilitating case of Obama envy," prompting him to fixate on the former president.
Perhaps one of the most bizarre claims that Trump has made is to insinuate that Obama, who also happened to be the first African American U.S. president, wasn't actually born in the United States. He be3gan making this claim long before the start of his presidential campaign. "An 'extremely credible source' has called my office and told me that @BarackObama's birth certificate is a fraud," he tweeted in 2012 (via Politico). He also said that Obama is " the most ignorant president in our history," that "he's the founder of ISIS," and that "he has been a disaster as a president," among many others.
"These are just bald assertions, they have been repeatedly rejected by the courts, and I think I'm less surprised by Donald Trump doing this. He has shown only a flimsy relationship with the truth," Obama told NBC about Trump's repeated false claims. However, it appears the tide has turned, as Trump complimented Obama at a public event.
Donald Trump described Barack Obama as 'smart and sharp'
Even after former President Donald Trump left office, he never apologized to Barack Obama, nor has he backtracked on his lies. But on the "History Tour" with Bill O'Reilly in Florida where he was a speaker, the Republican revealed that he "liked" Obama during his speech. It was considered out of character, considering how he spent years slamming Obama, starting from when he was merely a private citizen.
"I liked him," he said, per The Sun Sentinel. Trump even went as far as to compliment Obama, describing him as someone who is "smart and sharp." He did, however, still take jabs at how Obama led America. Trump said that Obama's a huge part of why there's currently "tremendous division" in the country.
He proceeded with his speech by criticizing President Joe Biden, but according to Trump, he doesn't believe that Obama is secretly running the country for Biden. Why? He said it's because Obama "golfs too much" and "wouldn't do it."