Obama Chides GOP Values: 'A Fundamental Contrast Of How We View The World'

Michelle Lou
Former President Barack Obama returned to the public eye Thursday with a swipe

Former President Barack Obama returned to the public eye Thursday with a swipe at “dog-eat-dog” politics and an appeal for gun control.

The 44th president spoke at a Democratic National Committee fundraiser in Southern California, sharing the stage with DNC Chair Tom Perez. Obama did not explicitly mention President Donald Trump, but took aim at Republican values.

“There’s a fundamental contrast of how we view the world,” Obama said, as reported by Politico. “We are seeing the consequences of when one vision is realized, or in charge.”

Obama criticized the Trump administration’s divisive and inflammatory rhetoric, saying Americans “prefer a story of hope” and “a country that comes together rather than being divided.”

“The majority of the country doesn’t want to see a dog-eat-dog world where everybody is angry all the time,” Obama said.

The former president acknowledged that Democrats could learn from Republicans’ skill in fundraising and organizing, but cautioned his party against adopting the GOP’s bare-knuckle tactics or inflammatory rhetoric.

“The Democrats’ job is not to exaggerate; the Democrats’ job is not to simply mimic the tactics of the other side,” Obama said. “All we have to do is work hard on behalf of that truth. And if we do, we’ll get better outcomes.”

Obama didn’t mention the week’s biggest election story: longtime Rep. Joe Crowley’s (D-N.Y.) primary election loss to newcomer Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. He also skipped discussion of Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy’s retirement, the court’s travel ban ruling or Trump’s zero-tolerance immigration policy.

However, he did address the Capital Gazette mass shooting in Annapolis, Maryland.

“Each time one of these tragedies strikes, we remind ourselves that this is preventable,” Obama said, repeating his call for gun control. “America is not the only nation on Earth that has people who are troubled or violent, but we are unique in the weapons that those people can deploy, and it is costly.”

Obama has mostly stayed out of the public eye after leaving the White House, and has largely refrained from directly criticizing the Trump administration’s actions.

Thursday’s event was the first of three California Democratic fundraisers where Obama is set to appear this week.

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.