Saying “thanks, Obama” has become a popular way to both seriously and sarcastically express appreciation or disdain for changes or problems in people’s lives over the past eight years. But the Rev. Al Sharpton is going a step further, thanking a higher power for the Obama’s White House run.
Appearing Sunday on his weekend MSNBC program “Politics Nation,” Sharpton played a clip of the president back in early November saying Trump is “not somebody who is fit to be president.”
“The future of our country will be the thing that we must be concerned about when the inauguration happens this Friday,” Sharpton said as photos of himself and Obama played in the background.
Sharpton has routinely been critical of Trump and his incoming administration, most recently leading a rally in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, calling on Americans to fight for civil rights during his administration and protest Sen. Jeff Sessions’ nomination for attorney general.
Sunday morning, Sharpton listed what he said were the accomplishments of Obama’s presidency, noting that Obama turned the economy around, took steps to address criminal justice and police reform, helped 20 million people get healthcare coverage and made “concrete” steps to fight climate change.
“I am so proud of President Barack Obama, not just because he was and is my color, but because he was America’s kind,” Sharpton said. “He helped this country like no president I’ve seen in my lifetime. We should thank God we lived in the age of Obama.”
