Former President Donald Trump has responded to a widely shared incident from the 2011 White House Correspondents’ Dinner in which he was famously made fun of by then-President Barack Obama. Trump was present at the time and had recently been a prominent figure in spreading the false “birther” conspiracy, which cast doubt on Obama’s U.S. citizenship.
In order to quell claims that he was not born in the US, Obama released his complete birth certificate after the dinner. Trump claimed to have succeeded where others had failed, and he had claimed credit for the release. Obama made Trump the focus of a scathing comedy segment and used the occasion to publicly mock him.
Obama mockingly praised Trump in a now-viral video from the dinner for resolving the birth certificate controversy so he could…
WASHINGTON D.C. – While President Donald Trump has consistently maintained an adversarial stance towards his predecessor, Barack Obama, the deep roots of this political animosity are frequently traced back to a specific, humiliating night in 2011. Nearly a decade and a half later, this pivotal moment continues to resonate, informing Trump’s ongoing broadsides against Obama, even as no single “just responded” moment to that specific mockery has recently surfaced.
The event in question occurred on April 30, 2011, at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. Then-President Barack Obama, fresh off the release of his long-form birth certificate following relentless demands from Trump, used his comedic monologue to mercilessly mock the real estate mogul. Obama’s jokes targeted Trump’s “birther” crusade, his reality TV show “Celebrity Apprentice,” and even suggested Trump would bring “change” to the White House by focusing on issues like the moon landing conspiracy.
Trump, a guest at the dinner, was reportedly seething. Accounts from those present, including former Trump aide Omarosa Manigault and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, describe Trump as “pissed off like I’d never seen him before” and “beside himself with fury.” Many political observers and close associates of Trump contend that this public humiliation served as a profound catalyst, solidifying his resolve to run for president. As his political advisor Roger Stone famously put it, “I think that is the night he resolves to run for president. ‘Maybe I’ll just run. Maybe I’ll show them all.'”
Since becoming President, Donald Trump has rarely shied away from criticizing Obama. His attacks have ranged from broad policy condemnations to deeply personal accusations, most recently escalating with claims of “treason” related to the 2016 “Russiagate” investigation. While these recent accusations of criminal conduct by the Obama administration are part of a current and aggressive campaign, they are seen by many as a continuation of a long-standing grievance that began with that night in 2011.
There has been no singular, explicit recent statement from President Trump specifically addressing or “responding” anew to the 2011 Correspondents’ Dinner mocking as an isolated event. Instead, his criticisms of Obama are woven into the fabric of his broader political narrative, emphasizing alleged misdeeds and failures of the previous administration. For Trump and his allies, the 2011 dinner is not just a historical anecdote, but a foundational moment that set the stage for his own political rise, fueled by a deep-seated desire for redemption and to “hit back harder” against those who sought to humiliate him. The echoes of Obama’s jokes continue to reverberate in the ongoing political sparring between the two former presidents.
