Barack Obama Spotted Out for First Time Since Denying Donald Trump’s Unsubstantiated Wiretap Claims

Barack and Michelle Obama were all smiles in the wake of President Donald Trump‘s unsubstantiated wiretapping claims.

The couple stepped out in Washington, D.C. on Sunday in their first appearance since a spokesman for the former president denied allegations that he ordered wiretapping in Trump Tower during the election – claims President Donald Trump made in a string of tweets without citing any evidence.

Obama, 55, and 53-year-old Michelle waved and smiled as they left the National Gallery of Art, appearing at ease despite the recent media storm surrounding Trump’s unsubstantiated claims.

In a series of Twitter posts early on Saturday, Trump tweeted out the accusation, writing, “Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my ‘wires tapped’ in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!”

Trump, 70, alleged that Obama bypassed a court rejection in order to carry out the alleged wiretapping, noting that “a good lawyer could make a great case out of the fact that President Obama was tapping my phones in October, just prior to Election!”

A spokesperson for Obama quickly denied the allegations, calling Trump’s claims “simply false.”

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“A cardinal rule of the Obama Administration was that no White House official ever interfered with any independent investigation led by the Department of Justice,” the spokesperson said. “As part of that practice, neither President Obama nor any White house official ever ordered surveillance on any U.S. citizen.”

The FBI has denied Trump’s claims and the bureau’s director James Comey has asked the Justice Department to refute the accusations, CNN reports.

Obama’s former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, who said he would have been in a position to know of secret wiretapping, denied a court ordered any surveillance of the then-GOP nominee, as well.

Meanwhile, the White House asked Congress on Sunday to investigate Trump’s claims against the former president.