In his 8 years in office, Barak Obama was never mistaken for a conservative. In fact, he was one of the most liberal presidents America has ever seen. However, when the 44th President spoke to the Democracy Alliance, a group of wealthy, Democratic donors, Thursday night and implored them not to give their money to the “activist wing” of the party.

This was the first time Obama has truly weighed in on the 2020 Democratic primary and most saw this as a tacit endorsement of his former Vice President Joe Biden and his more centrist agenda which is far more moderate than socialist candidates Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders.

In his speech to the assembled crowd Obama told them, “Even as we push the envelope and we are bold in our vision we also have to be rooted in reality. The average American doesn’t think we have to completely tear down the system and remake it.”

He continued taking veiled shots at the far left Democrats by saying, “I don’t think we should be deluded into thinking that the resistance to certain approaches to things is simply because voters haven’t heard a bold enough proposal and if they hear something as bold as possible then immediately that’s going to activate them.”

On social media, where the most vocal Democratic segment tends to skew incredibly far left, reaction to the speech from liberals ranged from disappointment to anger at the former president. Left wing critics called him “a mess”, “timid” and not a true activist like other famous African Americans.