It will take lots of nerve but if you are ever in one of his crowds, you could just turn your back.
56
Even better would be if 3, no let it be 4, people showed up at a rally in a 747 hanger off the tarmac.
19
I always believed he should be portrayed as an object of pity. Or deny him the front and center by banishing him from the front page. Attention of any kind is oxygen for narcissists. Deny him.
82
at this point is it fair to blame pelosi for trump's continuing occupation of the white house?
8
The best comment ever about Trump's crowds was made by a comedian whose name I cannot recall. Talking about the crowd at Trump's inauguration, he said "There were more people at my Bar-Mitzvah and I'm not even Jewish".
74
When I was a brand-new reporter several decades ago, it became my turn to cover the city with the craziest mayor for miles around. My predecessor had gotten a lot of column inches in the paper by covering this wacko in depth. I approached my editor with a deal: I'd keep him informed about the nutty mayor, and the two of us would decide together whether any of the antics were worth writing about. (They almost never were.) When I moved on from Crazy-Mayor Town, my editor and I agreed it was a very successful experiment for all relevant parties.
41
New math, or any math, for that matter, is obviously not a Trump strong suit.
20
Actually it would be responsible journalism to report that the crowd size for Trump rallies are generally small and disappointing. This is something people should know.
73
"Nobody was going to challenge Trump’s numbers while standing, perhaps awe-struck, listening to the president of the United States brag about his crowd size in the wake of a terrible mass murder."
"Awestruck"? Really?
I'd suggest "disdainful".
38
"He did peer toward the media section and note that there were “a lot of people” for an 11 a.m. event. It was a point only slightly dulled by the fact that it was 2:42 in the afternoon." - ok ok ok : 11am = 1100 : 2:42 = 1442 : 1442 minus 1100 = 0342 : 3 + [4 times 2 ] = <<<<< 1100 >>>>> : Ipso facto
9
If we want to make an impact, stop writing about him! He loves publicity. That's how he managed to stay afloat for so many years, and that's how he got the votes. We keep paying attention to him.
So stop writing about him. Write about what his cabinet members are up to - write about the lasting and damaging legislative changes the others are making in the shadow of their huckster leader.
Just STOP. Without his Media Sunshine, he will quickly wither.
97
To join the triviality:
Donald who?
(Ignoring him would be the most distressing to him. It would require that government officials be willing to protect us from the hissy fit he would throw to get attention.)
45
Gail is terrific here, as usual, but what's with the 900 days since DJT's last press conference? November 7, 2018, right after the mid-term election, Trump held a press conference which turned into a Riot in the East Room - he denounced Jim Acosta of CNN, said CNN should let him go, he told the NBC correspondent he didn't like him either, he treated April Ryan, like she was, was, well you know.
It was, like him, a disgrace but it was a press conference!
13
Has it occured to anyone that Trump may be a Dadaist and that all this is performance art?
13
I don't think I've ever seen so many people commenting on a NYT article... having so much fun !! I know it's a form of venting...and I know many of us are looking forward to the Day when the Stable One is put out to pasture...or...perhaps indicted. However I am still concerned that even if he loses the Election in 2020...I really can't imagine he'll just quietly leave the Whitehouse. What happens if the GOP and Barr and Fox's Nation claim the Voting was rigged? What if they barricade him in and he refuses to leave ?? What if Mitch McConnell declares Trump the Winner....Case Closed? After the last few years...anything is possible. 4 More years? Now that would not be a laughing matter !!
27
"But maybe it’d shock him into reality. "
No, trump does not live in reality, he lives in a fantasy world of his own making.
23
Have Geraldo open David Pecker's safe at National Enquirer on pay per view, live TV. I would pay good money to see that.
22
The fake president with small crowd and big lies is a national menace and we should do everything possible to put him anywhere that he can't inflict more harm. Thumb sucking posture is good.
But, while I appreciate the nod to the media's obligation to be impartial, it also has an obligation to report the truth. Not the lies this guy tells, but the actual facts and truth. And headlines reporting his lies amplifies them, doing damage. Whereas, headlines reporting THAT he lies and the WAY in which he lies would do a lot of good. That is what should be done. Not on the opinion pages, but everywhere.
I'm annoyed (to say the least) every day to read a headline that is really parroting (in an attempt at balance? the guy is the definition of imbalanced, so get over that) what he says and not the real news that we have been enduring and abiding by a lunatic idiot in office who must go as soon as possible, and no later than inauguration day 2021.
31
I have relied on humor to get me through these Trump years, but after today's banning of two US Congresswoman, who happen to be Muslim, from Israel, it's time to stop treating Trump like a joke. He is a serious and growing threat to our democracy, and I don't want any journalist from the NYT or any reputable news outlet writing facetiously about him. Let's get serious about this menace to our social and moral, not to mention political, world.
33
Seems like MSM is getting almost as petty as Trump
3
Counter-productive strategy, I hate to say it.
The more this type of narrative -- crowd size -- might be put out there, the more his frenzied base will scramble to show up. They already travel from state to state to see him.
It is a state of personality cult worship -- and the one sure thing that will but them in additional froth is to question their loyalty, or their numbers.
Further, would point people to a pinned Tweet, at top of Kathy Tur's Twitter feed, from Nov., 2018, and referencing Nov., 2016, right before the last Pres. election:
"I went to my first Trump rally in two years yesterday. I also went to my first Obama rally ever on Friday.
vThe events might as well have been held on different planets."
Nothing has dimmed the fervor of the base ... and I certainly don't want to fan it in any additional way.
So, no, stay away from the crowd numbers. In any case, he'd just make up more lies about those also ... so it's pointless.
3
I think the best way of driving him crazy is ignoring him. If it is about him - no matter what you say- he is perfectly fine. He is only hurt when he is not the main character. I heard Trump was furious watching Bernie in his town hall in the FOX (we all know Bernie has a very unique vision for this country)
15
Here’s the thing about Trump...
“Sticks and stones may break my bones”
“But words will never hurt me
1
Won’t work. He still has his base for his ego massage. Because he is a child, you have to hurt him in childish ways. This is what no one seems to understand. If every dem answered every question about Trump with “I think he needs his diaper changed” it would drive him off a cliff. That’s just one of dozens to hit him with. Believe me, he would implode. It’s all about the hashtags and memes. Dems need to learn that fast.
13
Best way is to ignore him, talk to his minions if you must but not to trump at all.
That is no CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, MSNBC, print media etc... do that for a week and that will drive him crazy.
Need to talk about any subject and just talk to department heads not trump, guaranteed to drive him crazy 😜
25
To read the columnists and commenters here one would think that the vast majority (80%? 90%?) of US citizens hate the President. I just checked the President's cumulative job approval rating on Real Clear Politics and it is over 43%, and that is just the people who are willing to admit it. How many more are keeping their mouths shut and plan to vote for him in 2020? Another 3 or 4 or 5%? More than this?
The opinion polls and exit polls for the 2020 presidential election are going to be very unreliable, more so even then in 2016.
6
@Dante this is the NY Times; are you a new reader? People from NYC have despised Trump for, I don't know, 40 years. We laughed when he made his announcement to run after riding down the escalator with Melania in a strapless dress. We tried to educate people outside of the city, explain his enormous ego and neediness, his greed, his inability to see himself clearly in a mirror and, of course, his grotesque hatefulness. And you didn't listen. Gail Collins speaks for us. She's not required to speak for the people who approve of Trump. Again, this article is in the opinion section.
35
Given Trump's 12,000+ official lies, his rage, racism and sexism, his changeability, it should be clear to any responsible journalist that his words and credibility have diminished to microscopic stature.
Because of this, I propose a new chant to the 4th Estate on covering Trump: "Lock him out! Lock him out!"
How best to torture Trump? Ignore him. It would drive him crazy.
His actions and words should be tracked, just not reported, unless he is preparing to start a war or drop a nuclear bomb. True believers, hate sites and social media will still have his Twitterstorms.
Focus on leaders who help people and the planet, for example, who promote higher salaries, job training, green energy, infrastructure efforts, anti-hacking protection for voting machines.
