Did Barack Obama Sue Donald Trump? The Truth About The Rumors

Ever since President Donald Trump's second term commenced, the news cycle has been utterly chaotic. This is mostly thanks to the divisive politician's penchant for stirring the pot, making controversial comments, and accusing his predecessors of being the worst leaders in history. Amid the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, however, Trump appeared desperate to change the narrative, ultimately playing his trump card (pun intended), which came in the form of serious accusations against Former President Barack Obama so jaw-dropping that rumors soon flew that he was taking Trump to court over them.

As the media and MAGA fans alike demanded answers about the so-called Epstein files, the Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, took to the podium in the White House press briefing room to inform journalists that Obama had tried to orchestrate a coup during the 2016 presidential elections to prevent Trump from being elected. Gabbard further claimed that the reports of Russian interference in the 2016 elections were fabricated by the Obama administration, calling it a "treasonous conspiracy," (via Al Jazeera).

Obama is known for not taking the bait when it comes to Trump, but given the serious nature of them, we cannot fault certain pundits for believing a viral tweet reporting that he was suing Trump in the wake of the damaging allegations. "BREAKING: Barack Obama just announced he will be suing Donald Trump for $500 billion over Trump's claim that Obama led a coup," a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, read. Upon further inspection, though, it's clear this is a satirical account, and the rumor never had any basis in fact. Obama's office did release a statement, however, which read simply, "These bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction," (via Reuters).

Plenty of scandals plagued Barack Obama during his time in office, but according to experts, the Trump administration's assertion that the former president staged a coup wasn't one of them. Former CIA head of counter-intelligence Susan Miller, who was part of the team leading the investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 presidential elections, told the Guardian that Gabbard's allegations aren't supported by factual evidence, simple as. She also questioned the White House staffer's understanding of the report she and her team had compiled, explaining, "It is not a hoax. This was based on real intelligence. It's reporting we were getting from verified agents and from other verified streams of intelligence." Donald Trump has made some wild claims about Obama over the years, but the accusation of treason might be the most controversial yet — and it definitely won't cool the reported feud between Michelle Obama and Trump. 

The president even bragged to reporters, following Gabbard's press briefing, that his predecessor was in his debt. "He owes me, Obama owes me big," Trump stated when asked about the wild allegations his administration had made (via USA Today). He was, of course, referring to the part the divisive politician played in the Supreme Court's ruling that presidents can't be prosecuted for questionable acts committed during their time in office. As such, Obama could have sued Trump for the allegations if he wanted to. Meanwhile, experts who viewed the declassified documents Gabbard posited proved the former president was guilty of treason confirmed they do no such thing. "There is no evidence of criminal acts on Obama's part or anyone in his administration," Barbara Ann Perry, an analyst at the Miller Center in Virginia, told Al Jazeera in no uncertain terms.