Grace Curley: Tone deaf Obama lecturing Dems

What Former President Barack Obama lacks in self awareness, he makes up for in arrogance. The community organizer turned president turned socialite has never been great at hiding his egocentric ways. But lately his tone deafness is so jarring that even the political party that used to regard him as royalty is starting to get sick of him. Or in simpler terms: when you’ve lost Whoopi Goldberg, you’ve gone too far. Recently during a private fundraiser in New Jersey, the loquacious thought leader had some harsh advice for Democrats. “I think it’s going to require a little bit less navel-gazing and a little less whining and being in fetal positions,” he told the crowd. “And it’s going to require Democrats to just toughen up.” While I love that Obama is dangerously close to calling his supporters snowflakes, I can’t help but notice the glaring hypocrisy here. Is Barack Obama the best person to be chastising anyone for “whining” and “navel-gazing”? After all, this is the same guy who once referenced himself 392 times in a single speech. Now he is taking a step back from the mirror, mirror on the wall to weigh in on Democrat voters’ self-absorption. How rich! As far as calling out whining, I’d kindly suggest Barack save that lecture for his better half. Former First Lady Michelle Obama has a podcast called “IMO” in which she frequently complains about…well…everything. In a recent episode featuring actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus, the two multi-millionaires bemoaned the barriers and landmines and limitations they face as women in America. In another episode, Michelle bellyached about the expenses she incurred while living at the White House during her husband’s two terms as president. I guess whining—like taking selfies at funerals or buying oceanfront island property— is only okay when the Obamas are the ones doing it. And Barry wasn’t done with his tough love talk for losers. In fact, he was just getting started. “Don’t tell me you’re a Democrat, but you’re kind of disappointed right now, so you’re not doing anything. No, now is exactly the time that you get in there and do something,” he preached. Someone needs to tell this physician— heal thyself! Obama ushered in the division he now claims to despise. And yet, despite his supposed horror over the MAGA movement, he has seemed less interested in his party’s political success and more interested in cashing checks from climate summit speaking gigs and multi-million dollar Netflix deals. “What’s being asked of us is make some effort to stand up for the things that you think are right,” he explained. “And be willing to be a little bit uncomfortable in defense of your values, and in defense of the country, and in defense of the world that you want to leave to your children and your grandchildren.” But has Barack Obama ever been willing to be uncomfortable in defense of his values? The perfect example of Obama’s cowardice is The Curious Case of Joe Biden. According to the New York Times, Obama tried to talk his former VP out of running for president in both 2016 and 2020, even going as far as to tell him, “You don’t have to do this, Joe, you really don’t.” And yet, Barack didn’t express any of these doubts publicly over fear of hurting his own public image. Even with his intimate knowledge of Joe’s ability to BLEEP things up, Obama stayed silent. Four years of BLEEPING things up later and Joe delivered his disastrous June 2024 debate performance. Amazingly, even that train wreck wasn’t enough to inspire courage in the feckless and image-obsessed Obama. Luckily his A-list BFF George Clooney was willing to get his hands dirty and wrote a blistering op-ed about Biden’s decline in the New York Times. Is this the kind of courageous unease that Obama encourages in Democrat voters but seemingly wants no part of? One thing Obama seems very comfortable with is offering up his patronizing advice to the masses for a pretty penny. Perhaps when he is done summering on the Vineyard he can try practicing what he preaches for a change. Michelle Obama speaks on stage during IMO Live podcast 2025 SXSW Conference and Festival at Austin Convention Center on March 13, 2025 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Marcus Ingram/Getty Images)