Trump’s relationship with the Obamas has been overwhelmingly hostile, but what he did was political and rhetorical, not physical or personal in the legal sense. Over the years, he has attacked their legitimacy, their policies, and their legacy, and most recently amplified racist content about them online.

1. The latest incident (2026)

In early February 2026, Trump shared a social‑media post/video that included a racist depiction of Barack and Michelle Obama, which provoked widespread backlash for using dehumanizing imagery tied to a long racist history in the US. After criticism mounted, he or his team took the post down and he publicly claimed he had not seen the racist part of the clip, distancing himself from responsibility while not directly apologizing for the content. Commentators and forum discussions have framed this as yet another example of him normalizing racist attacks against the Obamas rather than an isolated mistake.

2. Long-running personal attacks

Trump has targeted Barack Obama for more than a decade, most famously by promoting the “birther” conspiracy theory claiming Obama was not born in the United States, which was false and racially loaded. Even after Obama released his long‑form birth certificate in 2011, Trump continued to question his legitimacy and used the controversy to build his political brand. He has also repeatedly demeaned Obama’s character and competence, calling his administration corrupt and describing him as weak or even criminal in speeches and interviews.

3. Efforts to dismantle Obama’s legacy

In policy terms, Trump has tried to “undo” as much of Obama’s legacy as possible rather than do something directly to the Obamas as people. He has:

  • Pushed hard to repeal the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), calling it a “catastrophe” and blaming it for higher prices and fewer choices in healthcare.
  • Rolled back or replaced a number of Obama‑era rules and initiatives (on issues like climate, immigration, and higher education), which critics describe as “smashing” key Obama legacy items that helped many people.

These moves hit the policies and institutions associated with Obama’s presidency, not the Obamas personally, but they were clearly framed as attacks on his legacy.

4. “Treason” rhetoric and talk of prosecution

Since returning to the presidency, Trump has escalated his rhetoric by accusing Obama of “treason” and claiming, without evidence, that Obama led a conspiracy to frame him over Russian interference in the 2016 election. He has publicly said it is “time to go after people,” implying that Obama and former Obama‑era officials should face criminal charges for what he calls a “coup” or “treasonous conspiracy” against him. So far, this has mainly taken the form of pressure and political use of investigations rather than any proven case of wrongdoing by Obama himself, and Trump’s claims are widely disputed by Democrats and many legal experts.

5. How people are reacting

Reactions split sharply along political lines:

  • Critics say sharing racist imagery of the Obamas and repeatedly calling Obama “guilty” of treason is dangerous, racist, and an abuse of presidential power to target political enemies.
  • Supporters often frame his actions as “fighting back” against what they believe was a biased “witch hunt” against him, and some take his talk of prosecution at face value, seeing Obama officials as the real wrongdoers.

In short, when people ask “what did Trump do to the Obamas,” the answer is: he has gone after their legitimacy, their reputation, and Barack Obama’s legacy through conspiracy claims, aggressive rhetoric, policy reversals, and most recently by amplifying racist content—not through any proven legal case or direct personal action against them. Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.