The Obama Presidential Center opened in Chicago on Thursday. It was a star-studded affair, with former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Joe Biden attending, and artists like Bruce Springsteen and Christina Aguilera performing. Obama was there too, of course, and both he and former First Lady Michelle Obama gave rousing speeches — both of which included not-so-subtle jabs at Donald Trump and his administration.
The former president spoke for about 30 minutes, and though he never mentioned Trump by name, he delivered some veiled critiques of the administration. “At our best, the United States has been an undeniable force for good in the world,” Obama said while acknowledging that America has made its share of foreign policy mistakes.
Obama continued: “When American foreign policy lives up to our highest ideals, when we champion human rights and democracy and the sound stewardship of our planet, when we take the lead in eradicating disease and feeding the hungry and educating children, when we encourage cooperation between nations instead of trying to dominate and bully and squeeze every advantage just because we can, and most of all, when we show through our example here at home that even a country as big and diverse as ours can make democracy work, it turns out all nations, including ours, become more prosperous and secure, and the world gets a little bit brighter.”
Obama also decried those who “see government as nothing more than a way to divvy up the spoils and punish enemies, and keep those who are different in their place.” He didn’t say Trump’s name, but everyone in attendance knew exactly who he was talking about.
Michelle Obama also spoke at the event.
At one point, the former first lady listed just a few of her husband’s accomplishments as president, including the Osama Bin Laden raid, the end of the war in Iraq, the bail out and reconstruction of the American auto industry, and the winning of a “peace prize,” a clear nod to Trump and his obsession with winning the Nobel Peace Prize. The dig sent former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the 2016 Democratic nominee, into a fit of laughter.
“How absurd it is to even imagine that you might have buckled under the pressure even once, lashed out in frustration, lost your temper” Obama said of her husband. “How absurd it is to imagine that you might have done anything but make our family and this entire country proud.”
“No, you were too busy. … You were doing the people’s work,” she added.
Obama issued a warning that seemed to be directed squarely at the president. “Failing to see the humanity in all people puts us all on a slippery slope, and once that slide starts, there’s no telling where it stops,” she said. “It’s a dangerous precedent that flies in the very face of our faith, and of the founding promise of this democracy that all of us are created equal, and that each of us is a child of God with inherent value.”
