President Barack Obama acknowledged that President-elect Donald Trump had pulled off an impressive victory, despite having vocally criticized him as being unfit for the office of the presidency.
“Some of his gifts that obviously allowed him to execute one of the biggest political upsets in history, those are the ones that hopefully he will put to good use on behalf of the American people,” he said.
Obama added that it was “impressive” how Trump was able to channel the enthusiasm and the anxieties of the American people to win.
“I think that to the extent that there were a lot of folks who missed the trump phenomenon, that connection that he was able to make with his supporters, that was impervious to what might have sunk another candidate,” Obama said.
But Obama warned that Trump would face “reality” once he got into the presidency, that might make him change his governing style.
“This office has a way of waking you up … reality has a way of asserting itself,” he said.
He suggested that Trump didn’t appear as idealogical as some previous presidents, suggesting that he would be “ultimately pragmatic” after he took office.
But Obama admitted that both he and Trump agreed on a number of problems facing the country.
“Do I have concerns? Of course, I have concerns. Absolutely,” Obama said. “He and I differ on a whole bunch of issues.”
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