[ad_1]
"These are extraordinary times, dangerous times," warned Obama in an extraordinary indictment of the behavior of a successor to whom he handed power in January 2017 and who tears up the conventions that have been preventing presidents since.
It was a revealing moment in an exciting clash of philosophy, temperament and style that unfolded on Friday between a current president and a former president who embodies opposing currents in a historic political moment and are now in direct conflict before the mid-term elections.
The campaign clash between Obama and Trump also crowned a week in a row that saw the Washington establishment wake up after John McCain's funeral turned into an accusation of trumpism and that Trump fought an enemy in his wake. own administration.
Obama, abandoning his self-imposed political exile, warned of a moment of unique national peril, in which the demagogic forces – aka Trump – undermine the structures of democratic government to build their own omnipotence.
"They are beginning to undermine the standards that guarantee accountability and try to change the rules to strengthen their own power," Obama said in an important speech in Illinois.
"It should not be Democratic or Republican to say that we are not pressuring the Attorney General or the FBI to use the criminal justice system as a punishment to punish our political opponents – or to protect members of our party an election happens ", did he declare.
"Here are some criticisms where you can not defend yourself because someone does it anonymously," said Mr. Trump, after ordering the criminal authorities to investigate an opponent who n & # 39; He had not committed a crime. Right of modification
This is not the first time that Trump seems to have given up on conventions to protect the instruments of justice against political interference. He spent months denouncing the FBI and the Ministry of Justice about the investigation in Russia. Earlier this week, he complained that the sessions would not have allowed two Republicans to be indicted for allegations of corruption.
The competing appearances of Friday were the last intense intersection of two giant and idiosyncratic political opposites that are leading a struggle for the political soul of their country.
This mirror image was on Friday.
Opposite styles
Obama, serene and intellectual, chose the conventional medium for a politician, a long, reasoned, multi-level speech, to pose a political problem – the conditions that led to the rise of Trump – and to give the Democrats a battle plan to restore democracy in America.
He lamented the lack of checks and balances in Washington, the Republicans' indifference to Trump's attacks, the prevalence of bullies and walls set up in America, and he diagnosed a fear reaction. Changes. "
In a signature style, he called on young people to vote, campaign and fight for their democracy and argued that despite everything, there was a unifying American "middle ground".
At times, he seemed to renew his own faith in a policy that pushed him to power in 2008, but whose effectiveness has been questioned – even by some more radical Democrats – while Trump crushes his legacy and GOP monopolizes power.
Trump, the king of the barbed tweet, who reinvented the way to win the White House, fought on social media, trained with journalists and in a thrilling campaign talk showing his more aggressive political methodology and authoritarian
He mocked Obama 's approach. "I watched it, but I fell asleep, I found it was very good to sleep," Trump said in Fargo, North Dakota, before compiling the list. achievements of his administration and to clamor US trading partners.
"I do not want to be exploited by other countries in the world," he said.
Obama's argument was that America is a great nation that has sunk into crisis because its core values are being trampled on. Trump's – in keeping with the instinct of his strong man – was that he had inherited a humiliated and little respected country and that he had already bought it back .
He told his crowd that a beefy man had approached him with tears streaming from his eyes and said, "I want to thank you, Mr. President, for saving our country." . "
Same purpose
In essence, Trump and Obama were trying to do the same thing – electrifying grassroots voters and eliciting participation in mid-term elections that all consider to be the most crucial for decades and will be crucial for the Trump presidency.
Obama is a unique political figure. Although he had two impressive wins in a general election, he found it more difficult to grant his call to the Democrats in the mid-term elections, when he was not on the ballot. It can be even harder to do when he's out of power.
Trump is also unique, and it is not certain that he will be more successful in transferring his basic magnetic call to Republican candidates in the mid-term polls.
Obama discovered how the presidency might be handicapped by the loss of the House of Representatives. If Trump fails to turn the tide, he risks a more painful defeat, given the multiple political and legal storms already hitting his White House.
Their fight on Friday opened new exciting opportunities for the fall campaign and risks for both.
Obama has been in the spotlight for the past 19 months for a reason, in addition to following the tradition that presidents do not generally criticize their predecessors. He knows he has now given Trump the political goal he often missed during his presidency.
Obama, who is criticized by many Trump voters, could become a catalyst for organizing for grassroots Republicans and Democrats.
Senator of South Carolina, Lindsey Graham, spotted the opening for the Republicans and for Trump in 2020 tweeting:. "
On the other hand, many Democrats and others who fondly remember the presidency and Obama's leadership at the White House have often wondered why he was not there. not shown more virulent against Trump. There is still no Democrat who can define a political problem, spread a message and deliver it, just like Obama.
Yet its reappearance has not been universally welcomed by the Democratic legislators serving.
Delaware senator Chris Coons told CNN's Wolf Blitzer he feared the midterms would focus on personalities rather than voters' needs and concerns.
"We have a president who really knows how to make the day on him, day in and day out.What worries me is that President Obama could just fuel this momentum where there is talk of President Trump," he said. did he declare.
But one thing is clear: with Obama and Trump, the fall campaign has become a lot more interesting.
Source link
