United States President Donald Trump called former head of state Barack Obama a "mediocre president" after jokingly comparing the White House to a restaurant from the Cheesecake Factory chain. Trump made the statement to reporters at Andrews Air Force Base before leaving for Mississippi.
“And the fact that you say it looks like the Cheesecake Factory just shows why you were a mediocre president,” Trump said, addressing Obama's assessment of the changes to the presidential residence. The remarks were part of a conversation with reporters published in the Roll Call Factba.se transcript.
Obama attacks White House renovations
Obama made his criticism at a campaign event in Ohio, where he was supporting Democratic candidates ahead of the midterm elections. He said Donald Trump was focused on renovating the building while Americans were facing other problems.
“He made the White House look like Saddam Hussein opened the Cheesecake Factory,“ Obama said. The comparison was about the gold accents and other changes that Trump has defended as part of the building's renovation.
Trump defends renovation
In his response, the president said that elements were removed from one side of the building and then reused on another. He said that "very little money" was spent on this.
"It's not about the money," Trump said. According to him, it's about whether you notice the condition of the building, including dirt and damaged decorative elements.
"It has to be clean. The columns have to be broken. The bricks have to be not falling out of the plaster," Donald Trump said.The exchange of remarks comes in the midst of the campaign for the midterm elections in the United States, scheduled for November 3. Obama campaigned for Democratic candidates, while Trump used his trip to Mississippi to campaign for Republicans.
Sources: rollcall.com, apnews.com, axios.com