Donald Trump focused on feeding his ego, did not help anyone except himself: Obama
Pittsburg (US): US President Donald Trump is focused on feeding his ego and has not shown any interest in helping anyone except himself, whereas his Democratic rival Joe Biden cares about the coronavirus pandemic and keeping "your family safe", Barack Obama has said.
Making a last pitch on Saturday to get his former vice-president and Democratic presidential candidate Biden elected as the next occupant of the White House, Obama, during rallies in Michigan, blasted Trump for his policies and rhetoric.
He said Trump in the last four years had not shown any interest in helping any of his countrymen except himself.
"President Trump is focused on feeding his ego, while the Democratic presidential candidate Biden focused on decency and empathy," said Obama, who was the 44th US president.
He hasn't shown any interest in doing the work or helping anybody but himself or his friends or treating the presidency as anything more than a reality show to give him the attention that he craves. But unfortunately, the rest of us have to live with the consequences, he said.
Obama was joined by Biden at both the Flint and Detroit rallies in Michigan, a battleground state.
"I can tell you that the presidency doesn't change who you are. It shows who are you. It reveals who you are. And for eight years, Joe was the last one in the room when I made a big decision," he said.
Obama praised the 77-year-old Biden and said, "Biden is my brother. I love Joe Biden. And he will be a great president and he treats everyone with dignity and with respect".
"That sense of decency and empathy, the belief in hard work and family and faith, the belief that everyone counts, that is who Joe is and that is who he will be as president," he said, adding that Biden made him a "better president"
"He has got the character and the experience to make us a better country. And he and Kamala (Harris) are going to be in the fight, not for themselves, but for every single one of us. And we sure can't say that about the President we have got right now," he said.
Obama, 59, alleged that Trump,74, is doing a reality show in the White House.
"You know when a country is going through a pandemic that's not what you're supposed to be worrying about," he said.
"And that's the difference between Biden and Trump right there. Trump cares about feeding his ego. Joe cares about keeping you and your family safe. And he's less interested in feeding his ego with having big crowds than he is making sure he's not going around making more and more people sick. That's what you should expect from a president," he asserted.
What is his obsession, by the way, with crowd size? You notice that? This is the one measure he has of success. He's still worried about his inauguration crowd being smaller than mine. It really bugged him. He's still talking about that. Did nobody come to his birthday party when he was a kid? Is he traumatized? What's with crowds? he asked.
The lifeblood of a campaign isn't rallies, it is not TV ads, but people willing to take a clipboard, talk to their neighbours and talk to their friends and talk to their co-workers, he said.
"Let folks know what the stakes are. And this kind of grassroots work and organizing. Makes all the difference especially in an election, like this, where the stakes are so high, Obama said.
He said there was a need to revive the pandemic-hit economy again and it could be done well once Biden was elected.
"We know that change is possible, but it's not guaranteed. And if we care deeply about restoring a sense of decency to our federal government, a government that's going to look out for ordinary people, that is gonna take this pandemic seriously and get on top of it so we can not only save lives, but also make our economy healthy again," he said.
"If we want a nation that is living up to its values, and its ideals so that, we set an example for the world. If we care about climate change and making sure that our criminal justice system is free of racial bias. Then we're gonna have to work for it. And we've just got a few more days to make that happen," he added.
Obama said Biden understands his responsibilities.
"And the other person who makes me hopeful is somebody I served with for eight years. Was in the room before I made any big decision, a person of character, a person of decency, a person of kindness.
"A person who understands the solemn responsibilities you take on when you become president of the US, somebody who's going to put you first. My friend, I could not be prouder to support him, and I could not be prouder. I hope in a few days to be able to call him Mr. President," he said.
Obama officially endorsed Biden in April, marking the Democratic establishment's formal consolidation around the party's presidential nominee.
"Choosing Joe to be my vice president was one of the best decisions I ever made, and he became a close friend," Obama had said in a video released by the Biden campaign. "And I believe Joe has all the qualities we need in a president right now," he said.
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Accused gunman at correspondents' dinner was believed to be targeting top officials, Blanche says
Washington (AP): The accused gunman who tried to storm the ballroom at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner with guns and knives travelled across the country before the event and is believed to have been targeting members of the Trump administration, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Sunday.
Blanche also said officials believe the suspect traveled by train from California to Chicago and then on to Washington, where in recent days he checked in as a guest to the hotel where one of Washington's glitziest events was being held Saturday night.
Investigators have not publicly named the suspect, but two law enforcement officials familiar with the matter have identified him to The Associated Press as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California.
Law enforcement officials who have examined the gunman's electronic devices and his writings preliminarily believe he intended to target administration members in attendance at the dinner. He attempted to charge into the cavernous ballroom at the Washington Hilton but was tackled to the ground in a chaotic scene that resulted in shots being fired, President Donald Trump being hurried off the stage and guests ducking for cover beneath their tables.
“It does appear that he did in fact set out to target folks who work in the administration, likely including the president,” Blanche told NBC's “Meet the Press.”
The suspect is believed to have purchased the firearms he carried within the last couple of years, Blanche said. He is not being cooperative and is expected to face multiple charges on Monday.
Video posted by Trump showed the suspect running past security barricades as Secret Service agents ran toward him. One officer was shot in a bullet-resistant vest but was recovering, officials said. The gunman was taken into custody and was not injured, but was being evaluated at a hospital, police said.
“He failed,” Blanche said on CBS's “Face the Nation.” “Law enforcement did their jobs.”
Social media posts that appear to match the suspect show he is a highly educated tutor and amateur video game developer.
A May 2025 profile photo of Allen appears to match the appearance of the man in a photo of the alleged attacker being taken into custody that was posted Saturday night by Trump. The photo, posted to the social networking site LinkedIn, shows him in a cap and gown after graduating with a master's degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills.
Allen earned a bachelor's degree in 2017 in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. He listed his involvement there in a Christian student fellowship and a campus group that battled with Nerf guns.
The shooting at the security barricades happened minutes after the event got underway.
The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the room as guests ducked under tables by the hundreds. Gasps echoed through the ballroom as guests realized something was happening. Hundreds of journalists immediately got on phones to call in information.
“Out of the way, sir!” someone yelled. Others yelled to duck. From one corner, a “God Bless America” chant began as the president was escorted offstage. Outside the hotel, members of the National Guard and other authorities flooded the area as helicopters circled overhead.
After an initial attempt to resume the event, it was scrapped for the night and will be rescheduled.
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