Obama on Trump: This isn't reality TV

Obama has appeared on tv shows 51 times

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President Barack Obama speaks about the economy in the Brady Press Briefing room at the White House on May 6. | Getty

The president rebukes the presumptive nominee and the media, and asks Republican voters to ask tough questions about the real estate mogul.

By Nick Gass

05/06/16 12:42 PM EDT

Updated 05/06/16 12:52 PM EDT

When it comes to the presumptive Republican nominee, President Barack Obama has a message for Donald Trump, the American people, and the media: "This is not entertainment, this is not a reality show."

"With respect to the Republican process and Mr. Trump, there is going to be plenty of time to talk about his positions on various issues. He has a long record that needs to be examined. I think it is important to take seriously the statements we made in the past," Obama said while taking questions after issuing a statement following Friday's jobs numbers.

Obama remarked that he wanted to emphasize the degree to which "we are in serious times" and that "this is a serious job."

"This is not entertainment, this is not a reality show. This is a contest for the presidency of the United States. What that means is every candidate, every nominee needs to be subject to ... exacting standards of genuine scrutiny," Obama said.

"It means that you have to make sure their budgets add up. It means that if they say that they’ve got an answer to a problem, it is actually plausible and that they have details on how it would work and if it is completely implausible and would not work, that needs to be reported on, and the American people need to know that," he said, addressing the media. "If they take a position on international issues that could threaten war or has the potential of upending our critical relationships with other countries, or would potentially break the financial situation, that needs to be reported on."

Regardless of who the next president is, Obama said that he will be looking for proper vetting of candidates in the media.

"And if that happens, then I'm confident our democracy will work," he said. "That is true whether we are talking about Mr. Trump, or Ms. Clinton, or Bernie Sanders, or anybody else. But what I am concerned about is the degree to which reporting and information starts emphasizing the spectacle and the circus because that’s not something we can afford. And the American people, they have good judgment and instincts. As long as they get good information."

Obama declined to comment on House Speaker Paul Ryan's reluctance to get behind Trump as the party's nominee. The Wisconsin Republican delivered a stunning statement on Thursday, saying he was "not ready" to endorse Trump and that the real estate mogul needed to prove that he could be the Republican Party's standard-bearer.

"There is no doubt that there is a debate taking place inside the Republican Party about who they are and what they represent. Their standard-bearer at the moment is Donald Trump," he said. "And I think — not just Republican officials, but more importantly Republican voters are going to have to make a decision whether this is the guy who speaks for them and represents their values."

"I think Republican women voters are going to have to decide, 'Is that the guy I feel comfortable representing me and what I care about?' I think folks who historically have been concerned about making sure that budgets add up and that we are responsible stewards of government finance have to ask do Mr. Trump's budgets work? Those are going to be questions Republican voters, more than Republican officials, have to answer," Obama continued.

Obama also did not bite on a question on whether Bernie Sanders should bow out of the Democratic race against Hillary Clinton, reiterating that the process should play itself out.

And as far as Trump's social-media post commemorating Cinco de Mayo with a taco salad, Obama resisted commenting.

"I have no thoughts on Mr. Trump's tweets," Obama said. "As a general rule, I don't pay attention to Trump's tweets."

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