As far as presidents go, Barack Obama has proved himself a charismatic man who loves to trade jokes with the best of 'em. He's gone Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis; he's read mean tweets with Jimmy Kimmel; he's slow jammed the news with Jimmy Fallon; and on Friday, he'll be on Real Time with Bill Maher. And on Halloween, Obama joined Samantha Bee on Full Frontal.
The pair might not have looked like they dressed up for Halloween—but they did. When Samantha Bee says she dressed as a witch, Obama points out that she's not wearing a witch costume. "I'm a woman on television and I'm over 40, so I'm already in costume. Where's yours?" To which Obama replied, "I'm dressed up as what happens when young people vote." Then Bee quipped, "Someone gets really old, really fast?" Calling out Obama's graying hair, Bee asked, "So, is that like white spray paint? Or fun Halloween cobwebs up there?" Obama then jokingly reminded her that he is still president, after all, so she should be "careful."
But the Commander-in-Chief didn't go on TV just to celebrate the holiday. He wanted to tell young people how important voting is. But Bee was skeptical. "So, you are the father of a college student, sitting down with a 47-year-old mother of three," she joked. "If this was your best idea to reach young people, what was your worst idea? Have you thought about going on Antiques Road Show?" Obama, whose daughter Malia recently voted for the first time, replied, "I haven't, but it turns out that young people actually are more interested and engaged than I think we give them credit for."
Then Bee mockingly impersonated a millennial, saying, "Like, I don't even know if there is, like, any point in voting." He understands why many young people are cynical, he explained before adding, "This is probably the most important election of our lifetimes." While Clinton has very specific plans on many issues, like college education and climate change, Trump doesn't. And if voters will look into the issues they care about, Obama thinks the choice should be clear—and it isn't Trump.
"Young people have a bigger stake in this election than anybody," Obama noted. "I would hope that you’d be willing to take the same amount of time that you spend just looking at cat videos on your phone to make sure that the democracy’s working." Bee, still impersonating a millennial, responded, "Sorry, I was just Snapchatting myself as a bottle-nosed dolphin."
Then Bee asked Obama what "the female equivalent" of birtherism would be. When Hillary Clinton is president, Obama guesses that she'll be unfairly criticized for her ambition: "I think the equivalent will be, 'She's tired, she's moody, she's being emotional.'" On the other hand, "When men are ambitious, it's just taken for granted. [People say,] 'Well, of course they're ambitious.' When women are ambitious, [people say] 'Why?'" Using Trump's phrase, Bee deadpanned, "What a nasty woman."
Bee then asked Obama about Trump, "After you leave office, have you thought of just whispering in Trump's ear, 'You were right, I wasn't born here,' just to mess with him?" Obama responded by throwing shade at Trump, "I think it's fair to say I will be organizing my post-presidency where I'm not close enough to him to whisper in his ear."
Then, noting this was a Halloween interview, Bee asked Obama, "Can you tell us a spooky story about what happens if people don't vote?" Without hesitation, Obama replied, "Donald Trump could be president."
Bee admits, "Okay, that was very scary. I'm going to make it even scarier for you." Then, she shines a flashlight into her face and envisions the people who could become more powerful in the event of a Trump presidency:
"That was pretty scary," Obama confesses. "I'm not sure I'm gonna sleep well tonight."
Above, you can watch the full interview, which ended in a fist bump.
