Recently Donald Trump seems to be playing a game to entertain himself during Covid-19.
Judging from The Donald’s recent statements, the premise is to try and outdo whatever outrageous declaration made the week before.
He’s on a winning streak because his latest sound bite is bigger and more bonkers than the last.
Trump’s newest claim? That he’s treated worse by the media than… Abraham Lincoln.
During a virtual town hall held by Fox News, Trump responded to a question from a retired nurse who questioned why he used descriptive words that “could be described as bullying” and why he didn’t “directly answer questions asked by the press”, instead choosing to “ramble”.
Trump was confused about whether he liked the question or not but answered it nonetheless, with some more characteristic ramble.
Asked (by a fan of his!) why he uses the language of bullies and doesn't directly answer questions, Trump doesn't a… https://t.co/VuIz3S0705— Aaron Rupar (@Aaron Rupar) 1588551231
“I am greeted by a hostile press, the likes of which no president has ever seen. The closest would be that gentleman right up there,” he said, pointing to a statue of Abraham Lincoln.
They always said that nobody got treated worse than Abraham Lincoln. I believe I am treated worse. You’re there, you see those press conferences.
They come at me with questions that are disgraceful, to be honest. Their manner of presentation and their words. And I feel that if I was kind to them, I’d be walked off the stage.
That would be the same Abraham Lincoln who was famously demonised by much of the media, both for his decision to suppress secessionist supporting journalists during the Civil War but also for emancipating black slaves in the process of keeping the union together.
Trump’s comments came as he was sitting under the memorial to the felled president who was, notably, assassinated, by John Wilkes Booth, a Confederate sympathiser in 1865.
Trump’s supporter base has been criticised for its large representation of Confederate supporters, with the infamous Confederate flag emerging as a pro-Trump symbol.
Rally to open Michigan is flying the flag of racists who don't care about the worth of human beings and also the Co… https://t.co/GWgjcyG1gp— Nick Jack Pappas (@Nick Jack Pappas) 1586984949
Of course, Trump’s latest remarks have been greeted with incredulity.
Some ‘diagnosed’ him.
Narcissistic personality disorder: “An inflated sense of self importance, deep need for excessive attention/admira… https://t.co/DZHmEbJ9XX— Alexandra Chalupa (@Alexandra Chalupa) 1588558996
Others pointed out the significance of the decor Trump was surrounded by.
There was also time for a little history lesson.
After Lincoln’s election, half the country staged an armed revolt because they didn’t recognize his presidency. Sev… https://t.co/x9e4Cmk8kC— Edward-Isaac Dovere (@Edward-Isaac Dovere) 1588551942
And economist David Rothschild pointed out Trump's incessant need to always be the "victim”.
68,000 *confirmed* dead, millions more sick or in financial distress, because this man chose to follow & promote Ch… https://t.co/jzK7yuBp9a— David Rothschild (@David Rothschild) 1588556129
Maybe Trump should devote an hour of one of his many TV watching marathons to a history documentary?