Former President Donald Trump turned his criticism once more on his predecessor Barack Obama Thursday night in New York, bringing up his middle name.
Speaking at the Al Smith charity dinner, Trump quoted the late conservative political commentator Rush Limbaugh III as he spoke about Obama.
“As Rush Limbaugh used to say: ‘Barack HUSSEIN Obama’,” Trump said, emphasizing the middle name. “He was a piece of work, we miss him,” appearing to refer to the conservative commentator.
Moments before, the Republican had mentioned the other former president’s middle name in an echo of his claims during Obama’s campaign and administration that he was not eligible to be president, claiming he had not been born in the U.S.
Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during the annual Alfred E. Smith Foundation Dinner at the New York Hilton Midtown on October 17, 2024 in New York City. Trump was the featured speaker with comedian Jim Gaffigan as the Master of Ceremonies at the the 79th Annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner.
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
As part of that debunked claim, Trump frequently referred to Obama by his full name.
The use of it during the charity event last night sparked outrage from some Trump critics on social media, who viewed it as racist and unnecessary.
“Well over a decade since Trump launched his political ascent with a birther conspiracy, he’s still trying to normalize the racism,” Ben Rhodes, who worked in the Obama administration, posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Others blasted Trump’s current criminal and civil court cases, saying he had attacked the U.S. government and threatened to send the military after those he disagreed with.
“He has just been insulting people so far,” Huff Post correspondent S.V. Date posted on X. “After insulting Bill de Blasio, he said he didn’t ‘give a s***’ if people didn’t like it.”
Fred Wellman, a liberal podcast host, took aim at the organizers of the dinner.
“Honestly I blame the organizers for being so blind to reality that they thought this wouldn’t blow up in their faces like this. Wake up to the time we live in. Your bygone era of yucking it up over tax policies are gone. This guy is a rapist and they are all laughing at his racist bulls***,” he wrote on X.
Newsweek reached out to the Trump campaign for comment on the reactions and the accusations of racism.
“That is his name.” RNC Spokesperson Anna Kelly said via email.
Newsweek reached out to the Office for Barack and Michelle Obama for comment Friday morning via email.
Trump has very rarely commended Obama for his work in the White House and has mainly been a vocal critic of him.
Earlier in October, Trump said he believed Obama would vote for him, however, because he realized there was “a total lack of enthusiasm for Kamala”.
Obama has been out on the campaign trail for Harris, however, and has openly criticized Trump. The Harris-Walz campaign has used him to headline rallies and front promotional videos online to encourage voters to back the vice president.
Harris was not at the Al Smith dinner Thursday but addressed the event in a recorded video message. Trump attacked her for not attending, and again made comments about her intelligence. He also tore into other attendees, including New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
Comedian host Jim Gaffigan took his turn poking fun at Trump, as well as his running mate JD Vance, which did not always sit well with Melania Trump, who appeared near-expressionless when the comedian made jokes about her husband,
