Brad Parscale, President Donald Trump‘s campaign manager, likened his campaign to a “death star,” about to unleash the full force of its weaponry on former Vice President Joe Biden. It was a deeply unfortunate metaphor, given current circumstances, and also the fact the death stars always end in a fiery explosion. Meanwhile, the rebel forces are mustering. Former President Barack Obama spoke bluntly to ex-members of his administration in a private phone call on Friday evening, during which he railed against the Trump administration’s handling of the coronavirus crisis and emphasized the importance of the upcoming presidential election. In a tape obtained exclusively by Yahoo News, Obama called the White House’s coronavirus response “an absolute chaotic disaster” fueled by the “mindset operationalized in our government” of “being selfish, being tribal, being divided, and seeing others as an enemy.” The necessity of fighting such “long-term trends,” Obama said, is why he is going to devote “as much time as necessary” to support Biden in the upcoming election against Trump.
Obama also cited the Justice Department dropping charges against Michael Flynn—the former White House national security adviser charged with false statements to the FBI—as news that he thought to be “somewhat downplayed” and that provided further reason to ensure Biden’s victory. Obama expressed concern that Flynn “just getting off scot-free” is “the kind of stuff where you begin to get worried that … our basic understanding of rule of law is at risk,” citing the unprecedented handling of the case as another important reason to ensure Biden’s victory in November.
“I’m hoping that all of you feel the same sense of urgency that I do,” he told members of the Obama Alumni Association on the web talk, noting the stakes of this election to be particularly high. “Whenever I campaign, I’ve always said, ‘Ah, this is the most important election.’ Especially obviously when I was on the ballot, that always feels like it’s the most important election. This one — I’m not on the ballot — but I am pretty darn invested. We got to make this happen.”
Obama’s comments could be a signal that gloves are about to fully come off in the campaign for Biden. According to Yahoo, “Obama’s unvarnished remarks were some of his sharpest yet about the Trump administration and appeared to forecast a dramatically stepped-up political role he intends to play in this year’s election.” Michelle Obama, too, is raising her profile with “Becoming,” the Netflix documentary offering an intimate look into the life of the former first lady that began streaming on Wednesday.
More Great Stories From Vanity Fair
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— How Andrew Cuomo Became the Coronavirus Trump Antidote
— In Blistering Whistleblower Complaint, Rick Bright Blasts Team Trump’s COVID-19 Response
— How Trump Gutted Obama’s Pandemic Preparedness Systems
— Advice for Biden in Chris Matthews’s First Interview Since His Hardball Exit
— From the Archive: Revisiting Rupert Murdoch and Ted Turner’s Battle to Control the Future of 24-Hour News
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