Obama Rallies Democrats, Blasts Trump Over ‘Lawlessness and Craziness’ at Virginia and New Jersey Events.
Former President Barack Obama returned to the campaign trail Saturday with a fiery message for Democrats — and a few pointed shots at Donald Trump — as he rallied voters in Virginia and New Jersey ahead of Tuesday’s elections.
Stumping for Democratic gubernatorial candidates Abigail Spanberger in Virginia and Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey, Obama accused Trump of running a “lawless and reckless” administration and using spectacle to distract from Americans’ real problems.
“Every day, this White House offers up a fresh batch of lawlessness and recklessness and mean-spiritedness and just plain craziness,” Obama said at both rallies, drawing cheers from packed crowds in Norfolk and Newark.
The former president contrasted Trump’s antics — including the $300 million White House ballroom project and a viral AI-generated video he shared depicting himself dropping feces on protesters — with what he called the seriousness and integrity of the two Democratic candidates.
“All of that is designed to distract you from the fact that your situation has not gotten better,” Obama told supporters in Virginia. When the crowd began booing at Trump’s name, he cut in with a familiar refrain: “Don’t boo, vote.”
Obama praised Spanberger and Sherrill as “leaders who will tackle hard problems and bring people together instead of dividing them,” calling them “the kind of candidates America needs right now.”
The rallies underscored Obama’s continued influence within the Democratic Party — and the urgency of the midterm fights in both states. Spanberger holds a polling edge over Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, though Democrats are wary of fallout from a scandal involving another statewide nominee.
In New Jersey, meanwhile, Sherrill faces tightening polls against Republican Jack Ciattarelli, prompting an eleventh-hour push from national Democrats.
Obama struck a mix of urgency and humor in his closing plea for turnout: “Get all your friends, your family, and that cousin lying on the couch — grab him off the couch,” he told the Newark audience.
In his sharpest moment of the day, Obama described Trump’s AI-generated “No Kings Day” post as “not even worth booing about,” before turning serious. “Let’s face it,” he said, “our country and our politics are in a pretty dark place right now. But that’s exactly why we can’t give up.”
