If there’s one person that Donald Trump hates more than anyone living and breathing on this Earth, it’s former president Barack Obama. He’s been at the man’s throat since well before he even took office — and was one of the main instigators of the Obama birth certificate debacle.
Even now, Trump lunges at every opportunity to trash talk and bully his predecessor. He works diligently to try to ensure that everyone hates the man as much as he does. Which is why Obama’s recent meeting with Chancellor Merkel in the German capital is likely to give Donald a coronary.
Chancellor Merkel has made her disdain for the current POTUS strikingly clear. But she was more than thrilled to welcome his forerunner with open arms just yesterday. Obama met with Merkel at the German Chancellory where they seemed just like old friends. They waved to cameras but refused photos or questions from journalists as they stressed that it was not a political meeting.
Steffen Seibert, Merkel’s spokesperson, reiterated that he would “firmly reject” the notion that the get together was a direct snub to the current US president. However, there is absolutely no denying that Chancellor Merkel has a far better personal and working relationship with the former POTUS than she does the current — even after a surveillance scandal against Germany during Obama’s term.
Obama praised “my friend Angela Merkel” at an event the night before. His statement quickly garnered a triumphant response from the crowd, to which he replied, “Yes, she is worthy of applause.” He continued to say, “The first thing required of a leader is to be someone who can listen to what people care about and about the struggles they’re going through… to sit across the table and listen to their stories,” in regard to what he believes makes good leadership.
The people of Germany felt that Obama’s visit was a brief reminder of a happier time between our nation and theirs. A local newspaper, the Rhein-Zeitung, reflected on Obama’s visit and lamented that Trump “hardly ever misses an opportunity to criticize Merkel and the Germans.”
It’s clear that Germany as a whole has a lot more love for Obama than they do Trump.
Featured image via Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson
