<p>US President Barack Obama hammered home his belief that Republican White House hopeful Donald Trump would not be elected, knocking his reality show past and penchant for drawing media attention.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Obama did not limit his criticism to the billionaire real estate tycoon, hitting out at "troubling" statements from the entire GOP field of candidates seeking to replace him.<br /><br />But he reserved his toughest remarks for Trump, offering a scathing assessment of why he thinks the American people will not elect him.<br /><br />"I continue to believe that Mr Trump will not be president. And the reason is because I have a lot of faith in the American people. And I think they recognize that being president is a serious job," he told reporters in California yesterday.<br /><br />"It's not hosting a talk show or a reality show. It's not promotion. It's not marketing. It's hard," he said on the sidelines of a summit with leaders and representatives of 10 Southeast Asian nations.<br /><br />"It's not a matter of pandering and doing whatever will get you in the news on a given day. And sometimes it requires you making hard decisions, even when people don't like it," Obama continued.<br /><br />He also noted the need to be "able to work with leaders around the world in a way that reflects the importance of the office."<br /><br />"During primaries, people vent and they express themselves," Obama said, alluding to Trump's brash, take-no-prisoners style. "Oftentimes it's reported just like entertainment, but as you get closer, the reality has a way of intruding."<br /><br />"The American people are pretty sensible. And I think they'll make a sensible choice in the end," he concluded.<br /><br />The 69-year-old Trump has long been ahead in the Republican race for the White House nomination, according to opinion polls.<br /><br />He lost the Iowa caucuses to Senator Ted Cruz early this month, but roared to victory in the New Hampshire primary last week. He holds a commanding 16-point lead over Cruz in South Carolina, according to a CNN poll. Obama, whose successor will be chosen on November 8, insisted that Trump was not alone in expressing unsettling proposals on the Republican campaign trail.<br /><br />"He may up the ante in anti-Muslim sentiment, but if you look at what the other Republican candidates have said, that's pretty troubling, too," he said.<br /><br />"They're all denying climate change. I think that's troubling to the international community," he added.</p>
<p>US President Barack Obama hammered home his belief that Republican White House hopeful Donald Trump would not be elected, knocking his reality show past and penchant for drawing media attention.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Obama did not limit his criticism to the billionaire real estate tycoon, hitting out at "troubling" statements from the entire GOP field of candidates seeking to replace him.<br /><br />But he reserved his toughest remarks for Trump, offering a scathing assessment of why he thinks the American people will not elect him.<br /><br />"I continue to believe that Mr Trump will not be president. And the reason is because I have a lot of faith in the American people. And I think they recognize that being president is a serious job," he told reporters in California yesterday.<br /><br />"It's not hosting a talk show or a reality show. It's not promotion. It's not marketing. It's hard," he said on the sidelines of a summit with leaders and representatives of 10 Southeast Asian nations.<br /><br />"It's not a matter of pandering and doing whatever will get you in the news on a given day. And sometimes it requires you making hard decisions, even when people don't like it," Obama continued.<br /><br />He also noted the need to be "able to work with leaders around the world in a way that reflects the importance of the office."<br /><br />"During primaries, people vent and they express themselves," Obama said, alluding to Trump's brash, take-no-prisoners style. "Oftentimes it's reported just like entertainment, but as you get closer, the reality has a way of intruding."<br /><br />"The American people are pretty sensible. And I think they'll make a sensible choice in the end," he concluded.<br /><br />The 69-year-old Trump has long been ahead in the Republican race for the White House nomination, according to opinion polls.<br /><br />He lost the Iowa caucuses to Senator Ted Cruz early this month, but roared to victory in the New Hampshire primary last week. He holds a commanding 16-point lead over Cruz in South Carolina, according to a CNN poll. Obama, whose successor will be chosen on November 8, insisted that Trump was not alone in expressing unsettling proposals on the Republican campaign trail.<br /><br />"He may up the ante in anti-Muslim sentiment, but if you look at what the other Republican candidates have said, that's pretty troubling, too," he said.<br /><br />"They're all denying climate change. I think that's troubling to the international community," he added.</p>