The president’s top spokesman declined on Thursday to react to Donald Trump’s foreign policy speech, and said he didn’t think many U.S. allies are talking about the U.S. presidential race, even though President Obama himself has said foreign leaders have kept a close eye on Trump.
“I don’t know that there are many allies that have spent a lot of time weighing in on the U.S. presidential race,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters Thursday. “They understand that certainly their opinion matters, but obviously the opinion that matters most is the opinion of American voters.”
During Obama’s visit to the U.K. and Germany over the weekend and earlier this week, both British Prime Minister David Cameron and and German Chancellor Angela Merkel both dodged questions concerning Trump and the state of the U.S. election.
But Earnest’s comment is a departure from recent remarks from Obama who has repeatedly said foreign leaders are coming to him in droves to say they worry about the future of their alliance with the U.S. under a Trump presidency.
In April, Obama said he has to routinely respond to foreign leaders who are concerned about statements from the billionaire businessman, as well as Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and has argued that it is damaging America’s reputation overseas.
“I think that I’ve been very clear earlier that I am getting questions constantly from foreign leaders about some of the wackier suggestions that are being made,” the president told reporters during a press conference April 5. “I do have to emphasize that it’s not just Mr. Trump’s proposals. You’re also hearing concerns about Mr. Cruz’s proposals, which in some ways are just as draconian when it comes to immigration, for example.”
Earnest also declined to comment on a colorful remark former Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, made about Cruz in an interview with Stanford University’s publication.
“Lucifer in the flesh,” Boehner said when asked what he thought of Cruz. “I have Democrat friends and Republican friends. I get along with almost everyone, but I have never worked with a more miserable son of a bitch in my life.”
But when asked to react to Boehner’s depiction of Cruz, Earnest didn’t take the bait.
“If you’re looking for someone to come to the defense of one Republican coming under attack by another, you should probably ask someone else,” he said.
