Describing it as a “clown show,” former American president Barack Obama condemned the degradation of political discourse in the US. Specifically, Barack Obama condemned on Saturday the degradation of political discourse in the country, which has turned, according to him, into a “clown show,” reacting for the first time to Donald Trump’s sharing of a racist video in which he and his wife Michelle are depicted as monkeys.
Obama was asked about the controversial video, which Donald Trump shared in early this month via Truth Social, in an interview he gave to the podcast of political commentator Brian Tyler Cohen, who is aligned with the Democrats. The majority of US residents “find this behavior deeply problematic,” assured the Democratic former president (2009-2017), without directly referring to either the video or his Republican successor. “It’s true that it attracts attention. It’s true that it diverts attention,” he continued.
“This is the kind of clown show that unfolds on social media sites and on television, and it’s also true that it doesn’t seem to cause any shame in people who previously believed they should show some dignity, some sense of respect for conventions and respect for office, right? That has been lost,” he added.
Obama: The criticism of social media videos
In the video, the faces of Barack Obama, the first Black president of the US, and his wife Michelle Obama are placed on monkey bodies.
The current president’s sharing of the video on the social media site he owns sparked a storm of criticism from Democrats—and even Republicans. Donald Trump removed it.
Mr. Trump downplayed the reactions and criticism. The White House assured that the video was shared by a member of his staff, not the Republican mogul himself.
“I only saw the first part” of the video, not “the whole thing” and “nobody knew what it had at the end,” meaning the excerpt with images that depicted the Obama couple in this way, the US president assured.
It’s no secret that Donald Trump harbors particular hostility toward his predecessor, whose popularity remains high in the country.
He almost always refers to him by calling him “Barack Hussein Obama,” thus reminding of his middle name because it alludes to Islam, while he contributed to spreading an implausible conspiracy theory, the claim that the Democratic former president does not have American citizenship.
Moreover, during his victorious campaign for the 2024 presidential election, the Republican multiplied fierce verbal attacks against immigrants and reproduced false news with undeniable racist overtones.
“ICE actions are worthy of dictatorships”
Former American president Barack Obama condemned on Saturday the operations of immigration police (ICE) in Minnesota, comparing them to actions committed “in dictatorships.”
“The misconduct of federal government agents is deeply troubling and dangerous,” Mr. Obama said during an interview he gave to the podcast of political commentator Brian Tyler Cohen, who is aligned with the Democrats.
The 64-year-old former president spoke of methods “that we had seen in the past in authoritarian countries and in dictatorships.”
In Minneapolis, the largest city in Minnesota state, thousands of federal immigration service (ICE) and border patrol (CBP) agents have been launching raids in recent weeks that the current president’s government, Republican Donald Trump, presents as a campaign against crime. Large numbers of immigrants, as well as several Americans, were arrested before the end of this operation was announced this week.
Renee Good and Alex Preti, American citizens, were killed by federal agents’ gunfire last month in Minneapolis, the first trying to prevent an ICE raid, the second trying to protect a woman who was violently pushed by a police officer during a demonstration. These deaths caused a wave of outrage and large demonstrations, especially because the Trump government accused the victims of “domestic terrorism.”
The Democratic former president (2009-2017) had already criticized immigration police action in January, calling for his fellow citizens to react as their fundamental values were under “attack,” as he put it.
In yesterday’s interview, he praised the resistance being shown to ICE operations.
The citizens participating, he explained, “are saying, in a systematic and organized way, ‘this is not the America we believe in’ and we will resist, we will react by telling the truth, with cameras and with peaceful demonstrations.”
“This heroic and persistent struggle by ordinary people, despite sub-zero temperatures, this should give us hope,” Mr. Obama added. “As long as we have people like this, I think we’ll get through this.”
Tom Homan, President Trump’s right-hand man, announced on Thursday the termination of operations in Minnesota.
Democrats continue to demand drastic changes in how ICE operates, particularly that agents be prohibited from having their faces covered and must have an arrest warrant before any immigrant arrest.
Their leaders in Congress threaten otherwise not to approve the 2026 budget plan of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees immigration police.
