Although he has been out of office for nearly a decade, former President Barack Obama remains fully aware of the impact he has on President Donald Trump. During a recent appearance on the podcast All The Smoke, the former world leader spoke with former NBA player Matt Barnes about the ongoing fascination Trump has displayed toward him and his family.
When asked about the nature of this dynamic, Obama offered a candid assessment. "The thing about it is –– look, you’ve got to ask him what it is," Obama said. When Barnes characterized the behavior as an "obsession," the former president agreed, noting, "I obviously have a room in his head, a suite in his head."
Reflecting on Presidential Priorities
Obama contrasted his own experience in the Oval Office with the current political climate. He recalled his time as president, noting that his predecessor, George W. Bush, was the last thing he had time to worry about. "They’re gone," he said of his predecessors. "I’ve got work to do. The idea that I’d be worrying about somebody who came before and me trying to measure like, ‘what’s he done today?’ Constantly worrying about that is a strange thing to me. It shows me somebody who is not focused on the American people and the job they’re supposed to do."
The Reality of Face-to-Face Interaction
Later in the interview, Obama suggested that Trump’s demeanor shifts significantly when they are in the same room. "The other thing I believe in, and part of what we try to teach in our leadership training, is I believe in face-to-face," he explained. "I believe in conversation. So if this — whoever you were talking about — was in front of me, which has happened a couple times, he don’t talk like that because he knows better."
Obama concluded that the digital age and the "filter of the phone" create an environment where individuals feel emboldened to say things they would never repeat in person, often without regard for the consequences of such rhetoric.