Obama Reflects on Trump Era, Sees Underestimation of Polarization
Former President Barack Obama underestimated the degree to which Donald Trump would dismantle democratic principles and institutions following his election in 2016, according to a recent profile in The New Yorker. Initially dismissing Trump as a “comical, if malevolent, real-estate hawker,” Obama’s perspective shifted as he witnessed the unfolding of Trump’s presidency.
In January 2016, when asked by Matt Lauer of NBC if he could envision Trump delivering a State of the Union address, Obama responded with laughter, suggesting it would only occur in a “Saturday Night” skit. Even as Hillary Clinton’s campaign faltered in the final days before the election, Obama’s former campaign guru, David Plouffe, remained confident in her victory, urging colleagues to avoid unnecessary worry.
Following the unexpected outcome of the election, Obama met with Trump at the White House on November 10th. In a subsequent interview with The New Yorker, Obama stated, “I don’t believe in apocalyptic—until the apocalypse comes. I think nothing is the end of the world until the end of the world.” He attempted to reassure his staff, many of whom were distraught by Clinton’s loss, reminding them that losing is inherent to the nature of democracy and that history rarely progresses in a linear fashion.
David Axelrod, Obama’s senior advisor and political consultant, noted that Obama sought to “keep people pointed in the right direction” during a period of widespread despondency. However, Axelrod conceded that “Our norms and institutions have proven more vulnerable to Trump’s assaults than President Obama imagined then.”
At the time, Obama believed he had achieved “seventy or seventy-five per cent” of his initial goals and anticipated that only “fifteen or twenty per cent” of his accomplishments would be reversed by Trump. This assessment proved to be significantly off the mark. The profile details how Trump not only undermined government institutions and established norms but also normalized a level of racism, misogyny, and division that defies simple quantification.
The pervasive nature of Trump’s rhetoric, including the “birther” conspiracy theory that questioned Obama’s legitimacy, is a recurring theme in the oral history archive examined by The New Yorker. Even years later, the article notes, Trump continued to engage in inflammatory behavior, such as sharing a racist video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes, actions that often received fleeting media attention without apology.
Michelle Obama, according to sources, harbors deep anger towards Trump and has expressed a desire to avoid any interaction with him. She reportedly felt that the birther rhetoric endangered her family. Despite this, Obama has maintained a level of professional courtesy, engaging in polite exchanges with Trump at events like Jimmy Carter’s funeral in .
Obama’s approach to navigating this difficult relationship has been likened to that of Jackie Robinson, the first Black player in modern major-league baseball, who endured relentless racial abuse with remarkable dignity. Privately, Obama often asks associates to consider how the public would react if he had engaged in similar behavior, such as posting hateful videos late at night or using his office to financially benefit his family. The article specifically mentions reports of Trump potentially profiting by “billions of dollars” through such means.
The article also references a New York Times report from , highlighting the contrasting approaches of Obama and Trump in responding to national tragedies, with Obama emphasizing unity and Trump seemingly prioritizing different values.
a FRONTLINE documentary, “Divided States of America,” explores the increasing partisanship that characterized the Obama era and the polarized political landscape inherited by Donald Trump. The documentary, released in , investigated how the Obama presidency contributed to the growing divisions within American society.
