The anti-Trump: Obama slowly stepping into the campaign fray
When Obama waded in, it was only to offer implicit rebukes of the Trump phenomenon, such as Obama's assertion in September that "America is great right now" — a not-so-veiled reference to the business mogul's campaign promise to "make America great again."
Closing out a nuclear security summit last week, Obama said Trump's suggestion that South Korea and Japan develop nuclear weapons "tell us that the person who made the statements doesn't know much about foreign policy, or nuclear policy, or the Korean Peninsula."
[...] in his latest rebuke, Obama unloaded on Trump's proposal to compel Mexico to pay for a border wall by threatening to cut off remittances that Mexican immigrants in the U.S. send back home.
Obama's public scolding of Trump, who for years peddled inaccurate claims about Obama's birth certificate, dates back to 2011, when Obama roasted him at the glitzy White House Correspondents' Association Dinner.
Obama, echoing the broader message from Democrats this year, has stressed that Trump isn't the only Republican espousing "draconian" rhetoric about Mexicans, Muslims and others.
The White House said once the Democrats choose their nominee, Obama will be out in full force campaigning, raising money and activating his own supporters.