Former President Barack Obama may not be hosted at the White House for a portrait unveiling while President Trump is in office — not that he apparently wants to be.
The sitting U.S. president for decades has traditionally hosted the former president at the White House for a ceremony in which his predecessor's official portrait is unveiled, but NBC News reports "this modern ritual won't be taking place" between Obama and Trump in possibly the "latest casualty of the political divide."
Obama doesn't sound too upset about it, though, as according to the report, the 44th president "has no interest" in participating in the ceremony while Trump is in office. Former President George W. Bush's portrait unveiling took place under Obama in 2012, while former President Bill Clinton's took place under Bush in 2004. According to the report, the portrait process for Obama "stalled" in 2017.
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In recent days, after Obama in a graduation speech criticized the "folks in charge" during the coronavirus pandemic and in a private call blasted Trump's response to the crisis as an "absolute chaotic disaster," Trump has attacked Obama as "incompetent." He's also been baselessly accusing Obama of criminal actions while not offering evidence or expanding on his claims when questioned.
Although NBC notes the ceremony typically happens in a president's first term, according to the report, it's also unlikely to occur for Obama during a second Trump term should the president win re-election, meaning "it could be 2025" before his portrait unveiling happens.
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