Donald Trump is finally getting to President Obama.
On Wednesday, the president defended America’s economic standing in the world. And, ahead of the second GOP primary debate Wednesday night—and without ever saying his name—he unveiled a hearty defense against the business mogul and GOP front-runner.
“In the echo chamber that is presidential politics, everything is dark and everything is terrible,” he lamented at the Business Roundtable headquarters in Washington. Presidential candidates, “don’t seem to offer many solutions for the disasters that they perceive, but they’re quick to tell you who to blame.”
He continued: “I’m here to say there’s nothing particularly patriotic or American about talking down America, especially when we stand as one of the few sources of economic strength in the world.”
Obama also had a response to Trump’s controversial slogan, Make America Great Again: “America is great right now. America is winning right now.”
Trump’s celebration of his wealth, along with his simple message on the economy, has resonated with the Republican base, rocketing him to the top of the primary field; he’s leading the rest of the GOP by double-digits. His tough talk on China has helped, too: He talks about the country so much—how they’re beating the United States, and how he’d beat them—that a video of him saying “China” 234 times went viral last month.