Top Republican Priebus: Obama ‘Acting Like a Child’

The head of the Republican Party thinks that President Obama is “acting like a child” when it comes to working around Congress.

Obama is expected to announce a series of executive actions in his State of the Union address Tuesday night, especially in areas where he and Republicans don’t see eye to eye. Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus sees that as a failure to lead.

“The president’s image is upside down,” he said in an interview with Fusion’s Jorge Ramos. “I think he is acting like a child and I think the American people see it. I don’t think it’s going to fly.”

Republicans in Congress have stood in the way of Obama’s top priorities, like raising the minimum wage, extending unemployment benefits and new gun laws. But Priebus says Obama should try harder to engage and compromise with his GOP counterparts.

“We want a leader, “he said. “And whether the president is a Democrat or Republican, I want a leader to be president of the United States.”

Jordan Fabian is Fusion’s politics editor, writing about campaigns, Congress, immigration, and more. When he’s not working, you can find him at the ice rink or at home with his wife, Melissa.