Former president Barack Obama has several known siblings, though not many have been as vocal about him and his career as his brother, Malik Obama. The Kenyan-American, who splits his time between the U.S. and his native country, made headlines in early September after expressing his support for Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate Barack has long criticized.
“I am Malik Obama. I’m a registered Republican, and I’m voting for President Donald Trump,” he wrote in a September 4th tweet.
Just one day before this public endorsement, Malik tweeted an image of him and Barack years ago, though the caption is far from a touching tribute to their upbringing. Instead, Malik took the opportunity to take a dig at his estranged sibling.
“Fake a** when we were brothers,” Malik harshly captioned the image.
Many are eager to learn about the man who apparently has personal and political issues with Barack. Here’s what we know about the controversial figure.
Malik Obama Has Had Several Careers
Malik Obama and Barack Obama share the same father, Barack Hussein Obama Sr., a Kenyan governmental economist who passed away in 1982. While working in the U.S. for some time, Malik worked as an accountant for several companies, such as Fannie Mae and the American Red Cross. Eventually, he followed in his brother and father’s footsteps, seeking a political career by running for governor of Siaya, Kenya, in 2013. Unfortunately, he did not win his campaign.
In 2012, he penned his first book, “Barack Obama Sr.: The Rise and Life of a True African Scholar,” an autobiography of their father. His second book arrived in 2020 and was titled, “Malik Obama BIG BAD BROTHER FROM KENYA.” This time, Malik chose to detail his life story. While neither book appears to have been overly successful, the latter has more Amazon reviews.
Malik Has Been Critical of Barack
The Obama brothers were once close, even participating in one another’s weddings. However, things seemingly soured throughout the years. During an August 2020 interview with The New York Post, Malik claimed Barack changed after becoming president.
“He got rich and became a snob,” Malik told the outlet. “What I saw was he was the kind of person that wants people to worship him. He needs to be worshiped and I don’t do that. I am his older brother, so I don’t do that.”
During this interview, Malik revealed that things initially soured when Barack refused to support a foundation named after their father. The author claims that Barack requested that Malik shutter the organization. Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that the pair have mended their relationship, especially with Malik using his social media platforms to continuously call out Barack, who has refrained from publicly speaking about their issues.
The 2024 Election Is Not Malik’s First Time Supporting Donald Trump
While Malik Obama expressing support for Donald Trump ahead of the 2024 election may shock some, the two have seemingly had an allegiance for years. During Trump’s 2016 bid for the White House, he invited Malik to be his guest during the debate against Hillary Clinton. Malik was a staunch critic of Clinton, throwing his support behind the real estate mogul turned politician. A month ahead of the debate, Malik shared with BBC that it was “sort of disappointing” that their family members were not present during the Democratic National Convention.
