Clash of Former and Current Presidents: Has Generational Change Stalled for the Democrats?

With 9 days left until the U.S. midterm elections, former and current presidents have clashed head-on.

Former President Barack Obama, who stepped out to campaign for the Democratic Party, directly targeted the current administration, calling it a time of "unprecedented chaos, corruption, and incompetence in modern history."

In particular, pointing out unnecessary wars and the resulting high inflation, he appealed to voters for change, saying, "Enough is enough."

President Trump immediately launched a counterattack.

Through his social media, Trump fiercely criticized Obama, calling him a "terribly incompetent president" who gave billions of dollars to Iran and paved the way for its nuclear armament.

He then escalated the intensity of his attacks, lumping in the Democratic candidates whom Obama came out to support.

Targeting Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic candidate in the Michigan Senate race supported by former President Obama, President Trump labeled him a "jihadist."

Regarding the heated war of words between the two former and current presidents, criticisms emerged that the Democratic Party has failed to find a new leader to replace a former president who left office nearly 10 years ago.

On the 25th local time, CNN pointed out that former President Obama still remains the "sharpest and most popular spokesperson" for the Democrats, remarking that "the Democratic Party still hasn't replaced Obama."

CNN also delivered a cold assessment regarding Obama's move to revive the framework of the 2008 presidential election to stimulate voter sentiment, noting that "it looks as if Biden's time never even existed."

Obama himself mixed in a joke, saying he has been "doing this for too long," and mentioned the need for generational change, yet the Democrats have failed to put forward a clear next-generation leader.

Amid the reality where a former president still dominates the electoral map, the Democratic Party's shortage of figures and the challenge of generational change remain among the major issues in this midterm election.

Reported by Lee Hyeon-yeong | Video by Kim Na-on | Graphics by Yang Hye-min | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.