Woodward: Trump insulted Obama’s intelligence, called him ‘overrated’

President Trump lashed out at his predecessor and insulted his intelligence during an interview with legendary Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward, according to excerpts from Woodward’s book released Wednesday.

In the passages from “Rage” released by the Post, Woodward describes a conversation with Trump that occurred in July, when the president went after former President Obama, claiming that the nation’s first Black president was “overrated” and stating that he didn’t believe Obama was “smart.”

“I don’t think Obama’s smart,” Trump said in the interview. “I think he’s highly overrated. And I don’t think he’s a great speaker.”

The former president also gave what he said was North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un’s impression of the former president, adding that Kim thought Obama was “an asshole.”

White House officials did not immediately return a request for comment from The Hill on the president’s remarks. Trump has long been critical of Obama, but in 2016 was invited to the White House by the former president after his election victory.

During conversations with Woodward, the journalist noted other instances in which Trump expressed anger towards Democrats of color. While analyzing coverage of his most recent “State of the Union” speech with Woodward in late July, Trump pointed to calm or otherwise expressionless shots of Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) during his speech, reportedly exclaiming: “Hate! See the hate! See the hate!”

Ocasio-Cortez and other members of the so-called “squad” of female progressive first-term legislators have faced withering criticism from the president since first taking office after the 2018 midterms, with the president and his allies frequently accusing them of hating America.

In one particular instance in 2019, Trump urged the four including Ocasio-Cortez to “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came” in a tweet that was widely criticized by Democrats as xenophobic and racist.

The president has also heaped criticism on Harris since her nomination as former Vice President Joe Biden’s (D) running mate in the 2020 election; on Tuesday he derided her at a North Carolina campaign rally at which he said it would be an “insult” to the country should Harris serve as the first woman president.

“People don’t like her. Nobody likes her. She could never be the first woman president. She could never be. That would be an insult to our country,” he said.