Even now, Trump can’t shake his preoccupation with Barack ObamaIE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.Skip to ContentMSNBC LogoLatestRachel MaddowMorning JoeInside with Jen PsakiDeadline: Legal BlogRACHEL MADDOW PRESENTS: ULTRATrump on Trial The ReidOut BlogTrump Documents LibraryColumnistsMSNBC FilmsTrump Transition Share this —SearchSearchFeatured ShowsThe Rachel Maddow ShowMondays 9PM ETMorning JoeWeekdays 6am ETDeadline: White House with Nicolle WallaceWeekdays 4PM ETThe Beat with Ari MelberWeeknights 6PM ETThe ReidOut with Joy ReidWeeknights 7PM ETAll In with Chris HayesTUESDAY-FRIDAY 8PM ETThe Last Word with Lawrence O’DonnellWeeknights 10PM ETThe 11th Hour with Stephanie RuhleWeeknights 11PM ETAlex Wagner TonightTuesday-Friday 9PM ETMSNBC TVWatch LiveListen LiveMoreMSNBC Live EventsMSNBC on PeacockMSNBC ColumnistsTV ScheduleMSNBC NewslettersPodcastsTranscriptsMSNBC Insights CommunityMSNBC StoreHelpTrump Trials Documents LibraryFollow msnbcMore BrandsToday LogoNBC News LogoMore ShowsWay Too EarlyAna Cabrera ReportsJosé Díaz-Balart ReportsChris Jansing ReportsKaty Tur ReportsSymoneThe Katie Phang ShowVelshiInside with Jen PsakiWeekends with Jonathan CapehartAlex Witt ReportsPoliticsNationAymanSearchSearchFacebookTwitterEmailSMSPrintWhatsappRedditPocketFlipboardPinterestLinkedinMaddowBlogFrom The Rachel Maddow ShowALL MADDOWBLOG POSTSTHE RACHEL MADDOW SHOWFULL EPISODESPODCASTSRACHEL ON BLUESKYPrevious PostNext PostEven now, Trump can’t shake his preoccupation with Barack ObamaWith 11 days to go before Election Day, Barack Obama continues to live rent-free in Donald Trump's mind. The Republican isn't even trying to hide it.By Steve BenenAt a campaign event in North Carolina last month, Donald Trump, for reasons unknown, complained at some length about Barack Obama having won a Nobel Peace Prize. The Republican quickly added, “But I don’t care about that.”Of course, in context, it was painfully obvious that he did care about that, which is why the former president brought it up unprompted.A month later, the guy who said he didn’t care about Obama’s Nobel is still talking about it, incorporating this into his closing message with time running out in the 2024 election cycle. The New York Times reported on his latest event in Nevada, and the headline read, “At Las Vegas Rally, Trump Grumbles About Obama’s Nobel Prize.”On a night when Barack Obama joined Kamala Harris onstage at a star-studded rally in Georgia, Donald J. Trump was smarting on the other side of the country — asking why Mr. Obama had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and not him. ... Mr. Trump suggested he was more deserving of the honor than his predecessor in the White House, saying his full name, Barack Hussein Obama, twice for emphasis.A month after Trump assured an audience that he doesn’t really care about this, it was hard not to notice how much he cared about this. “I got elected in a much bigger, better, crazier election, but they gave him the Nobel Prize,” the GOP nominee added, as if this were relevant.A day earlier, Trump told an audience that Obama is a “jerk,” and he substantiated the label by pointing to North Korea’s Kim Jong Un for validation.This came on the heels of Trump telling a Pennsylvania audience that “a lot of people” believe a conspiracy theory that Obama is secretly running the White House — a line the Republican has peddled more than once recently.Earlier this year, Trump also claimed that Rep. Ronny Jackson, when the Texas Republican was his White House physician, told him that he was in better shape than Obama.As boasts go, this was, of course, very difficult to believe, but a larger question lurked overhead: Why in the world was Trump talking about this? The answer was that the former president’s obsession with his immediate predecessor has never really gone away.To be sure, Trump spent much of his White House term fixated on Obama, too, prompting Paul Waldman to ask, “Has there ever been a president who talked so much about the man who preceded him? If so, I’m not aware of it.”That was in February 2020. Nearly five years later, Obama continues to live rent-free in his successor’s mind.Steve BenenSteve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MSNBC political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."Previous PostWhy Trump’s lies about trying to prosecute Hillary Clinton matterNext PostFriday’s Campaign Round-Up, 10.25.24: Leading Dem super PAC targets CruzLatest PostYoungkin fails to stand up to Trump as federal cuts threaten thousands in VirginiaAboutContactHelpCareersMSNBC StoreAD ChoicesPrivacy PolicyDo Not Sell My Personal InformationCA NoticeTerms of Service (Updated JULY 7, 2023)MSNBC SitemapClosed CaptioningAdvertiseJoin the MSNBC Community© 2025 MSNBC Cable, L.L.C.NBC News LogoMSNBC LogoToday Logo
Trump’s fixation on Obama shows how insecure he is; he can’t help but bring him up, even when he claims not to care.