WASHINGTON D.C. – A trove of recently declassified oral history interviews has shed light on a shocking blind spot within the Obama administration: a profound, almost spiritual, unawareness of anything happening outside a 1.7-mile radius of the White House. Experts now suggest this localized worldview may have contributed to their complete failure to anticipate the rise of Donald Trump.

“It’s truly astounding,” remarked Dr. Agnes Piffle, lead researcher at the Institute for Retrospective Political Myopia. “They genuinely thought 'the American people' was a homogenous group whose opinions were perfectly encapsulated by focus groups held in Brooklyn and the editorial board of The New York Times. The concept of a 'flyover state' wasn't just a term; it was a literal, uncrossable chasm in their geopolitical understanding.”

Transcripts reveal advisors frequently dismissed dissenting viewpoints as 'internet trolls' or 'people who probably don't even own a smart phone.' One former senior aide, who requested anonymity but identified himself as 'Chief Purveyor of Optimistic Data,' reportedly stated, “We had polling data showing 97% approval for kale smoothies. How could anyone vote for a man who eats steak with ketchup?”

Another interview details a moment when a junior staffer attempted to introduce a 'YouTube clip of a man in a red hat,' only to be swiftly escorted out by security for 'disrupting the intellectual harmony of the Situation Room.' The administration, it appears, was simply too busy solving global crises and perfecting their Spotify playlists to notice the subtle shift in national mood, which, in hindsight, involved millions of people not living in Washington D.C.