Obama spoke on CBS’s “60 Minutes” about the unusual moment for America, in which Democrat Joe Biden is president-elect, but President Donald Trump has refused to admit that he lost the November 3 election.
“When the time is up, it’s your job to put the country first and think beyond your own ego, your own interests and your own disappointments,” Obama said. “My advice to President Trump is, if he wants this late in the game to be remembered as someone who put the country first, it’s time you did the same.”
Trump on Sunday appeared to give a tacit if reluctant acceptance of Biden’s victory in a tweet, but he backed off within 90 minutes. Trump then posted a Twitter message about more demands coming from his campaign to challenge the election result.
“The president doesn’t like to lose and he never admits loss,” Obama said. The “mockery” of Trump’s position by Republican officials, he added, “is one more step to delegitimize not just the incoming Biden administration, but democracy generally.”
Deep divisions
Earlier on CBS’s “Sunday Morning” show, Obama said America’s deepening divisions are driven in part by the different mindset of Trump supporters and the conservative media that fuel those views.
Trump lost the popular vote to Biden even though more than 73 million Americans voted for him. “The power of the alternative worldview that is presented in the mass media that voters consume carries a lot of weight,” Obama said.
The former president did not cite a specific outlet, but he and Democrats have long criticized Fox News Channel, which features weekday programming by conservative presenters, including Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity, who have been ardent advocates of Trump and his policies. . .
Trump has activated the cable news channel recently, criticizing its election coverage for not being loyal enough and suggesting in a tweet Thursday that his supporters switch to more conservative options. “They forgot about the Golden Goose,” Trump said. “The biggest difference between the 2016 and 2020 elections was @FoxNews!”
Obama said the lack of consensus on the challenges facing the nation makes it difficult to advance on them. “It is very difficult for our democracy to function if we are operating on completely different sets of facts,” he told CBS.
Full lung attack
In the final weeks of the campaign, Obama played a prominent role, vigorously promoting Biden during his appearances in various states.
Obama’s speech was a full-blown attack on his successor, in which he characterized Trump as a man obsessed with his ego, claiming credit when things were going well and not taking responsibility for the pandemic. Obama said Trump had violated the rules and undermined institutional values, and that it was important for him to speak up.
Trump has frequently criticized Obama’s tenure in office, something Obama said he did not take “personally or seriously” but was “destructive and damaging” nonetheless.
Obama pointed to his own difficulties in getting his programs enacted while in office, citing income inequality, universal health care, climate change, immigration, and criminal justice reform as things he wanted to do but didn’t. did.
No ‘speed boat’
He said he learned early on that “the federal government, led by the president, is an ocean liner, not a speedboat.” He added that the work his administration accomplished may be more appreciated in 10 or 20 years than it is now.
That was partly due to Republican obstacles. Obama said he tried to improve his relationship with Republican lawmakers by doing everything from hosting Super Bowl parties to attending caucus sessions, but with little success.
Obama also spoke about his family, life in and after the White House, and his new memoirs, titled “A Promised Land.”
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