Trump, Obama battle for your vote
Longtime foes frame election as referendum on current president
WASHINGTON – It had the feel of the 2016 presidential campaign, but with the roles reversed.
In Illinois, Barack Obama went after his successor by name, calling on young people to vote in November to “restore some semblance of sanity to our politics.” He did so reluctantly, he said, because of a “wise American tradition of ex-presidents gracefully exiting the political stage, making room for new voices and new ideas.”
His old nemesis Donald Trump seemed eager to welcome Obama back as a target of his ridicule. As he flew to North Dakota for a fundraiser, Trump was asked if he watched the speech.
“I’m sorry, I watched it but I fell asleep. I found he’s very good for sleeping,” Trump said.
With the midterm elections looming, both Obama and Trump framed the congressional races as a referendum on Trump.
This week, Trump has campaign events in Missouri and Mississippi. The plan: More than 40 days on the campaign trail leading up to the Nov. 6 election.
Obama heads to Cleveland on Thursday to campaign for Ohio Democratic gubernatorial nominee Richard Cordray. He also will campaign this month in Illinois and Pennsylvania.
“Some of you may think I’m exaggerating when I say this November’s elections are more important than any I can remember in my lifetime,” Obama said. “But just a glance at recent headlines should tell you that this moment really is different. The stakes really are higher.”
Trump rattled off issues like gun crime, immigration and gun rights. “That’s a very important thing,” Trump said. “Things like that, they are under siege and things like that can disappear very, very quickly if you don’t have the right people.”