'Then arrest him': Critics call Trump’s bluff over 'desperate' Obama deflection

Critics of President Donald Trump called out his attempt to deflect mounting controversy surrounding the Jeffrey Epstein files at a Tuesday Oval Office meeting with the president of the Philippines.

Following Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s claim that former president Barack Obama "manufactured" Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Trump told reporters Obama belongs in prison.

“But the leader of the gang was President Obama,” Trump told reporters after being asked about a question pertaining to the Epstein case. “Barack Hussein Obama. Ever hear of him? Except for the fact that he gets shielded by the press his entire life — he’s guilty. I like to say ‘let’s give it time’, but he’s guilty. This was treason. This was every word you can think of. They tried to steal the election. They tried to obfuscate the election.”

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“… [A]nd we have all of the documents, and from what Tulsi’s told me, she’s still got thousands of additional documents coming,” Trump added. “So, president Obama — it was his concept, but he got it, also, from Crooked Hillary Clinton. Crooked as a three-dollar bill.”

Online critics quickly disassembled Trump’s claim, but also noted how obviously it felt like a deflection.

“What a pathetic fool. Won't work, Donny,” wrote one commenter on X. “We want the Epstein files.”

“Then arrest him, p————, challenged PodSaveAmerica podcaster Jon Favreau.

Like Favreau, another social media critic demanded Trump make arrests if he was so sure of Obama’s guilt: “Why all the yappin’ and no arrestin’?” he wrote.

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Other critics noted the stunning awkwardness of a U.S. president struggling to pivot away from the Epstein conspiracy to an altogether different conspiracy that he admitted he prefers the media focus on.

“The President of the Philippines just sitting there as Trump goes on an eight-minute rant about Obama,” posted Bulwark writer Sam Stein.

“Desperate to get off the Epstein issue,” wrote another commenter, followed by another claiming, “Pure projection. From a 34x felon.”

“You know he's struggling when this is the best he can manage,” said still another commenter. “I'm so not looking forward to another six months of b——————— about Hillary's emails."