Former President Barack Obama derided the deployment of thousands of active-duty troops to the U.S.-Mexico border as a “political stunt” by the Trump administration, as Obama rallied for Florida Democrats and found himself repeatedly heckled by protesters on Friday afternoon.
“They’re telling you the existential threat to America is a bunch of poor refugees a thousand miles away,” Obama said of Republicans, referencing the caravan of an estimated 4,000 Central American migrants headed toward the United States.
“They’re even taking our brave troops away from their families for a political stunt at the border,” Obama added. “The men and women of our military deserve better than that. So they’re just constant fear mongering to distract from the record.”
Earlier this week, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis emphatically denied that the deployment is part of a political stunt ahead of next week’s midterm elections. “We don’t do stunts in this department. Thank you,” Mattis said. – READ MORE