Former President Barack Obama attacked President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic as he gave a speech to graduating students.
On Saturday, May 16, Obama strongly criticized the ‘so-called grown-ups, including some with fancy titles and important jobs’ for doing what they believe is convenient and feels good and easy. Although the 44th U.S. President doesn’t mention Trump by name, there was no mistaking who he was referring to.
As the Former President was sharing quality pieces of advice with the seniors, he said that doing what feels right is far more valuable than doing what feels good. He said:
“That’s how little kids think. Unfortunately, a lot of so-called grown-ups, including some with fancy titles and important jobs still think that way,
which is why things are so screwed up.”
Obama’s remarks were unexpectedly political and addressed current issues even beyond COVID-19 and its negative impact on the economy.
What’s more, speaking for ‘Show Me Your Walk, HBCU Edition’, Barack Obama mentions that quite a few officials ‘aren’t even pretending to be in charge’ amid the pandemic.
Congrats to the high school Class of 2020, as well as to the teachers, coaches, and most of all, parents and family who’ve guided you along the way. Thanks for letting me be part of your big day! pic.twitter.com/RjYvHs2BhC
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 17, 2020
In his speech dedicated to students graduating from historically black colleges and universities, Obama also underlines the devastating impact COVID-19 has on the American citizens and especially on communities of color.
Furthermore, the 44th President, who made history with becoming the first African-American president of the United States, alluded to the case of Ahmaud Arbery. In February, while Mr. Arbey, also an African-American, was jogging, he was murdered during an encounter with two white men – a father and a son. The pair, Gregory and Travis McMichael, were suspecting the innocent 25-year-old jogger of a series of local break-ins. After the police did not confirm their statements, they armed themselves and approached Mr. Arbey. Three fatal shots were fired. It took months for authorities to arrest the Georgia murderers.
By including this case in his speech, Obama emphasizes on how unequal America still treats its people. While mentioning the obvious underlying inequalities in the country, he said:
“We see it in the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 in our communities. Just as we see it when a black man goes for a jog and some folks feel like they can stop and question and shoot him if he doesn’t submit to their questioning.”
One of the valuable pieces of advice Barack Obama gave to the class of 2020 was: “If the world’s going to get better, it’s going to be up to you.”
As Mail Online reports, earlier this month, Obama panned Trump’s ways of handling the pandemic, deeming them as an ‘absolute chaotic disaster’.
It is believed that the commencement remarks are the latest hint of Former President Obama’s intentions to play an active role in the coming election. Although he has been quiet since leaving the White House in January 2017, now Obama has vowed to be more involved in trying to help Joe Biden, his former vice president, to win the presidency this fall, as Yahoo News reveals.
President Trump backfired Obama’s criticism of his administration’s handling of the coronavirus crisis.
On Sunday, May 17, the current U.S. President accused Barack Obama of being ‘grossly incompetent’, as The Guardian reports. Even though he admitted he had not heard the Former President’s speech, Trump said:
“Look, he was an incompetent president, that’s all I can say. Grossly incompetent.“
Previously, President Trump stated that the last weekend was quite successful, claiming the White House has made ‘tremendous progress’ in many areas, ‘including coming up with a cure for this horrible plague’.
Trump is facing widespread criticism for his decisions related to the ongoing pandemic. Currently, the United States has a total of 1,527,664 coronavirus cases, with nearly 91,000 deaths caused by the disease. These numbers are far higher than any other country in the world.
However, Trump is still insisting on the statement that the U.S. is making incredible progress in battling the virus. Moreover, he has encouraged states to resume their economies, ignoring warnings from public health experts that this may increase the coronavirus fatalities.
