😱Obama Says Trump Crime Crackdown ‘Not Our Idea Of America’

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He suggested that law firms, universities and businesses should be willing to endure financial or political pressure rather than compromise core principles.

“If you’re a law firm, you saying we’re going to represent who we want, and we’re going to stand up for what we think is our core mission of upholding the law, and maybe we’ll lose some business for that, but that’s what we believe, that’s what’s needed,” Obama said.

He added that universities should protect “basic academic independence” even if it means losing federal grant money.

Obama also addressed the impact of online criticism and harassment on public figures. Responding to Maron’s comment that “sometimes you fear for your life,” Obama acknowledged the pressures of doxxing and hostile online attacks but said the current environment does not compare to historic struggles for civil rights.

“We’re not at the stage where you have to be like Nelson Mandela and be in a 10×12 jail cell for 27 years and break rocks,” he said. “Right now, there’s just a little discomfort.”

The former president argued that political convictions are meaningful only when they come at a cost. “If convictions don’t cost anything, then they’re really just kind of fashion. They’re not really convictions,” Obama said.

He added that his generation had grown accustomed to steady social progress and had not often faced serious tests of those beliefs.