President Donald Trump’s deep-rooted animosity toward former President Barack Obama surged back into the spotlight this week, just as scrutiny mounts over Trump’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.
The renewed clash was triggered by a controversial AI-generated video Trump posted on social media Sunday. The footage reimagines his 2016 post-election Oval Office meeting with Obama, portraying federal agents storming in to arrest the former president as Trump watches with a grin. The video is set to the beat of “Y.M.C.A.,” a recurring theme at Trump rallies.
Though Trump and Obama have only met for a substantive conversation once — two days after Trump’s 2016 victory — the former president has remained a central figure in Trump’s political grievances for years. He frequently refers to Obama as “Barack Hussein Obama,” a nod to the birther conspiracy theory Trump promoted before entering politics.
That long-standing resentment resurfaced dramatically this week. During a press briefing on Wednesday, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard directly accused Obama of orchestrating a “treasonous conspiracy” to undermine Trump by allegedly manipulating intelligence surrounding Russian interference in the 2016 election. Gabbard claimed the Obama-era intelligence community “manufactured” evidence and confirmed that criminal referrals had been sent to the Justice Department.
“There are multiple pieces of evidence and intelligence that confirm that fact,” Gabbard said. “This can only be described as a years-long coup attempt against our republic.”
The allegations, rooted in a new report from Gabbard, challenge a 2017 intelligence assessment that concluded Russia sought to interfere in the election to benefit Trump. That assessment was later upheld by a bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee — including now–Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Yet Gabbard and Trump argue the intelligence was skewed by Obama-era officials to discredit Trump’s presidency.
On Tuesday, when asked about Epstein, Trump quickly shifted topics, launching into a tirade against Obama and accusing him of treason. “Obama’s been caught directly,” Trump declared from the Oval Office. “This was a coup attempt, plain and simple.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and Gabbard both dodged questions about whether former presidents like Obama have legal immunity.
Obama’s office, which typically avoids engaging with Trump’s rhetoric, issued a rare public response. “These bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction,” said Obama spokesman Patrick Rodenbush. He added that while Obama usually ignores Trump’s “constant nonsense,” this time the accusations couldn’t go unanswered.
The sudden escalation comes as Trump faces criticism from within his own base over how his administration is handling the Epstein case. Many saw his attacks on Obama as a calculated distraction. Still, those close to Trump say the rage is real — and personal.
Trump’s distrust of Obama dates back more than a decade, but it intensified during the 2011 White House Correspondents’ Dinner, where Obama publicly mocked Trump, who was in the audience. Aides say that moment left a lasting scar.
Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has focused much of his firepower on President Joe Biden. But the Epstein controversy and new intelligence reports appear to have reignited his grudge against Obama, whom Trump sees as the original architect of efforts to undermine him.
“We had the greatest six months in U.S. presidential history, and all the fake news wants to talk about is the Jeffrey Epstein hoax,” Trump posted on social media Tuesday.
But in private, advisers say, Trump remains consumed by the belief that Obama was behind the Russia investigation — and determined to settle the score.
“He headed it up. And it says so right in the papers,” Trump said Tuesday, insisting Obama should be held accountable.
The two men haven’t meaningfully interacted since the 2016 transition, though they briefly exchanged pleasantries at the late President Jimmy Carter’s funeral earlier this year. Trump even joked afterward, “We probably do like each other.”
This week’s events suggest otherwise.
