Did we say bi-weekly? Not when there’s so much to be alert to. The prez-elect just can’t stop. And his appointees and hangers-on aren’t slouches in the “WHAT Did They Just Say?” Department, either.
What he said about Time magazine in 2012:
“Disgusting--sad what TIME did to get noticed” (in tweet about a cover image “showing late age breast feeding”).
What Time magazine did this week:
Named him their Person of the Year for 2016, calling him “The President of the Divided States of America.”
What he says about Time magazine now:
It’s a “very important” magazine, and being chosen Person of the Year is a “very, very great honor."
What he didn’t mention:
The reason Time chose him: “For reminding America that demagoguery feeds on despair and that truth is only as powerful as the trust in those who speak it, for empowering a hidden electorate by mainstreaming its furies and live-streaming its fears, and for framing tomorrow’s political culture by demolishing yesterday’s…”
What he said, and Reince said, and Kellyanne said, repeatedly:
Trump won the Electoral College “in a landslide.”
What PolitiFact said, and FactCheck.org said, and anyone who can count said:
Oh no he didn’t.
Nine out of 10 experts consulted by PolitiFact said that Trump’s electoral victory did not meet the necessary threshold to be considered a landslide, and FactCheck cited a California academic’s calculation that ranked Trump’s margin 46th out of 58 U.S. presidential elections. Oh, and there’s that little detail of Clinton winning the popular vote at last count by 2.5 million votes, “larger than the lead with which 10 presidents have won the general election,” reported time.com. Doesn’t exactly scream landslide win — and definitely not a “mandate,” as VP-elect Pence described it Tuesday.
What he said:
“I know more about ISIS than the generals do, believe me.” (Nov. 13, 2015).
What he did:
Picked a general as secretary of defense, “Mad Dog” Mattis; picked a lieutenant general as national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn; picked a retired general as secretary of homeland security, John F. Kelly; considered a general for secretary of state, David Petraeus. Presumably they've all thanked Trump for his inside ISIS intel.
Bonus factoid: What Mad Dog Mattis said about the repeal of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell”:
“We fear that an uninformed public is permitting political leaders to impose an accretion of social conventions that are diminishing the combat power of our military” (Aug., 2016 in a book of essays he co-edited, as reported by The Advocate). In other words, he thinks the best gay soldier is a closeted gay soldier. You wouldn't think he'd want to wage this particular battle, given that gays now serve openly in the military as a matter of settled policy. But ya never know.
What he said:
“Why doesn’t he show his birth certificate?” he asked about President Obama on The View in March 2011, essentially birthing the Fake News phenomenon.
Who he appointed:
Michael T. Flynn (see above), Fake News aficionado who retweeted debunked reports of a Hillary Clinton-led child slavery ring based in a pizza shop in Washington, D.C. with the comment “U decide.”
Who he hired for his transition team, then fired, even though the transition team had said he was never part of the transition team:
Mike Flynn’s son, fake news fanatic Michael G. Flynn, who — after a wingnut vigilante shot up the pizza shop — refused to let “Pizzagate” go.
What his surrogate Scottie Neil Hughes said on NPR’s Diane Rehm Show:
“There’s no such thing anymore as facts.”
What he said on Twitter Dec. 4:
“Just tried watching Saturday Night Live — unwatchable! Totally biased, not funny and the Baldwin impersonation just can’t get any worse. Sad.”
How Alec Baldwin replied:
“Release your tax returns and I’ll stop. Ha.”
How “atheist, civil rights activist, musician and trans woman” Daniele Muscato replied:
“This is not a joke, Donald. Don’t you have anything better to do? Are you so narcissistic that a PARODY is your priority?
“You're pathetic. You ran for prez for attention. You are a fake,a fraud. You never wanted to win anyway; we can all see it.
“You are not fooling anyone. You’re scared, and overwhelmed, and you have absolutely no idea what you’re doing. And it shows.”