Barack Obama said acting presidential "means being able to receive [classified] briefings and not spread them around." | Getty Obama: Trump needs to start acting like a president

President Barack Obama has made it clear he does not think Republican nominee Donald Trump is qualified to be president. And on Thursday, he said the GOP nominee needs to start "acting like a president," if he wants to receive sensitive intelligence briefings ahead of the election.

“What I will say is that they have been told these are classified briefings and if they want to be president, they have to start acting like a president and that means being able to receive these briefings and not spread them around,” Obama said at a news conference at the Pentagon, when he was asked if he has concerns that Trump is now able to get classified briefings on national security.


Obama said it is the law and tradition that both nominees receive the classified briefings so if they are elected they do not start “from scratch.” When asked if he was worried about Trump receiving these briefings, Obama said, “I think I’ve said enough on that."

The president was later asked how he felt about the possibility of Trump having access to the nation's nuclear codes.

“Just listen to what Mr. Trump has to say and make your own judgment with respect to how confident you feel about his ability to manage things like our nuclear triad,” he said. "I obviously have a strong opinion about the two candidates running here. One is very positive and one is not so much."

Obama said the commander in chief needs to have "the temperament and good judgment" to keep Americans safe and oversee the military, which he said is something voters should keep in mind heading into November.

Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton has repeatedly said Trump is "not qualified" and "temperamentally unfit" to be president.