Former President Barack Obama took aim at President Donald Trump’s ongoing fixation on him during a recent appearance on the “All the Smoke” podcast, hosted by Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson.
The episode was reportedly filmed at the newly opened Obama Presidential Center on Chicago’s South Side. When asked about Trump’s persistent attacks and references, Obama replied, “The thing about it is, look, you’ve gotta ask him what it is. … The obsession. I obviously have a room in his head. A suite in his head.”
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Reflecting on his own presidency, Obama emphasized that he never had the luxury of dwelling on his predecessors. “First of all, when I was president, the last thing I had time to do was worry about what somebody said, or my predecessor did. They’re gone. I’ve got work to do.” He added, “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.”
Obama also noted that Trump’s demeanor shifts when they share the same space, suggesting that some of Trump’s harshest public rhetoric is influenced by the anonymity of phones and social media, which embolden individuals to say things they might avoid in person.
These remarks come after years of personal and political tensions between the two figures.