Obama riffs on Trump: ‘We can always send the Navy SEALs in’

Former President Obama on Thursday appeared to take a jab at President Trump’s refusal to concede the election to President-elect Joe Biden. 

During an appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” to promote his new memoir, Kimmel jokingly asked if there were places in the White House that people could hide in if they were being removed. 

“Well, I think we can always send the Navy SEALs in there to dig them out,” Obama said in response. 

President Trump has refused to concede the election to Biden, despite Biden winning by a comfortable margin. His campaign has mounted several legal challenges in an attempt to delay or halt vote certification in several states.

Trump’s refusal has caused issues for Biden’s transition. The General Services Administration has yet to issue an ascertainment that Biden is president-elect, which has delayed access to millions in federal funding for the incoming administration. In addition, Biden is not receiving daily presidential intelligence briefings. 

Democrats and health officials have grown furious at Trump for obstructing the White House, warning that this could endanger lives amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

During his appearance on “Kimmel,” Obama said he wished the transition was going better, noting “we lose time during these crises.” He noted that former President George W. Bush ordered his team to work with Obama’s during the transition in 2008, which was happening in the middle of the financial crisis. 

“Could not have been more gracious, could not have been more helpful,” Obama said. “And that actually helped us be able to get a head start on trying to stem what could have been a great depression instead of a great recession.”