Obama mocks Trump, says sending troops to border is a 'political stunt

Former President Barack Obama mocked President Donald Trump for sending troops to the border in a speech on Friday intended to help Democrats get out their vote.

"A bunch of poor refugees a thousand miles away!”

Obama called the ordering of troops to the border a "political stunt" and implied there was no threat at all from the migrant caravans heading towards the United States.

"In 2014, they said, 'ebola is gonna kill all of us! Shut the borders!" Obama joked. "In 2016, it was Hillary's emails, they were all wound up about that!"

"Now in 2018," Obama told the crowd, "they're telling you the existential threat to America is a bunch of poor refugees a thousand miles away!"

"They're even taking our brave troops away from their families, for a political stunt at the border!" he added.

"And the men and women of our military deserve better than that!" he exclaimed to large applause.

What are the facts?

Undoubtedly, many of the migrants joining the caravan from Honduras are poor, and many have said that they intend to apply for refugee status when they arrive at the U.S. border. However, others fully admit that they are simply seeking a better economic situation, and are not refugees.

Further, the migrants have already used violence against law enforcement officials in Mexico who were trying to stall the trek of the caravan. President Trump has cited the violence as part of the reason he is ordering troops to the border to keep them out.

Whether the action taken by Trump was a "political stunt" as Obama called sounds like a judgement call, but the talking point is being taken up by other Democrats to attack the president's immigration policies.

"Sending troops to the border as a political stunt," tweeted Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.). "Promising to amend the constitution by executive order. Stoking bigotry after a mass shooting motivated by bigotry."

"I said Trump was the worst President in modern history and I was wrong — when I said modern," he concluded.

Here's the video of Obama's comments: