Former president Barack Obama decries a loss of shame in US politics after a racist video and compares Trump’s immigration tactics to dictatorships.
WASHINGTON: Former US president Barack Obama has denounced a profound loss of shame and decorum in American politics. He was responding for the first time to a racist video posted to Donald Trump’s social media account that depicted him and his wife as monkeys.
Obama made the remarks in a wide-ranging podcast interview released on Saturday. He also compared the conduct of federal agents during Trump’s recent immigration crackdown in Minnesota to actions seen in authoritarian dictatorships.
The controversial video was shared on Trump’s Truth Social account on February 5. It showed the faces of Barack and Michelle Obama superimposed on the bodies of monkeys for about one second near the end of a clip promoting election conspiracy theories.
The post drew condemnation across the political spectrum. The White House initially dismissed criticism as “fake outrage” before later blaming a staff error and removing the video.
Interviewer Brian Tyler Cohen asked Obama how the country recovers from such a devolved discourse. Obama did not name Trump directly in his response but said most Americans find such behaviour deeply troubling.
“There’s this sort of clown show that’s happening in social media and on television,” Obama said. “What is true is that there doesn’t seem to be any shame about this among people who used to feel like you had to have some sort of decorum and a sense of propriety and respect for the office, right? That’s been lost.”
Obama predicted this kind of messaging would ultimately hurt Trump’s Republican party with voters. He said the answer must come from the American people themselves.
Trump has told reporters he stood by the video’s claims about election fraud but stated he had not seen the offensive clip featuring the Obamas.
Turning to policy, Obama strongly criticised the recently concluded immigration operation in Minnesota. He blasted the “rogue behaviour” of federal officers during the weeks-long crackdown, which included two fatal shootings.
Obama said such conduct was the sort “in the past we’ve seen in authoritarian countries and we’ve seen in dictatorships.” The operation involved thousands of federal agents, including from ICE, conducting sweeping raids and arrests.
Despite his criticism, Obama expressed hope inspired by communities pushing back against the operations. He praised the “heroic, sustained behaviour” of ordinary citizens protesting in subzero weather.
“That kind of heroic, sustained behavior in subzero weather by ordinary people is what should give us hope,” Obama said. “As long as we have folks doing that, I feel like we’re going to get through this.”
The aggressive Minnesota operation triggered large protests and nationwide outrage. It concluded as the Department of Homeland Security faced a partial government shutdown on Saturday.
US lawmakers are fighting over funding for the agency, which oversees much of Trump’s immigration enforcement. Democrats oppose new funding for DHS until major changes are implemented regarding how ICE conducts its operations.
The Sun Malaysia
