Barack Obama and George Bush blast Donald Trump for ‘bigotry’ and ‘politics of fear’

Former presidents Barack Obama and George W Bush have united to attack the “politics of fear” under Donald Trump.

Without naming his White House successor, Mr Obama, right, voiced concern over the political climate in America.

“Some of the politics we see now, we thought we’d put that to bed. I mean, that’s folks looking 50 years back. It’s the 21st century, not the 19th century,” Mr Obama told a rally in New Jersey, where he was campaigning for the Democrat candidate for governor, Phil Murphy.

Speaking in New York earlier yesterday, Republican George W Bush spoke out against the “bullying and prejudice” in public life, without mentioning Mr Trump by name.

He said the current political culture led to “bigotry” being “emboldened”, adding: “Our politics seems more vulnerable to conspiracy theories and outright fabrication.”

It is rare for former presidents to publicly criticise those who follow them in the office. For two to lambast a sitting president on the same day is unprecedented.

Mr Obama made little attempt to hide his disdain for the divisive culture in Washington. “We are rejecting a politics of division. We are rejecting a politics of fear,” he said.

“We are embracing a politics that says everybody counts, a politics that says everybody deserves a chance, a politics that says everybody has dignity and worth — a politics of hope.”

Lamenting the US’s new position on the world stage, he added: “The world counts on America having its act together … The world asks what our values and ideals are, and are we living up to our creed.”

The speech was Mr Obama’s first foray into campaign politics since he left office in January. He made a second campaign stop in Virginia, in support of governor hopeful Ralph Northam.

Returning to the theme of racial division, he told a rally in Richmond: “We’re at our best not when we’re trying to put people down, but when we’re trying to lift everybody up.

Folks don’t feel good right now about what they see… Instead of politics reflecting our values, we have politics infecting our communities.”