‘Good Riddance, Obama’: Jerusalemites Send Mixed Parting Messages to the Outgoing US President
by Ruthie Blum
Ahead of Friday’s inauguration of Donald Trump as the next president of the United States, a reporter from the Hebrew news site nrg took to the streets of Jerusalem to ask passersby their views on the current American leader.
Dressed as a pro-Barack Obama political activist, Zvika Klein, on behalf of Israel360.org, went out to “get authentic answers from the public.”
“I’ll be very happy to see him get the hell out,” one man said, using a Hebrew idiom meaning “good riddance.”
“He’s an Israel-hater,” another hissed. “He’s a goy (gentile). He’s bad. He’s an Arab. He’s a terrorist.” When Klein pointed out that “Trump is also a goy,” the man shrugged, but continued on his rant, calling Obama a “black cloud.”
A third mentioned Obama’s resentment of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which “he’s now publicizing.”
Others were less hostile.
“From a defense standpoint, he did pretty well for us,” one man said. “And you don’t spit into the well you drink from.”
Another quipped: “He’s not crazy about Israel; Israel makes him crazy.”
“Israelis are ingrates, that’s all,” said another, referring to the $38 billion aid package that the Obama administration approved for Israel (though he mistakenly called it $3 billion).
When asked by Klein if he wanted to say thank you to Obama, another man-in-the-street replied, “Heaven forbid.”
But someone else smiled, and said, “Shalom, Mr. Obama, we can only hope that Trump will be like you.”
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