It's not as "vanilla" as might be thought, given the powerful interests who fight these efforts. Let readers see these brighter beacons, and give them some hope. Consider it balanced reporting.
4th estate, the media has been saturated with Trump for years. It's depressing. "Lock him out! Lock him out!" of your coverage.
18
Trump's rally's always appear packed because his handlers always select a venue that they know will be too small to accommodate the expected crowd. This gives the impression that Trump is pulling in huge numbers of people which assists him in his lies and exaggerations.
15
I am not sure this is good.
if you want to fight Trump, you have to fight with the forces of good.
You have to shame his stupidity and his ignorance and the ignorance of his supporters.
And for that you have to show a strong consensus into a positive force.
Organize health care. in details with an economic plan inspired by how it is done in the nations where it works.
Fight the 8 times more violent crime rate than Europe by lowering the social and economic pressure.
Ban war weapons. Limit to one gun per household with control.
If it is not accepted by the ignorant ,at least present a clear project.
Tax the 1 % to finance education up to university to elevate the intellectual level of Americans which is very low and his the major global problem of ignorance and refusal of political participation in the USA.
Democrats. You have to start fighting now and with perspicacity in every field.
4
It wouldn't surprise me in the least if trump's crowds are largely made up of the same traveling caravan of trumpers. Heck, for them it's great entertainment without having to pay a carnival entrance fee before buying tickets to enter the circus tent.
11
If only some rock star would volunteer to show up on the same day and hold an opposing event. Then the competition and comparison would be obvious, and Trump would be "such a loser!".
9
Looking at the overly gleeful crowd in fresh new "maga" hats at a Trump rally reminds me of an audience at a TV game show. What is the gimmick to showcase his "supporters"? Their expressions are suspiciously and consistently not in sync with Trumps's remarks. Are they paid? What else is in the "Maga Hat gift bag?"
Great column Gail.
12
"None of the patients wanted to see him..."
My favorite part. Trump looked shell-shocked when he came out.
I'm hoping when Trump is defeated, he'll have to be bodily dragged out of the White House, where NYC cops will be waiting with handcuffs.
23
I know Hillary Clinton would have been criticized every minute of every day during her term, that seems like the promised land to me now. Of course, I DID vote for her.
6
Just circulate the inside info that McConnell is calling all the shots. trump has to ask Mitch for permission to even tweet.
8
Perhaps already mentioned somewhere in the ~1000 prior comments...wouldn't a blackout period of say 1 week without any reference to this individual in all non-FOX or similar media completely drive them bonkers? I am tired of the media frenzy at all hours when I open a paper/turn on the news/check a device.
10
Opinion it might be, but all I have to say is, "Hooray for the opinion column." It made my day. Thanks, Gail.
9
I can think of at least 20 ways to get under Trump’s skin without even trying. The more he rants, the weaker he looks...and gets. But, unfortunately, the dems are too incompetent to realize this. Yes, it would be petty. That’s the point and not the point at the same time...something that maybe you need to be from Queens to understand.
4
Better yet, force Trump to read a book and write a cogent essay about it.
11
I'll try to quote an amazing woman, Michelle Obama "When they go low, we go high."
I cant stand Trump but I couldn't finish this, sorry.
4
"We have to go down to his level if we want to get his attention." I realize this is a (mostly) humorous column, but this approach is not as good as just ignoring him. Don't report every outrageous rant and bit of bile spewed. Don't feed the troll. " ... the ideal response is to starve the troll of attention by ignoring it and going about your usual business. People being people, though, someone usually takes the bait, which is why trolls are so notorious." (Rational Wiki)
6
Mr. Trump's campaign reportedly has not paid more than $500,000 to the city of El Paso for his campaign rally there earlier this year. Apparently a number of other cities are having this problem."
Has he paid for the inaugural proceedings for which he owes more than one million dollars?
How about these so called policy visits that are political rallies? Is Trump's campaign fund, that no doubt is bigger than anyone else's, going to reimburse the federal treasury?
I would not hold my breath. Are failures to pay these legitimate debts grounds for impeachment?
12
Sadly, everything Ms. Collins says is true; "sadly" because none of it should be true about a United States President, sitting or not.
