Blame game: Trump lays it in Obama’s lap
Nearly every president faults the one before him, but his talk of the ‘mess’ he was left turns it up a notch
WASHINGTON President Trump seems to have a pretty clear idea who to blame for many of the problems that cross his desk in the Oval Office. It’s President Obama. From the civil war in Syria and the nuclear showdown with North Korea to the loss of manufacturing jobs in the Rust Belt and problems with health care, the 45th president has blasted the 44th for misguided policies and weak leadership that have left him with a multitude of troubles to fix. He even accused Obama of wiretapping Trump Tower during the campaign.
“I have to just say that the world is a mess,” Trump lamented at a Rose Garden news conference Wednesday with Jordanian King Abdullah II. “Whether it’s the Middle East, whether it’s North Korea, whether it’s so many other things, whether it’s in our country — horrible trade deals — I inherited a mess.”
Just about every president is
elected after campaigns that promise a change in direction, and many presidents have criticized their predecessors. That includes Obama, who faulted George W. Bush’s administration for what he saw as a misguided invasion of Iraq that undermined U.S. credibility around the globe and for failing to take adequate steps to avert the financial meltdown that greeted Obama when he took office.
That said, Trump’s critique of Obama has been more sweeping and more personal than other presidents in modern times, and he has been less inclined to temper his words. Some presidents became less critical of their predecessors once they found themselves facing the same tough trade-offs and difficult issues.
Trump has scored record-low approval ratings and is headed toward the end of his first 100 days without a major legislative achievement to tout.
“Trump is unusual in placing frequent blame on his predecessor so early in his term,” said Steven Schier, a political scientist at Carleton College and co-author of The Trump Presidency: Initial Assessments, being published this fall. “It’s a big contrast to his extravagant promises of quick solutions to major problems.”
During the 25-minute news conference, Trump criticized
Obama and his team on:
Syria: “I think the Obama administration had a great opportunity to solve this crisis a long time ago . ... I think that set us back a long ways, not only in Syria but in many parts of the world.”
North Korea: “We have a big problem. We have somebody that is not doing the right thing, and that’s going to be my responsibility. But I’ll tell you, that responsibility could have been made a lot easier if it was handled years ago.”
Iran: “The Iran deal made by the previous administration is one of the worst deals I have ever witnessed, and I’ve witnessed some beauties.”
A few hours earlier, the president suggested in an interview with The New York Times that Obama’s national security adviser, Susan Rice, may have broken the law in actions related to Russian surveillance, although he didn’t say how or provide any evidence. Trump called the controversy over Moscow’s alleged meddling in America’s election and possible collusion by his associates “a total hoax.”
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said Trump isn’t blaming Obama for his problems, he’s blaming him for America’s problems. The president is “busy and focused on fixing a lot of things,” she said, “challenges that are the result of Obama failures.”
Several former senior officials in the Obama administration said Trump’s litany of criticism, especially his allegations of criminal wrongdoing, has angered and energized them. “We saw President Obama welcome President Trump into the White House after we were heartbroken about Hillary (Clinton) losing,” said Alyssa Mastromonaco, a former deputy White House chief of staff. “For Donald Trump to sort of hit a tough spot and decide he’s going to deflect by blaming the former president ... it was laughable, but it was also devastating.”
The former president generally has declined to respond publicly to Trump, although he has said he might do so down the road on issues he considers critical.
The two have what might charitably be described as a complicated relationship. Obama mocked Trump as the businessman sat in the audience, stonefaced, at the White House Correspondents Dinner in 2011. At the time, Trump was a leader in promoting the debunked allegation that Obama wasn’t born in the USA. During last year’s campaign, Barack and Michelle Obama stumped for Clinton in speeches that questioned Trump’s character and qualifications.
Obama and Trump held a cordial meeting at the White House two days after the election, then spoke by phone several times. Obama attended Trump’s inauguration, but Sanders said they haven’t spoken since then.
Trump’s attacks on Obama, including denunciation of his signature Affordable Care Act as a catastrophic failure, helped unite Democrats against him. Not a single congressional Democrat endorsed the White Housebacked health care proposal. Trump’s jibes at Obama may complicate his efforts to reach across the aisle on a proposed tax overhaul and infrastructure bill.
It’s an argument that is likely to work less well as time passes. Voters tend to hold the current resident of the White House accountable for the state of the nation’s economy and security. “The blame game becomes steadily less credible the longer he is in office,” Schier said.
Even Trump seems to recognize that. “I now have responsibility,” he acknowledged. “I will have that responsibility and carry it very proudly. I will tell you that. It is now my responsibility.”
“Trump is unusual in placing frequent blame on his predecessor so early in his term.” Steven Schier, Carleton College