Obama’s wide ranging interview at the end of December 2015 with NPR covered a number of topics, which included his strategy for fighting ISIS, the elections, the climate in Paris and the legacy he leaves behind.
He stated that Donald Trump was “exploiting” the American people. He said that the changing economy together with shifting demographics have caused uncertainty among some parts of the population. He went on to say “particularly blue-collar men have had a lot of trouble in this new economy, where they are no longer getting the same bargain that they got when they were going to a factory and able to support their families on a single paycheck.”
“You combine those things and it means that there is going to be potential anger, frustration, fear. Some of it is justified but just misdirected,” he added. “I think somebody like Mr. Trump is taking advantage of that. That’s what he’s exploiting during the course of his campaign.”
Donald Trump is currently the GOP front runner, despite resistance from political foes.
Hillary Clinton stated that Trump’s attitude towards ISIS has made him “ISIS’s best recruiter”. Trump retaliated to this remark on NBC’s TODAY show by saying “ “She should apologize. She lies about emails. She lies about Whitewater. She lies about everything,…. She will be a disaster as president of the United States.”
Trump’s praise for the Russian President Vladimir Putin, has also caused outrage. He stated that the Russian president’s flattering statements about him, made him feel “honored” and that he had not seen any evidence that the president murdered journalists to cover up his regime.