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US President-elect Donald Trump has addressed the viral moment of camaraderie between him and his predecessor Barack Obama during former President Jimmy Carter’s funeral, suggesting the two may share a mutual fondness despite their long history of political feuding.
“It did look very friendly, I must say,” Trump said in an interview with NBC News from his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida. “I didn’t realise how friendly it looked. I said, ‘Boy, they look like two people that like each other.’ And we probably do.”
The interaction, which took place on Thursday at the Cathedral in Washington, featured the two leaders shaking hands, conversing and laughing together before the service began. Video of the exchange quickly went viral, sparking chatter online about the unexpected warmth between the pair.
While Trump didn’t reveal what they discussed, he admitted their rapport was unexpected, given their differing political ideologies.
“We have little different philosophies, right? I don’t know, we just got along. But I got along with everybody on that,” he added.
The White House confirmed that the President-elect and Obama met privately before taking their seats at the funeral, though no details of their conversation were disclosed. Trump later stated, “You know, we met backstage before we went on, and I thought it was a beautiful service, but we all got along very well.”
Despite the warmth displayed at the service, the relationship between the 44th and 45th presidents has been marked by years of contentious exchanges. Trump was a proponent of the “birther” movement, which questioned Obama’s birthplace, prompting the Democrat to release his long-form Hawaiian birth certificate in 2011.
After assuming office, Trump also accused Obama of directing federal authorities to “spy” on his 2016 campaign.
Obama, for his part, has been sharply critical of the flamboyant business magnate-turned-president, describing him last year as a “78-year-old billionaire who has not stopped whining about his problems.” He also mocked Trump’s fixation on crowd sizes during the Democratic Convention, holding his hands inches apart in a suggestive gesture.
Despite their past clashes, the viral moment at Carter’s funeral has given a glimpse of a lighter, more amicable dynamic between the two leaders.
Published By:
Devika Bhattacharya
Published On:
Jan 11, 2025
