Obama to team: You can mope for two weeks

President Obama says he told members of his team they can sulk over the defeat of Hillary Clinton for no longer than two weeks before the seek to turn those emotions into action.

In a conference call with Democratic National Committee (DNC) members, the president heaped praise on Clinton and her historic candidacy and said it’s understandable to mourn an unexpected loss to Donald Trump.

Obama added that Democrats must then dust themselves off to work on rebuilding their fractured party.

“We did not get the results we wanted, but we took a step in shattering a barrier that’s still there,” Obama said. “That doesn’t mean we don’t hurt or was an unexpected loss.” 

“I was telling my team you’re allowed to mope for week and a half, maybe two weeks if you really need it,” he continued. “But after that, we gotta brush ourselves off and get back to work.”

“It means that we’re listening to each other, we’re asking tough questions, we’re respectful of different points of view.” 

Obama used the call as a rallying cry for DNC members to come together in the aftermath of a devastating election that saw the party make only modest gains in the House and Senate, even as Republicans expanded their control over statehouses across the country.

He expressed confidence in Democrats’ ability going forward and said as a private citizen, he will continue to focus on the issues that matter most to him. 

“Bottom line is I’m still fired up and ready to go,” Obama said, reprising the popular chant from his 2008 campaign.