(ThyBlackMan.com) Perhaps the most accurate description of Donald Trump’s disdain for Barack Obama’s presidential legacy comes from Ta-Nehisi Coates.
In his 2017 article titled “The First White President,” he lays out—in detail—how Trump’s presidential bid has centered around a rebuke of Obama’s accomplishments.
Coates writes: “Replacing Obama is not enough—Trump has made the negation of Obama’s legacy the foundation of his own.” And the article notes that, even before Trump took office, he was already spouting birtherism conspiracies about Obama.
The article continues: “…it will not suffice to say that Trump is a white man like all the others who rose to become president. He must be called by his rightful honorific—America’s first white president.”
Coates manages to capture Trump’s odd dynamic with Obama perfectly. I remember reading the article when it was first published in 2017 and thinking how exquisitely it summarized Trump’s insecure fascination with dismantling the public’s memory of Obama’s success in office. As a freelance journalist I have agreed with Coates often and believe that the Trump was still ticked off when Obama roasted him at the Writers Whitehouse Correspondence dinner of 2011, remember, Trump was not just another celebrity guest; in addition to being a reality TV fixture, he was one of the most vocal opponents of President Barack Obama, leading the “birther” movement that had demanding that Obama release his birth certificate.
Sadly, in 2020, not much has changed. The white supremacist values that got Trump elected in 2016 are still prevalent on a national scale. The president’s overt racism is alive and well—and in an election year, it shows no sign of slowing down.
So just why has Trump been so fixated on undoing Obama’s work? Let’s look closer.
A documented obsession
Trump’s fixation on Obama and his legacy have caught the eye of many reporters—and the numbers don’t lie. An article for History News Network cites that “CNN analyst Daniel Dale calculated … Trump mentioned Obama’s name 537 times in the first 10 months of 2019.”
And Trump has gone much further than simply berating Obama’s name. In his actions as president, Trump has sought to actively dismantle many of Obama’s signature policies. That same article lists many examples, such as Trump’s efforts to end Obamacare, roll back environmental protections, and (perhaps most notably) tear up the Iran nuclear deal.
All of these efforts seem less about championing Trump’s own beliefs and more about discounting/diminishing any trace of Obama’s. Rather than coming from a place of political action, Trump seems to be negatively reacting to Obama’s legacy.
Why Iran matters
And of course, today, in 2020, we are seeing the ripple effects of Trump’s efforts. Look no further than the tragic downing of a Ukrainian jetliner by Iranian forces just last month to see the chaos that has ensued from Trump’s decisions.
The increasingly tense American-Iranian relations can be traced back to his initial decision to withdraw from the Iran deal; that move led to renewed efforts to expand Iran’s nuclear program. Furthermore, Trump’s ordering the murder of General Soleimani just instigated more conflict in the region.
It’s hard to imagine this same course of events happening under President Obama’s watch. While any president—including Obama—has their fair share of mistakes and missteps, Trump has unfortunately taken that to a completely different level.
No, things weren’t perfect under Obama, but they sure were a lot more reasonable. His championing of the Iran nuclear deal offered a worldwide sense of stability in a fraught political climate, and you can be sure that Obama would have hesitated much more before ordering the killing of a high-ranking Iranian military official like Soleimani (and likely would have never done so, due to his human decency and respect for Iran—something that Trump deeply lacks).
So, it’s hard to imagine that tragic situation—when 176 people lost their lives on the downed jetliner—happening with Obama in power. One could argue that those people would still be alive today if it weren’t for the chaotic actions of Trump himself, which set off a whirlwind of conflict with (and within) Iran.
Another sad example of Trump’s disrespect for Obama
Beyond the scope of foreign affairs, Trump has continued to disrespect Obama. Even after the tragic death of Kobe Bryant and his young daughter, the Palmer Report notes that “Donald Trump … shamefully ripped off President Obama’s tweet” about the matter.
The article cites the striking similarities between the two remarks—and how Trump seemingly paraphrased Obama’s words ever so slightly and re-posted the same sentiment himself. (Sounds a little bit like the infamous debacle when Melania Trump copied one of Michelle Obama’s speeches.)
So, Trump will gleefully roll back Obama’s policies, but will also copy his eloquent remarks for his own benefit. It’s an odd paradox; it seems that Trump both loathes and seeks to emulate his predecessor. As President Donald Trump attempted to attack President Barack Obama’s administration at the State of the Union address on February 4, during an exaggerated discussion of his economic performance, Democratic members of Congress audibly hissed and booed his remarks. According to the Washington Post Newspaper; Trump has uttered over 16,000 falsehoods since taking office about 3 years ago; many of those lies disparaging President Barack Obama; what a shame!!!
Conclusion
No matter how you slice it, Trump’s entire political career has largely focused on the negation of Obama’s presidency. It seems that Trump is jealous of Obama’s tenure: jealous of his likability, his ethics, and his actual policies.
So maybe Trump is America’s First Black President; it would explain his blatant racism and disrespect. With this year’s presidential election looming, all one can hope is that this embarrassing saga of Trumpian politics might soon come to an end. I am no fan of Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) who explained to the Senate this week, why he voted to convict President Trump on both counts in the Senate impeachment trial, calling Trump’s actions “an appalling abuse of public trust.” I agree with Senator Romney, and believe America will wake up to the reality that even though he has been acquitted by the United States Senate, largely along political partisanship lines. The American people will have the final say on Election Day…this year; I am sure with a different outcome then that of the U.S. Senate.
Staff Writer; Stanley G. Buford
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