Former United States President Barack Obama speaks during a campaign rally for Richard Cordray, Democratic nominee for governor of Ohio, in Cleveland, Ohio, US, on Thursday, September 13, 2018.
Allison Farrand | Bloomberg | Getty Images
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama will deliver a scathing critique of his successor, President Donald Trump, during his keynote address Wednesday night at the Virtual Democratic National Convention.
Obama will speak live from Philadelphia, where he will also describe why his former vice president, Joe Biden, is the right man for the White House.
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on CNBC’s Obama comments.
Below are excerpts from Obama’s speech, which were released on Wednesday afternoon:
“I sat in the Oval Office with both men running for president. I never expected my successor to embrace my vision if my policies were to continue. I was hoping, for the sake of our country, that Donald Trump perhaps would show some interest in taking the job seriously, that he might feel the weight of the bureau and discover some respect for the democracy placed in his care.
“But he never did. He showed no interest in putting in the work; no interest in common ground; no interest in using the astonishing power of his office to help everyone but himself and his friends. ; no interest in treating the presidency if all but one more reality shows that he can use to get the attention he desires.
“Donald Trump has not grown to the job because he can not. And the consequences of that failure are serious. 170,000 Americans have died. Millions of jobs have been lost. Our worst impulses have been released, our proud reputation around the world has diminished,” and our democratic institutions threaten like never before.
“I’m well aware that in times as polarized as this, most of you have already made up your mind. But maybe you’m still not sure which candidate you’ll vote for – or whether you’ll vote anyway. Maybe you are tired of the direction we’re heading, but you can not see a better path yet, or you just do not know enough about the person who wants to lead us there.
“Let me tell you about my friend Joe Biden.
“Twelve years ago, when I started my search for a vice president, I did not know I would find a brother. Joe and I came from different places and different generations. But what I soon came to admire about him is his resilience, born of too much struggle; his empathy, born of too much sorrow. Joe is a man who learned early on to treat every person he meets with respect and dignity, lived by the words his parents gave him. “No one is better than you, but you are better than no one.”
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“In eight years, Joe was the last in the chamber when I faced a big decision. He made me a better president. He has the character and the experience to make us a better country.”
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“Tonight I ask you to believe in Joe and Kamala’s ability to lead this country out of dark times and build it better. But here’s the thing: no American can repair this country alone. Democracy was never meant to be transactional. be – you give me your voice; I make everything better. I also ask you to believe in your own ability – to embrace your own responsibility as citizens – to ensure that the basic tenets of our democracy are maintained. “
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