There are many on the left who feel left out in the cold by former President Barack Obama’s string of luxury vacations.
A number of progressive activists complained to Fox News that Obama’s actions since leaving office in January have seemed out of touch with Democrats—at a time when the party is struggling to regroup after the 2016 election.
Among the high-profile jaunts, Obama and his family have visited late actor Marlon Brando’s private island; the Four Seasons in Bali; Sir Richard Branson’s private Caribbean island; a 13th-century Tuscan villa; and taken a ride on David Geffen’s private yacht.
“These trips are like the lifestyles of the rich and famous,” Democratic strategist Pat Caddell, a former adviser to ex-President Jimmy Carter, told Fox News.
“I think the Bernie Sanders wing of the party, when they see President Obama, whom they instinctively want to defend being the corporatist president, I think it makes the base uneasy,” he added.
The lavish vacations come at a time that Obama is also under fire for accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars to speak to big Wall Street firms.
“This might be controversial—I’m a little sick of seeing photos of President Obama on vacation with Richard Branson. Just tone it down with the kite-surfing pictures. I’m glad he’s having a nice time—America is on fire,” HBO host John Oliver in an interview with Seth Meyers in February.
“I’m not sure he’s ever been more out of touch than he is right now.”
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