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Barack Obama

January

Elon Musk arrives to speak at an indoor presidential inauguration parade event in Washington.

Inside Musk’s huge White House power grab

The billionaire is pushing ahead with plans to infiltrate all parts of Trump’s administration after axing his co-leader at DOGE.

Former first lady Michelle Obama speaks during the Democratic National Convention.

The curious case of missing Michelle Obama

The former first lady is keeping a low profile, opting not to attend Jimmy Carter’s funeral or Donald Trump’s inauguration.

Donald Trump shakes hands with Joe Biden at Monday’s inauguration. The contents of Mr Biden’s letter to his successor will be released in a few years.

What departing presidents say to their successors

In every transition since Ronald Reagan’s to George Bush, the outgoing occupant of the White House leaves behind handwritten words for the man taking his place.

Donald Trump and wife Melania at Mar-a-Lago on New Year’s Eve. Economists say his policies will hit global growth.

Trump’s ‘Maganomics’ will damage growth: economists

Surveys of more than 220 economists in the US, UK and Eurozone showed most respondents believed his protectionist shift would outweigh the benefits of his policies.

Scott Morrison and his wife Jenny with US President-elect Donald Trump and his wife Melania at Mar-a-Lago on New Year’s Eve.

Trump, holding court at Mar-a-Lago, says he will go to Carter funeral

Former Australian prime minister Scott Morrison and his wife Jenny were among guests at the black-tie affair, along with billionaire and Trump confidant Elon Musk.

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December 2024

Jimmy Carter in the Oval Office in 1977.

Jimmy Carter was right about America, but nobody listened

“Too many of us now tend to worship self-indulgence and consumption,” he said in his famous 1979 speech.

President-elect Donald Trump in France on Sunday AEDT.

Trump says he’s unlikely to fire Jerome Powell

In a TV interview, the president-elect also said he would pardon the January 6 Capitol rioters on day one, while vowing to lock up his political foes.

Former British prime minister Boris Johnson arrives to speak at the event in Sydney on Friday.

Boris Johnson’s mispriced Australian tour fizzles out

The former UK prime minister is no longer hot property on the corporate speaking circuit.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow in 2015.

Angela Merkel’s autobiography is a ‘stunning disappointment’

The former German chancellor provides only the most superficial explanations for her controversial actions and decisions, particularly those to do with Vladimir Putin.

Donald Trump may be the worst possible person to guide America through the turmoil that’s probably ahead.

The new world order looks like mercantilism

The chaotic politics of the past 16 years masked the steady development of a new economic order, but trade and the economy aren’t zero-sum games.

November 2024

Round two of the trade war may lie ahead.

The big split on China at the heart of Trump’s new team

Donald Trump and JD Vance have assembled a team of strident China hawks, hellbent on countering the rise of Beijing, but is it all for show?

Dakota governor Doug Burgum, shale magnate Harold Hamm, and Trump energy secretary nominee Chris Wright.

How oil ‘wildcatters’ seized Trump’s energy agenda

Shale barons are jubilant about the Republican’s plan for US “energy dominance”. Climate campaigners fear four years of global warming denialism.

Billionaire Elon Musk has donated at least $US132 million to Trump and his allies.

What now for Musk as Trump gamble pays off?

The billionaire chief of Tesla and X looks set to take up an influential adviser role in the White House.

Trump’s success was driven more by economic anxiety than red-hatted MAGA diehards.

Don’t worry: America and Australia will survive this election

Harris was hindered and Trump boosted by the economic issues that have plagued incumbent governments around the world.

Former president Donald Trump and Apple boss Tim Cook.

The top five billionaire tech bros who are on the Trump train

From fawning phone calls to huge donations, here’s how the historically progressive bosses of Tesla, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Meta and OpenAI are preparing.

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Kamala Harris appears on NBC’s Saturday Night Live with Maya Rudolph.

‘You got this’: Harris joins SNL for a pep talk With Maya Rudolph

The vice president’s appearance, in a sketch delivered across a fictional dressing-room mirror, contained a solid riff that poked some fun at Donald Trump.

Five days on a Greyhound bus into an anxious America

Catching a Greyhound bus across the “rust belt” swing states gives an extraordinary insight into the psyche of American voters ahead of the US presidential election.

October 2024

Kamal Harris and Beyoncé at a rally in Texas last week.

Democrats are leaning on celebrity star power. Will it matter?

As the 2024 campaign whirls into its final week, Democrats are noticeably leaning on their star power advantage, calling on a diverse range of celebrities.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a rally on Tuesday, a week before the election.

Trump, allies link Biden’s ‘garbage’ comment to 2016 ‘deplorables’

President Joe Biden provided ammunition to the Republican campaign by appearing to call Trump supporters “garbage” while talking to Latino allies by video.

Obama

Harris enlists Michelle Obama to rebuild momentum in tied election

The former first lady delivered an impassioned plea to male voters, saying the risks Donald Trump poses to women’s health at this election were too great.

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/person/barack-obama-241