Barack Quote by Lawrence O'Donnell
![“Probably about 35 percent of Donald Trump's supporters do not believe that President [Barack] Obama is Muslim or that he was not born in the United States.Those Trump supporters are not white supremacists. But if Trump did not have the support of Obama haters who believe that the President is a…” quote by Lawrence O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/6e3/lawrence-o-donnell-1701_barack_probably-about-35-percent-of-donald-trum_821556.jpg)
“Probably about 35 percent of Donald Trump's supporters do not believe that President [Barack] Obama is Muslim or that he was not born in the United States.Those Trump supporters are not white supremacists. But if Trump did not have the support of Obama haters who believe that the President is a Muslim, who believe that he was not born in the United States, Donald Trump would lose two-thirds of his support.”
About This Quote
A sizable share of Trump’s base holds false beliefs about Obama, yet they are not necessarily white supremacists.
In simple terms: Many Trump supporters hold false beliefs about Obama.
Key Takeaway
Recognize belief diversity.
Themes
politics
misinformation
identity
Mood
critical
thoughtful
Type
analytical
political
When to use this quote
- campaign strategy
- public discourse
- voter outreach
Key Concepts
cognitive bias
polarization
media influence
Questions to Reflect On
- How do false beliefs shape political loyalty?
- What methods reduce misinformation?
A Different Perspective
Belief correction is complex and may not shift support.
![“Fifty four percent of Republican voters believe President [Barack] Obama is Muslim. And 66 percent of Trump voters believe President Obama is Muslim. If you hear anyone trying to explain the rise of Donald Trump without including that fact, then you're hearing someone who doesn't know what they're…” quote by Lawrence O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/407/lawrence-o-donnell-1701_barack_fifty-four-percent-of-republican-voters_508959.jpg)
![“Even the majority of their own voters do not support them. It's something like 25 percent of [Donald] Trump supporters that actually support him. The majority actually hates Hillary [Clinton], and the same is true for Hillary. One-third of her supporters really like her. They dislike fear and hate…” quote by Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/c1e/jill-stein-660_clinton_even-the-majority-of-their-own-voters-do_2359045.jpg)
![“Sixty one percent of Donald Trump's supporters believe that President [Barack] Obama was not born in the United States.They believe Donald Trump's lie about where President Obama was born, the lie he started telling four years ago and has since replaced with other hate-driven lies like the…” quote by Lawrence O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/d35/lawrence-o-donnell-1701_barack_sixty-one-percent-of-donald-trump-s-supp_1141408.jpg)
![“I understand that that's the theory of the case for [Donald] Trump supporters and it's what Donald Trump says, and it's possible that that is actually the case.” quote by Chris Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/062/chris-hayes-2208_cases_i-understand-that-that-s-the-theory-of-t_546031.jpg)
![“My support is particularly Bernie Sanders supporters but that's drawn many [Donald] Trump supporters to start with.” quote by Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/c27/jill-stein-660_bernie-sanders_my-support-is-particularly-bernie-sander_483401.jpg)
![“I think that's what's - one of the things that is alarming to me is [Donald] Trump, and I think Trump supporters seem to believe, he won, huge upset, full credit to him, and has got the wind at his back. And Republicans on The Hill do want him to succeed, obviously, and they're deferring to him…” quote by William Kristol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/a29/william-kristol-9091_believe_i-think-that-s-what-s-one-of-the-things_441583.jpg)
![“In this case, the government will essentially be run by the people who are running it now. The top level [Barack] Obama appointees will leave by inauguration day.” quote by Lawrence O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/1ae/lawrence-o-donnell-1701_barack_in-this-case-the-government-will-essenti_78004.jpg)
![“I don't think anybody knows it was Russia that broke into the DNC. She [Hillary Clinton] is saying Russia, Russia, Russia. Maybe it was. I mean, it could be Russia. But it could also be China. It could also be lots of other people.” quote by Lawrence O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/c72/lawrence-o-donnell-1701_broke_i-don-t-think-anybody-knows-it-was-russi_115025.jpg)
![“I can't imagine that I would be asked that by the president-elect [Donald Trump], or then-president [Barack Obama]. But it's - I'm very clear. I voted for the change that put the Army Field Manual in place as a member of Congress. I understand that law very, very quickly and am also deeply aware…” quote by James Mattis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/761/james-mattis-9515_army_i-can-t-imagine-that-i-would-be-asked-th_3990.jpg)
![“The president [Barack Obama] asked for a commitment of, I think, 100,000 jobs for veterans and military spouses over the next couple of years. And we announced during the tour last week that we have gotten more than 60,000 jobs, and we're well on our way to just crashing that goal out of the…” quote by Michelle Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/83d/michelle-obama-518_barack_the-president-barack-obama-asked-for-a-c_15651.jpg)
![“I think the president's [Barack Obama] position has been very clear on Syria. He wants more aggressive, he's put the Special Ops on the ground, in fact one of the Republican criticisms is he's got thousands of Americans there. We just don't call them troops on the ground, we don't admit to it. But…” quote by Juan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f9c/juan-williams-7909_aggressive_i-think-the-president-s-barack-obama-pos_17086.jpg)
![“It cannot be an American fight. And I think what the president [Barack Obama] has consistently said - which I agree with - is that we will support those who take the fight to ISIS. That is why we have troops in Iraq that are helping to train and build back up the Iraqi military, why we have…” quote by Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f1e/hillary-clinton-51_agree_it-cannot-be-an-american-fight-and-i-thi_19737.jpg)
![“It wasn't [Barack] Obama per se; it was the feeling on the ground; it was seeing an old black woman in a wheelchair being wheeled by her son waving a big American flag, and then seeing a guy with his baby in his arms saying, "I didn't want her to miss tonight! I wanted to be able to tell her!" And…” quote by Bill Ayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/806/bill-ayers-1848_able_it-wasn-t-barack-obama-per-se-it-was-the_20409.jpg)
