Former President Barack Obama mocked President Donald Trump’s White House renovations at a rally in Cleveland on Saturday, saying the building looks like a Cheesecake Factory that Saddam Hussein opened. Obama was campaigning for Ohio Democrats Amy Acton, who is running for governor, and Sherrod Brown, who is running for the Senate, Newsweek reported.
The crowd inside the Cleveland Public Auditorium, which holds more than 10,000 people, laughed and applauded. “He’s got the White House looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory,” Obama said, then added that there is gold everywhere.
What Obama went after
He ran through Trump’s building projects: a ballroom he said is bigger than the White House, a Rose Garden he said Trump paved over, and the gold decor. He suggested Trump should be on HGTV and argued the president spends more time on renovations than on lowering prices. Newsweek called it an unusually direct jab.
Obama also went after the Trump family’s business dealings, saying it is hard to keep count of the deals involving meme coins and taxpayer-funded contracts for the president’s children’s companies. He criticized the administration’s handling of Iran and urged people to vote.
He also weighed in on the ad that features Acton’s estranged mother, saying public officials should be held to a standard of decency, a story we covered in our report on Vivek Ramaswamy’s $4 million ad buy.
The pushback
Conservative commentators were quick to respond. Some called the joke elitist, noting that many Americans see the Cheesecake Factory as a nice restaurant. Fox News pointed out that the renovations include practical upgrades, such as a new granite helipad that Trump unveiled in September, and that Obama’s own presidential center in Chicago drew criticism for its tall granite tower and rising costs. Fox News Digital asked the White House for comment, and the reports reviewed do not include a reply.
Why it matters
Ohio’s governor and Senate races are among the contests Democrats are targeting, and Obama’s visit was part of a final push before Election Day on Nov. 3. For where the governor’s race stands, see our look at the close governor races.
