Obama’s tweets in 2017 more popular than prolific Trump

HE MAY not be able to use the @POTUS Twitter account any longer, but Barack Obama’s tweets have proved more popular this year than Donald Trump’s.

Despite the current US president’s prolific tweeting, it is his predecessor who dominates the website’s annual list of the most popular posts.

Mr Obama’s tweet quoting Nelson Mandela, “no one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin or his background or his religion” had more than 1.7 million retweets, making it the second most popular tweet of the year.

It was tweeted on Aug 13 – a day after a white nationalist supporter drove his car into a crowd in Charlottesville.

Two other tweets of Mr Obama’s featured in the top 10 – both sent shortly before his departure from the White House. His last tweet as president, on Jan 20, said: “It’s been the honor of my life to serve you. You made me a better leader and a better man.”

The other, also that month, said: “Thank you for everything. My last ask is the same as my first. I’m asking you to believe not in my ability to create change, but in yours.”

None of Mr Trump’s tweets have made the list, despite being Twitter’s most followed world leader who posted more than 2,000 times since taking office. The number one tweet was a quest for 18million retweets by Carter Wilkerson to earn a year’s supply of free chicken nuggets from Wendy’s. He fell just short but the fast-food chain gave him the nuggets anyway for the effort.