But the saddest part is that Trump's base continues to support him, no matter what, even when they don't like what he's saying. He speaks their hatred, though he offers no real solutions. They haven't noticed that yet.
3
I had a thought about 45's need to brag about his crowd size, especially at rallies. Though I agree with Gail about why he does it in other instances, I think when he does it at rallies he is assuring those who have attended that they are among many many others who share his ideas about the state of the U.S. and the world, and that all of them are supportive of his rhetoric (if you can call it that) and the actions (and inactions) of his administration. He is massaging their egos along with his ow, binding them together as an entitled group convinced that he is the best thing to come along in decades. This may be the Machiavellian side of what is otherwise, and mostly, willful ignorance by the person in the White House.
8
Best way to get under Trump’s thin skin: Tell the truth:
Obama’s presidency is the reason the economy has been doing well all these years.
Trump’s presidency is the reason the economy is beginning to falter.
27
Remind him that he doesn't need to delay the tariffs, since China is paying them.
10
Trump is not an anomaly!
He is just the most recent symptom of a complex society’s decades(centuries?)-long ethical festering. We’ve been working our way to this; and, yes, we are always a work in progress.
Make America better, now. Vote your best values.
13
Best way to torture Trump -- and the rest of the GOP -- is for voters to stop obsessing over the race for the White House, and focus on flipping the Senate next year. Of course the president is important, but as the gatekeeper for judicial appointments (which will affect an entire generation) the Senate is the Holy Grail. And flipping the Senate is a win-win situation: either the Dems win the White House or, if Trump wins, Democratic Senate control renders him a political eunuch for the next four years. Now _that_ would be delicious torture.
40
“It was the Trump administration that made it possible,” the president said of a project that was first announced in 2012. Gail, you're the best.
27
I'm not interested in paying for trump's campaign expenses when he should be using that time in the white house--or maybe we are truly lucky he isn't...
But hasn't anyone figured out yet that when you are campaigning from day one for your next stint, you are using the paid time you should be working on the job you are presently in --and its not just the time--it's the money..
Why are we gifting the republican party their bills???? Why are we taxpayers stuck with the financial expenses trump and his pet GOP runs up---Democrats are not out there depleting taxpayer money --are they?
20
Anyone who has lived in the NYC Metro area for the past four decades isn't surprised by anything Trump does. He is a salesman, first and foremost, and will say anything and do anything to close a deal and "win." There's no real business or management acumen behind any of it. Never has been.
Trump also has a fragile ego. Very fragile. Maybe even Daddy issues. Lord knows he's bankrupted enough companies to be labeled a failure, so he tries to over-compensate by being outrageous and (he thinks) entertaining. But even The Apprentice ran aground eventually.
He also has (evidently) narcissistic personality disorder and requires frequent ego-massaging. Look at how obsessed he was (and still is) with the size of his inaugural crowd. Can't argue with NPS photo evidence, which he then labels as "fake" (just like anything else he disagrees with).
Maureen Dowd had the best name for him - the Highchair President of Fifth Avenue. Fits him to a T.
32
High chair president is too cerebral...the very thing wrong with the liberal media and dems. Want to see him boil? Try “Draft Dodging Coward”.
Q: “Madam Speaker, what’s your reaction to what the president said today?
A: I don’t comment on remarks from a draft dodging coward”.
That’s lesson 1. There are dozens more. Dems haven’t a clue how to create memes.
8
What's wrong with making him poor and sending him to jail?
32
if you want to fight a grave viral disease, you have to fight strong and with the antivirus. Which means that you have to send information with the disease ( ! ) ,being clearly explained with all its consequences , everywhere into the whole corpus so that it is well picked up and understood by all the forces of immunity able to fight.
So that you can trigger a strong global reaction of salvation.
2
The only way to infuriate a narcissist is to ignore him.
23
If Trump were to attend the funeral of a beloved, foreign head of state, he'd undoubtedly claim his funeral would draw a greater crowd. Could be right, but that crowd would be celebrating.
27
Ignore him. Stop all coverage. Stop following him on Twitter. Stop responding. He's like a 2 yr old wanting everyone's attention. Walk away. That, is torture to him.
