WASHINGTON, Sept 18: Barack Obama today took a dig at Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, saying he is relieved that the birther issue is over after the real estate tycoon admitted that the outgoing American President was born in the US.
“There’s an extra spring in my step tonight,” Obama said in his address to the Congressional Black Caucus dinner here as the invited guests at the dinner burst into laughter.
“I don’t know about you guys, but I am so relieved that the whole birther thing is over,” he said.
Trump had on Friday said Obama was born in the US, putting an end to the controversy surrounding his birth place.
Obama had earlier said he is “shocked” that a question of his birth place would come up at a time when other pressing issues are facing the nation.
“I mean, ISIL, North Korea, poverty, climate change — none of those things weighed on my mind — like the validity of my birth certificate,” he said today amidst another round of laughter.
“To think that with just 124 days to go, under the wire, we got that resolved. I mean, that’s a boost for me in the home stretch. In other breaking news, the world is round, not flat,” he said as the audience again burst into laughter.
Obama’s second and last four-year term comes to an end January 20, 2017, when he would be replaced by either Trump or his former secretary of state Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.
During these eight years, Obama said he and the First Lady Michelle Obama, have tried to be role models.
“When we began this journey coming on 10 years now, we said this was not about us. It wasn’t about me. It wasn’t about Michelle. It wasn’t just to be a black President, or the President of black America. We understood the power of the symbol. We know what it means for a generation of children, of all races, to see folks like us in the White House,” he said.
“As Michelle says, we’ve tried to be role models, not just for our own girls, but for all children, because we know they watch everything we do as adults. They look to us as an example. So we’ve taken that responsibility seriously. And I’ve been so blessed to have a wife and a partner on this journey who makes it look so easy,” he said.
Referring to the comments made by Trump on African- Americans Obama said he will educate him.
“You may have heard Hillary’s opponent in this election say that there’s never been a worse time to be a black person. I mean, he missed that whole civics lesson about slavery and Jim Crow but we’ve got a museum for him to visit. So he can tune in. We will educate him,” Obama said amidst applause.
“He (Trump) says we got nothing left to lose, so we might as well support somebody who has fought against civil rights, and fought against equality, and who has shown no regard for working people for most of his life. Well, we do have challenges, but we’re not stupid,” Obama said. (PTI)
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