Obama Holds First Midterm Rally in Cleveland, Criticizing Trump and Backing Brown and Acton

Former President Barack Obama held his first campaign rally of the 2026 midterm cycle on Saturday in Cleveland, urging a near-capacity crowd at Public Auditorium, which holds more than 10,000 people, to back Democrats Amy Acton for Ohio governor and former Sen. Sherrod Brown in his bid to regain his Senate seat. Obama described President Donald Trump as an agent of chaos and cruelty and said Trump and his allies show indecency. He mocked Trump's White House ballroom and gold decor, saying Trump seemed focused on home renovations and should be on HGTV. The Hill put the cost of Trump's White House construction at over $900 million. Obama also criticized Trump's exit from the Iran nuclear agreement and the ensuing war, and he and Acton condemned an attack ad from Vivek Ramaswamy. NBC News said polls show both Ohio races as toss-ups, and Democrats hope to win the governorship for the first time in 20 years.

Left-leaning outlets NBC News and MS NOW lead with the political theater. NBC highlights Obama's renovation jokes, the laughing crowd, the toss-up polling and Rep. Shontel Brown's local remarks. MS NOW leads with Obama and Acton rebuking the Ramaswamy ad, quoting Obama that no office is worth stooping that low. The right-leaning Washington Examiner frames the speech as offense and defense, focusing on Obama's defense of the Iran deal and his border enforcement record. It quotes his claims that the Iran war has cost American lives and raised oil prices, and his jab at masked agents. RealClearPolitics headlines Obama's charge that those in charge are unserious. Both sides report the same rally and Obama's attacks on Trump; they differ on whether the renovation jokes and ad dispute or the war, deportation and legacy material come first.