22
The best way torture djt is to march, organize, register Democrat voters and vote the greedy republican party out of power in 2020.
Then begin oversight hearings in Congress to begin the legal process of erasing this disease from our presence. A few court impeachments would also help.
14
"If we want to really make him crazy, we ought to start a rumor that he can’t draw a crowd."
I understand the spirit in which the above statement is made; never-the-less, let me treat it as a serious proposition and disagree with the approach. First it is difficult to prove indisputably that "he can't draw a crowd." Even if one comes up with undeniable cases of low crowd turn out at his rallies, he will find a way to blame that on something or someone.
May be a better way to get under Trump's skin - assuming there is any room there - is to bring up with him the subject of his actual wealth or his marks at school. The length at which he has gone to hide his actual wealth and his primary/secondary school grades indicates that these areas contain much raw nerves of his. It appears that he is attaching so much humiliation with those two areas that, if they are made public, his narcissistic mindset will have difficulty handling it.
While we are treating this subject lightly, one should not forget that "making him crazy" may not be in the best interest of the country or the world. Given his personality, and the opportunistic nature of those who whisper into his ears, he may choose to divert attention from subjects that humiliate him by starting a war somewhere.
10
@Eddie B.
Unfortunately, we Really don't have any information on his "wealth". School grades should be private, so I don't know if we have them.
Crowds are a snap to monitor.
Every article Should mention his crowds. They are a real part of the news.
Then, we can go positive with the Democratic message.
8
If American citizens want to shame Trump ,they have to start a huge positive campaign.
We want a global health insurance. We want to participate in the ecology fight for the planet in danger. We want to organize a public education system up to university. We want to tax the 1 % and the biggest US corporations who pay zero taxes to finance all of this. We want dignity for people who are abused in their countries, often by wars we created or economical and political abuse we created. They are the positive force we need with us for tomorrow. We want to lower the social pressure and the 8 times more violence than in Europe.
That will shame Trump and his supporters. And they will be overwhelmed and will not have the intellectual power to fight.
We have to do it now and strong ! And with perspicacity.
8
Trump is billing the taxpayer for his golf trips and political junkets. He even makes extra money on them, by charging the Secret Service and military assistants. He also takes along his aides and supporters at taxpayer expense.
22
There really needs to be a big reckoning about how he has robbed the tax payer. Certainly hope a Democrat is our next president so then we can begin campaigning on your back for the next four years at least.
4
President Trump is pretty tough. He was able to take on 16 Republican presidential candidates and Hillary Clinton in 2016 and came out the winner. He can take on the media and anyone else who comes in his path. Afraid he is not.
3
"...and came out the winner."
By just 77,000 votes in 3 states out of over 136 million votes cast
And with the help of James Comey's announcement just before election day, re-opening an investigation of the missing Clinton emails.
And by a 6% decline in voting by African-Americans from 2012.
If Jill Stein hadn't run, we'd be singing a different tune right now...
24
The Russians gifted the presidency to t and everyone including him knows that.
7
@hdtvpete, your comment proves one important item regarding 2020: there can be NO wild cards this time. I am not sure how this gets controlled, but this cannot reoccur. To your list I would add-- and had bernie and his bros not been so stubborn and instead gone all in for Hillary, we really would not be singing this funereal tune today. Bernie needs to take his rumpled suit, his loud voice, his messy hair and his rude treatment of his democratic colleagues (no surprise since he is NOT a democrat) and go home to one of his many homes.
6
Warren gets 700 people to listen to her, and the headlines call it a massive turnout. The media has no credibility.
5
Just saying "West Virginia" and Trump makes me cringe...and I'm a native West Virginian!
4
Yes, even when his crowd may be sub-substantial, diminish it, question whether the audience members were paid, or say it was really a dentist's convention or something,
Better yet, ignore him altogether, since he never says anything worth hearing; it's usually lies and pitiful, cringe-making pleas for adulation.
And please, media, spare us photos. We know too well by now what he is and what he looks like and it isn't pretty.
