This archive report was first published on 17 May 2020.
On May 16, 2020, former US President Barack Obama delivered a scathing critique of the US response to the Covid-19 pandemic, speaking at two virtual commencements for high school and university students.
Obama's remarks came as the US continued to grapple with the pandemic, which had claimed over 90,000 lives and infected over 1.4 million people.
"More than anything, this pandemic has fully, finally torn back the curtain on the idea that so many of the folks in charge know what they're doing," Obama said, without naming any specific leaders.
He continued, "A lot of them aren't even pretending to be in charge."
Obama's comments were a rare public rebuke of his successor, Donald Trump, and marked the second time in a week that he had criticized the US response to the pandemic.
At the first ceremony, Obama also highlighted the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on black communities, saying, "A disease like this just spotlights the underlying inequalities and extra burdens that black communities have historically had to deal with in this country."
