Former President Barack Obama on Wednesday congratulated Donald Trump and Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) in a social media post where he expressed disappointment eight years after first welcoming the president-elect to the Oval Office, while delivering his familiar message of hope to disappointed Democrats.
“Now the results are in, and we want to congratulate President Trump and Senator Vance on their victory,” Obama wrote Tuesday. “This is obviously not the outcome we had hoped for, given our profound disagreements with the Republican ticket on a whole host of issues. But living in a democracy is about recognizing that our point of view won’t always win out, and being willing to accept the peaceful transfer of power.”
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Obama’s congratulatory message to the Trump campaign came just after Vice President Kamala Harris delivered a concession speech in Washington, D.C., where she spoke of her historic campaign and plans to usher in a peaceful transition of power.
The 44th president continued by saying he and Michelle Obama "could not be prouder" of Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, and their campaign staff for running “a remarkable campaign.” Obama went on to say that conditions in the country such as the Covid-19 pandemic and resulting price hikes “created headwinds for democratic incumbents around the world, and last night showed that America is not immune.”
“The good news is that these problems are solvable – but only if we listen to each other, and only if we abide by the core constitutional principles and democratic norms that made this country great,” he said.
Obama concluded his statement by saying: “In a country as big and diverse as ours, we won’t always see eye-to-eye on everything. But progress requires us to extend good faith and grace – even to people with whom we deeply disagree. That’s how we’ve come this far, and it’s how we’ll keep building a country that is more fair and more just, more equal and more free.”
