OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Former President Barack Obama criticized assertions made by former President Donald Trump that the economy was doing well, saying, “Yeah, it was pretty good because it was my economy!”
At a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, campaign rally, Obama spoke in favor of Vice President Kamala Harris, saying, “Donald Trump’s plan is to do what he did last time, which was give another massive tax cut to billionaires and big corporations.”
He continued: “And the reason some people think, “I remember that economy when he first came in being pretty good” – yeah, it was pretty good because it was my economy! We had had 75 straight months of job growth that I handed over to him! It wasn’t something he did! I had spent eight years cleaning up the mess that the Republicans had left me the last time. So just in case everyone has a hazy memory, he didn’t do nothing! Except those big tax cuts. His other big economic plan now is to slap tariffs on everything, from food to TVs.”
Republicans on social media disputed Obama’s claim, calling the remark “delusional.”
“GDP growth in Obama’s last year in office was 1.6%. Trump did not inherit a good economy,” reacted RealClearInvestigations senior writer Mark Hemingway, while The Federalist editor-in-chief Mollie Hemingway wrote, “In fact, the Obama economy was *notoriously* sluggish and a big reason why Trump won election the first time.”
During the rally, Obama also delved into gutter politics and made a bizarre remark about Trump wearing a diaper during a conversation with an audience member.
After Obama asked, “Do you think Donald Trump ever changed a diaper?” a heckler could be heard shouting, “His own!”
Obama replied, “I almost said that, but I decided I shouldn’t say it.”
WATCH:
Diapers?!
Here’s former President Barack Obama on the campaign trail in Pennsylvania for Kamala Harris – makes awkward remarks about diapers that first draws silence, then tries to turn it into a jab at former President Donald Trump:
“I remember buying diapers. I, I, I remember… pic.twitter.com/PssT0lBUQM
— Conservative Brief (@ConservBrief) October 11, 2024
Trump has managed to overtake Harris in a new national survey after a seven-point swing in his favor.
The poll, taken by ActiVote between October 3 and October 8, shows Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, with a 1.2 percent lead over Harris, the Democratic candidate, garnering 50.6 percent of the vote compared to her 49.4 percent.
This marks a reversal of fortunes for Trump, who was trailing Harris by 5.4 points—47.3 percent to her 52.7 percent—in a poll conducted by ActiVote between September 11 and September 17. The former president has seen a 6.6-point increase in his support in just three weeks.
Both polls surveyed 1,000 likely voters and had a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percentage points, Newsweek reported.
This is the first time Trump has led a national poll since September 22, when a Quinnipiac University survey showed him 1 point ahead at 48 percent, compared to Harris’s 47 percent when including third-party candidates. In a head-to-head matchup, that poll indicated a tie, with both candidates receiving 48 percent. The poll surveyed 1,728 likely voters and had a margin of error of +/- 2.4 percentage points.
Since September 22, other polls have shown Harris leading Trump by as much as 7 points.
Another new poll, meanwhile, shows that Trump is ahead of Harris in five of the seven crucial swing states, which will be crucial in deciding who wins the election.
According to an AtlasIntel survey of likely voters in battleground states, Trump leads in Pennsylvania (51 percent to 48.1) and Michigan (50.6 percent to 47.2).
The former president is also in a “narrow” lead in the states that are in doubt: Arizona (49.8 percent to 48.6), Georgia (49.6 percent to 49), and Wisconsin (49.7 percent to 48.2).
This information was provided by AtlasIntel. In Nevada (50.5 percent to 47.7) and North Carolina (50.5 percent to 48.1), Harris is ahead.
Also, 538 voters chose AtlasIntel as the most reliable polling organization for the 2020 presidential contest. If the Republican takes the five battleground states that he presently leads in their polling, with Harris at 248 Electoral College votes, Trump would win the 2024 election with 290 Electoral College votes.
