Obama mocks Trump's 'Cheesecake Factory' meltdown: 'Not inflation, but that joke'

Former US President Barack Obama on Wednesday accused Donald Trump's administration of mobilising a "whole-of-government response" to a joke he made about the President's White House renovations, saying officials should be focusing instead on rising prices and the cost of living.

Speaking at a rally for Democratic candidates in Georgia on Wednesday, Obama said Trump had taken greater offence at his comparison of the White House's gilded decor to a Cheesecake Factory than at his criticism of the administration's economic record.

"They did not dispute what I said about them being directly responsible for rising prices. They did not argue with that," Obama said. "They did not deny terrorists were contributing to higher costs for families. They didn't say anything about that. But he was very upset about the Cheesecake Factory comment. He took great umbrage."

Obama's remarks followed a joke he made at a Democratic rally in Cleveland, Ohio, on Saturday, when he criticised Trump's extensive changes to the White House, including the addition of gold decorations.

"He's got the White House looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory!" Obama said.

The comment spread widely online, prompting a response from Trump, who criticised Obama as "stupid" over the comparison and defended his approach to renovations.

Obama said the administration's reaction to the joke had become a distraction from economic concerns.

He pointed to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's appearance outside a Cheesecake Factory restaurant after the remark attracted attention. "They mobilised a whole-of-government response to that joke! Not to inflation, but to that joke," Obama said.

"The White House even called the Secretary of the Treasury. This is the man who is in charge of the economy, the person who's supposed to be figuring out how to make your life more affordable, the guy who's supposed to be figuring out how to lower inflation and reduce interest rates. They told him he should hold a press conference in front of The Cheesecake Factory."

Obama joked that Bessent, a former hedge fund manager, had ended up explaining his restaurant order to reporters. "And the Treasury secretary, he happens to be a former hedge fund manager worth half a billion dollars and he was out there in front of The Cheesecake Factory explaining how he ordered the delicious French dip cheeseburger instead of the egg rolls," Obama said.

He also joked that the restaurant had been a regular destination for his family when his daughters were growing up. "I am the father of two daughters. Do you think I could have survived their childhood without going to the Cheesecake Factory?" he said. "I lived at Chuck E. Cheese and California Pizza Kitchen and the Cheesecake Factory."

But Obama argued that the controversy had diverted attention from the financial pressures facing Americans. "The real problem is that prices have gotten so high, a lot of folks can barely afford to go out to eat," he said. "You would think that this administration would be spending time worrying about that."

He accused the administration of relying on distractions and political attacks to deflect attention from economic difficulties.

"That's the game they've been playing for the last two years," Obama said. "Just keep throwing distractions out there. Attacks, fabrications, phony outrage and hope that you won't notice that your bills are higher and your life is tougher."

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