People across the political spectrum are worried about reelecting Joe Biden, as he is currently 81 and already the oldest sitting president. Though Donald Trump is just four years younger than Biden, he’s repeatedly blasted his rival for being too “confused” and “incompetent” to serve, while insisting that his own age and “mentality” should not be a concern. But Trump has hurt his case by repeatedly misstating which president he’s running against in November.
“Putin has so little respect for Obama that he’s starting to throw around the nuclear word,” Trump said at a rally in Richmond, Virginia, on March 2, 2024, naming his predecessor when he clearly meant Biden.
While Trump has been remarkably incoherent throughout his political career, his errors have been even more apparent during the 2024 campaign (at other points in the Richmond speech, he slurred while trying to say “Venezuela” and called Argentina a “great guy”).
But Trump insists that calling Biden “Obama” isn’t a gaffe at all. In a November 2023 Truth Social post, he said he calls Biden “Barack Obama” “sarcastically,” adding, “I know both names very well, never mix them up, and know that they are destroying our country.” Last week, he insisted again that the switch is intentional while responding to Biden joking on Late Night With Seth Meyers that Trump forgot his wife Melania’s name (which is untrue).
“They make up things constantly,” Trump said. “You take a look at when I use ‘Barack Hussein Obama’ and I interject him into where it’s supposed to be ‘Biden’ and I do it purposely for comedic reasons and for sarcasm — because a lot of people say that Obama’s running the country, not Biden, because he’s sleeping all the time. They say, ‘Oh, I don’t know the name of the president.’”
So is Trump actually joking every time he calls Biden “Obama”? Luckily, we don’t have to take his word for it: There are recordings and transcripts of all of these flubs. Many occurred as Trump was discussing war-torn regions of the world, which seems like a weird time to drop a sarcastic nickname for Biden. But you can review the list yourself and decide whether Trump is a 77-year-old who gets confused sometimes or a misunderstood comedic genius.
1.
September 15, 2023: Trump says he beat “Obama” in 2016, and will do it again.
During a speech at the Pray Vote Stand summit in Washington, D.C., Trump made several confusing references to his predecessor in quick succession (and warned that Biden might cause “World War Two”).
First, Trump suggested that he’s leading “Obama” in the 2024 polls, when he meant Biden. Then he made an incoherent allusion to Obama and “some of the things that he’s done.” Finally, he bragged about beating Obama in 2016, then clarified that he meant Hillary Clinton:
As you know, crooked Joe Biden and the radical left thugs who have weaponized law enforcement to arrest their leading political opponent, leading by a lot, including Obama —I’ll tell you what. You take a look at Obama and take a look at some of the things that he’s done. This is the same thing. The country was very divided. We did with Obama. We won an election that everyone said couldn’t be won. We beat Hillary Clinton.
2.
October 1, 2023: Trump says “Obama administration” admitted border-wall success.
During a rally in Ottumwa, Iowa, Trump said, “We built almost 500 miles of wall. Even the Obama administration says it in their stats.”
3-5.
October 11, 2023: Trump rips “Obama administration” response to Hamas attack.
In a Fox News radio interview, host Brian Kilmeade asked Trump how he would have responded to Hamas killing Americans in its attack on Israel, which had occurred days earlier. Trump said, “Obama doesn’t want to talk about it.” When Kilmeade tried to correct him, saying, “You mean President Biden,” the former president explained his conspiracy theory that Obama is secretly running the Biden White House:
Brian Kilmeade: But I know you never paid under your administration. You guys never paid ransom.
Donald Trump: Through, right? It’s all coming through Iran. And Obama wants to, he doesn’t want to talk about it. He doesn’t want to mention, he doesn’t even mention them in his statements. It’s all coming through Iran.
Brian Kilmeade: Well, you mean President Biden. So, but, right now.
Donald Trump: I also mean Obama. What do you mean? You know Obama and Biden. But Obama is Biden’s boss. Guess you didn’t really know that.
Brian Kilmeade: Do you believe it? You believe President Obama.
Donald Trump: In the past? I don’t think, I don’t think Biden knows what’s happening, to be honest with you. I think Obama is calling these shots, and he’s always felt this way about Iran. There’s no question about that. No, I think Obama and Obama’s people certainly are calling the shots, not Biden.
Brian Kilmeade: So. So you do have a dispute, your gut tells you, but you don’t have any proof that President Obama is calling the shots.
Donald Trump: Oh, it’s my gut. But my guess, I’ve been right about everything. So, you know, it’s good they have an expression out there. Trump’s been right about everything. You take a look at, go down the list. We’ve been right about everything.
A few moments later, Trump complained that the “Obama” White House said it hoped Hezbollah wouldn’t join Hamas in attacking Israel. “I’m really shocked that the Obama administration can be out there saying, ‘I hope they don’t attack from the north,’” Trump said.
Later, Trump said Kevin McCarthy was ousted as House Speaker days earlier because he “was doing a lot of the Obama work” — meaning that he was cutting deals with the current Democratic president.
6.
November 11, 2023: Trump says Orbán wants “Obama” to resign.
While praising Viktor Orbán, Trump said the prime minister of Hungary was eager to see “Obama” leave office (which he already did in 2017). Trump said:
They were interviewing him [Orbán] two weeks ago and they said, ‘What would you advise President Obama? The whole world seems to be exploding and imploding?’ And he said, ‘It’s very simple. He should immediately resign, and they should replace him with President Trump, who kept the world safe.’”
7.
March 4, 2024: Trump says Putin’s disrespect for “Obama” could start a nuclear incident.
At a rally in Richmond, Virginia, Trump remarked, “Putin has so little respect for Obama that he’s starting to throw around the nuclear word.” When the crowd didn’t have much of a reaction — possibly because they were confused — he added, “You heard that. Nuclear. He’s starting to talk nuclear weapons today.”
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