Obama has been quiet since he left office. That's on purpose.

Modeling his political engagement out of office after George W. Bush's, of all people — privileging the customs and traditions of our democracy rather than upending some in order to fight for others — may be among the most optimistic choices Obama has ever made. [New York]

"He's recognizing that the party and our country will benefit from other voices having an opportunity to weigh in, and that opportunity would be all but completely obscured if he were regularly sharing his opinion on these issues," says [former White House Press Secretary] Josh Earnest. [New York]

Obama believes more than ever in his capacity to spark an immediate backlash among Trump fans and to make any policy matter far more partisan. ... "It's pretty clear what President Trump's political strategy always is, which is to find a foil," says Earnest. "And with the possible exception of Hillary Clinton, his most prominent foil has been Barack Obama. That's been a very effective strategy for President Trump to galvanize his base and effectively put Republicans on Capitol Hill in the fetal position." [New York]