Give Trump time, don’t assume worst: Obama
LIMA:US President Barack Obama did in Latin America what he tried to do in Europe: tell worried citizens not to draw negative conclusions about the man he once called unfit to serve in the White House, President-elect Donald Trump.
In the last stop of an international farewell tour that included visits to Greece and Germany, Obama continued his efforts to calm anxieties since Republican businessman Trump beat Democratic rival and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the U.S. presidential race.
“My main message to you ... and the message I delivered in Europe is don’t just assume the worst,” Obama told a group of young people during a questionand-answer session in Peru on Saturday. “Wait until the administration is in place, it’s actually putting its policies together, and then you can make your judgments as to whether or not it’s consistent with the international community’s interest in living in peace and prosperity together.”
Trump won the election after promising to build a wall on the US border with Mexico, rip up trade deals and ban Muslims temporarily from entering the US .
Obama has sought to soothe fears by pledging to ensure a smooth transition of power and expressing optimism that the president-elect would shift away from inflammatory campaign rhetoric once he faced the realities of the job. REUTERS