Former President Obama has been quiet after the Democrats’ loss. Now he has something interesting to say.
As Barack Obama has broken his silence with a stunning speech after the elections.
In his first public remarks since the recent election, former President Barack Obama addressed what he described as “one of the greatest challenges of our time” — the growing divisiveness and polarization in society. Speaking at the Obama Foundation’s Democracy Forum in Chicago, Obama urged those in attendance to embrace pluralism and to recognize the value of celebrating differences. His speech, while avoiding direct political references, offered an implicit critique of the current political climate in the U.S.
Obama’s message centered around the importance of building bridges and fostering cooperation across ideological divides. “It’s about recognizing that in a democracy, power comes from forging alliances and building coalitions… not only for the woke, but also for the waking,” he explained to the crowd of around 650 participants. The event was held on the South Side of Chicago, a few miles from the site where Obama’s presidential center is being built.
Throughout the speech, Obama refrained from mentioning specific political figures such as former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris. This was consistent with the non-partisan stance of the Obama Foundation, which seeks to engage people from all political backgrounds. However, the core of Obama’s remarks — focused on pluralism and bridging divides — resonated with the current polarized political landscape.
“Building bridges is not contrary to equality and social justice. In fact, it is our best tool for delivering lasting change,” Obama declared. His words appeared to address the broader societal challenges of working across political lines. Among the attendees were notable figures like Valerie Jarrett, CEO of the Obama Foundation and former senior advisor to Obama, and Penny Pritzker, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce during his administration.
The audience, composed largely of political and policy experts, responded to Obama’s call for unity with a mix of reactions. Some nodded in agreement with his call for bipartisan collaboration, while others remained more stoic during his speech.
Acknowledging the skepticism many may feel in the current political climate, Obama expressed confidence that the pursuit of democracy and justice is more important than ever. “But to produce free and fair and more just societies, I cannot think of a better time to talk about it,” he said, referring to the post-election environment.
Obama also acknowledged the limits to what should be tolerated in the political arena. “There are still lines that can’t be crossed,” he said, referencing instances when the judiciary or criminal justice system is used to target political opponents. This was a clear allusion to Trump’s past rhetoric about prosecuting his enemies.
“In those circumstances, a line has been crossed, and we have to stand firm and speak out and organize and mobilize as forcefully as we can,” Obama asserted, making it clear that some actions must be met with strong opposition.
To add to his message, Obama invoked the examples of historical leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, and Nelson Mandela. He emphasized that pluralism does not mean “holding hands and singing kumbaya” or “abandoning your convictions.” Instead, it’s about finding common ground to effect meaningful change.
“If you want to create lasting change, you have to find ways to practice addition rather than subtraction,” Obama concluded, reiterating the idea that working together across divides is essential for achieving long-term progress in society.
Barack Obama Remains One Of The Most Divisive Presidents In Modern History
The Democrats love to remember Barack Obama as a legendary President who really united the country under the banner of “change.” The truth is that he was actually one of the most divisive Presidents, according to polls and surveys of American voters.
From the moment Barack Obama stepped into office, he started to implement radical agendas that the American people were largely disgusted by. This is why in 2010 the Republicans absolutely dominated the elections that year, with the GOP gaining an unfathomable +63 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and +6 seats in the U.S. Senate chamber.
Then, in 2014, Republicans gained another thirteen seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and an impressive nine seats in the U.S. Senate. That’s all a reflection of how poorly the American people viewed Barack Obama and his tenure. He was incredibly divisive. Just because he beat two extremely bad candidates in John McCain and Mitt Romney doesn’t say anything at all.
Furthermore, even after leaving office, Barack Obama has been extremely outspoken in harsh criticism for Donald Trump, which is extremely uncharacteristic for a former President. He’s one of the leaders of divisive politics and now he’s trying to cry foul.
He’s only doing that because he knows that the Democrats had their butts handed to them and now they have to pretend like they want to get along with the other half of America that they have been calling bigoted for years now. Funny how the tables have turned, Barack Obama.
.@dbongino: Barack Obama was one of the most divisive presidents in American history, constantly relying on identity politics to put people into boxes pic.twitter.com/rmj7yFivke
— FOX & friends (@foxandfriends) September 8, 2018
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