Someone asked "Why do some British people not like Donald Trump?"
Nate White, an articulate and witty writer from England, wrote this magnificent response:
"A few things spring to mind.
Trump lacks certain qualities which the British traditionally esteem.
For instance, he has no class, no charm, no coolness, no credibility, no compassion, no wit, no warmth, no wisdom, no subtlety, no sensitivity, no self-awareness, no humility, no honour and no grace - all qualities, funnily enough, with which his predecessor Mr. Obama was generously blessed.
So for us, the stark contrast does rather throw Trump’s limitations into embarrassingly sharp relief.
Plus, we like a laugh. And while Trump may be laughable, he has never once said anything wry, witty or even faintly amusing - not once, ever.
I don’t say that rhetorically, I mean it quite literally: not once, not ever. And that fact is particularly disturbing to the British sensibility - for us, to lack humour is almost inhuman.
But with Trump, it’s a fact. He doesn’t even seem to understand what a joke is - his idea of a joke is a crass comment, an illiterate insult, a casual act of cruelty.
Trump is a troll. And like all trolls, he is never funny and he never laughs; he only crows or jeers.
And scarily, he doesn’t just talk in crude, witless insults - he actually thinks in them. His mind is a simple bot-like algorithm of petty prejudices and knee-jerk nastiness.
There is never any under-layer of irony, complexity, nuance or depth. It’s all surface.
Some Americans might see this as refreshingly upfront.
Well, we don’t. We see it as having no inner world, no soul.
And in Britain we traditionally side with David, not Goliath. All our heroes are plucky underdogs: Robin Hood, Dick Whittington, Oliver Twist.
Trump is neither plucky, nor an underdog. He is the exact opposite of that.
He’s not even a spoiled rich-boy, or a greedy fat-cat.
He’s more a fat white slug. A Jabba the Hutt of privilege.
And worse, he is that most unforgivable of all things to the British: a bully.
That is, except when he is among bullies; then he suddenly transforms into a snivelling sidekick instead.
There are unspoken rules to this stuff - the Queensberry rules of basic decency - and he breaks them all. He punches downwards - which a gentleman should, would, could never do - and every blow he aims is below the belt. He particularly likes to kick the vulnerable or voiceless - and he kicks them when they are down.
So the fact that a significant minority - perhaps a third - of Americans look at what he does, listen to what he says, and then think 'Yeah, he seems like my kind of guy’ is a matter of some confusion and no little distress to British people, given that:
* Americans are supposed to be nicer than us, and mostly are.
* You don't need a particularly keen eye for detail to spot a few flaws in the man.
This last point is what especially confuses and dismays British people, and many other people too; his faults seem pretty bloody hard to miss.
After all, it’s impossible to read a single tweet, or hear him speak a sentence or two, without staring deep into the abyss. He turns being artless into an art form; he is a Picasso of pettiness; a Shakespeare of shit. His faults are fractal: even his flaws have flaws, and so on ad infinitum.
God knows there have always been stupid people in the world, and plenty of nasty people too. But rarely has stupidity been so nasty, or nastiness so stupid.
He makes Nixon look trustworthy and George W look smart.
In fact, if Frankenstein decided to make a monster assembled entirely from human flaws - he would make a Trump.
And a remorseful Doctor Frankenstein would clutch out big clumpfuls of hair and scream in anguish:
'My God… what… have… I… created?
If being a twat was a TV show, Trump would be the boxed set."
If y'all are looking for signs of humanity and intelligent life within this hateful American hellscape of MAGA fascism and Christian nationalism, look no further than Knox County resident Lisa Carroll. 🙌🙏🥰😊👇
In honor of John Amos passing here is arguably one of his best scenes from ‘The West Wing’.
This scene not only shows the amazing acting of Amos but it also illustrates how to be an ally and a voice for those who may not be present to defend themselves
Rest in Peace, John 🕊️
Martin Sheen concluding 6th & I West Wing event with a sort of Bartlet pastiche of Sorkin speeches—and then he closes the book and *becomes* Jed Bartlet, speaking from the heart. It’s pretty cool.
Trump v. Biden
Age
Trump: Old
Biden: Old
Average COVID deaths per day
Trump: 1,215
Biden: 455
COVID deaths most recent week in office
Trump: 24,690
Biden: 80
Total jobs added
Trump: -2.720M
Biden: +15.722M
Total jobs added outside COVID
Trump: +6.409M/36 months (178,028 per/)
Biden: +6.290M/24 months (262,083 per/)
Manufacturing jobs added
Trump: -192k
Biden: +733k
Inflation
Trump: +1600% (from May '20 to the end of his term)
Biden: -67.0% (from June '22 to June '24)
Immigration actions
Trump: 472 (over 4 years)
Biden: 535 (over 3 years)
Southern border arrests
Trump: 1.4M (2019-2020, 24 months)
Biden: 5.0M+ (first 26 months)
Lies told
Trump: 30,573 (over 4 years)
Biden: Not even close to that
Approval abroad
Trump: 28%
Biden: 43%
Companies bankrupted
Trump: 6
Biden: 0
Times impeached
Trump: 2
Biden: 0
Felony convictions
Trump: 34
Biden: 0
Felony charges pending
Trump: 54
Biden: 0
Times liable for fraud
Trump: 1
Biden: 0
Times liable for defamation
Trump: 2
Biden: 0
Times liable for rape
Trump: 1
Biden 0
Supporters arrested for actions on 1/6/2021
Trump: 1,265
Biden: 0
On Epstein list?
Trump: Yes
Biden: No
This race should NOT be close!
#VoteBlue #MAGACultMorons
These two women are as fed up with MAGA Republicans as I am. Take a minute and listen to them go scorched earth on these so called patriots, you won't be disappointed. They cover everything and it's 💥🔥💥Then make a plan to VOTE!🗳️ #wtpBlue#DemVoice1 https://t.co/si73NHdVUs
I have thought it was curious that Wall Street investors aren’t boosting Joe Biden, when the market is at an all-time high and the data shows the economy is booming. All of this, while Joe Biden is President.
@SRuhle nails it here & it all makes sense now…
“They think he’s (Biden) super liberal, which he’s not. And the reason they have this idea is because when they got into investment banking…those investment banks only recruited from four colleges and they were ivy league universities and they didn’t have any DEI initiatives.
And they loved to hire lacrosse players, and football players and sons of people that went to really expensive boarding schools.
And that is why that group of Wall Street people think that Joe Biden is super liberal because their son name Chad in a Patagonia vest isn’t automatically getting into Princeton…”
2/The customer service department was bar none, the best I have ever encountered. I had an issue with my favorite booties- I emailed on Sunday and 4 days later my issue was resolved beyond expectations. I will continue to be your biggest fan.
Dear @Dansko 1/2 I have been a fan for a very long time. As a nurse I bought a new pair of white professional clogs once a year and ended up with all different colored clogs for personal use. I transitioned to your booties.
@Mets@outtadapakmark So sorry to see you leave NY. The last time I teared up about the NY Mets giving a player away was Tom Seaver. You are a class act and all that baseball should strive to be! Milwaukee is lucky to have you! Good luck!