19
@George Dietz, it's been well-documented the crowd at trump Tower when The Donald announced his presidential bid was mostly paid actors.
18
Savatage - When The Crowds Are Gone
I don't know where the years have gone
Memories can only last so long
Like faded photographs, forgotten songs
And the things I never knew
When the skin is thin, the heart shows through
Please believe me, what I tell you is true...
Where's the light, turn then on again
One more night to believe and then
Another note for my requiem
A memory to carry on
The story's over when the crowds are gone
All my friends have been crucified
They made life a long suicide true
Guess we never figured out the rules
But I'm still alive and my fingers feel
I'm gonna play on till the final reel's through
And read the credits from a different view
Where's the lights, turn them on again
One more night to believe and then
Another note for my requiem
A memory to carry on
The story's over when the crowds are gone
When the crowds are gone
And I'm all alone
Playing a final song
Now that the lights are gone
Turn them on again
One more time for me my friend
Turn them on again
I never wanted to know
Never wanted to see
I wasted my time till time wasted me
Never wanted to go
Always wanted to stay
Cause the person I am are the parts that I play
So I play and I plan
And hope and I scheme
To the lure of a night
Filled with unfinished dreams
And I'm holding on tight
To a world gone astray
As they charge me for years
I can no longer pay
And the lights
Turn them off my friend
And the ghosts
Well just let them in
Cause in the dark
It's easier to see
2
Do we really want to drive Trump crazy. If he feels ridiculed I fear he'll do whatever he can to show he's powerful, like lob a nuke at a perceived enemy. Let's just work on defeating him in 2020.
11
Just look at the brouhaha over the inauguration. Trump was so triggered by Obama having had bigger crowds that the National Park Service was compelled to photoshop some pics to make his crowds appear bigger.
8
How about this? Pay no attention to, and publish nothing about, Trump’s inane, hateful tweets...
The press should just stop following him. I don’t.
16
Twitter should close his account.
11
Lets all ignore him for a week.
11
If they sold tickets to watch him being handcuffed prior to his perp walk at the end of his “presidency”, I am convinced that there would be little ambiguity to the historic size of the crowd wanting to witness the event.
31
There is a better way to punish president trump without sinking to his level.
Collins notes that Trump has not had a press conference in more than 900 days. The ethical wing of the media should announce that until trump holds regular press conferences and stops threats and encouraging violence against the media, the media will not report on his political rallies nor his tweets and will no longer disseminate statements that are provably false. That could be considered integrity and a service to the nation. And would stop a lot of trumpiness in its golf cart tracks.
But--fat chance this will happen. The media helped elect trump and eagerly distribute his daily lies and outrageous behavior. But the media has no duty to report such things, any more than they have a duty to report trump's bowel movements. Which, I maintain, is the level of the president's behavior.
17
@Thomas Wright Trump wouldn't respond to the press that way. That's Ms. Collins point.
1
This was an excellent piece. It brought a smile to my face and a tear to my eye. Who would ever have thought we would have a creature like this ins the white House. Who would ever have thought people think he is a mythical genius. His word turns everything to gold.
Besides destroying common decency the GOP, conservative, religious community can never ever get on their soapbox again. The curtain has been pulled back and all of thinking America sees the hypocrites that they are. They are the true haters of America and democracy. I dont want to hear another word about the budget. The fool from Kentucky didn't want to fund the 9/11 responders who will never live more than a few more years. How soulless we are.
Not only person has stood up to Trump, not one so called GOP, they are spineless and they should have no voice in America going forward. Mr. King should of been in the same cell as Mr. Epstein both hate women.
Any thinking person can see that Uncle Trump needs to leave office asap. He is wrecking the world and bringing continual shame on the nation.
10
I'm willing to be catty, and I'm a dog.
8
#ThousandaireTrump
If he doesn’t reveal his tax returns, keep this hashtag going.
17
I've never liked Gail Collins style much. It always comes across as petty, even though she makes salient points.
Read Steve Rattner's article in today's NYT. Everyone around the world should read this piece. He lays out a complete picture of how a few misguided global leaders have taken, what was a thriving economy a few years ago, to what we now have, teetering on the edge of a greater collapse than 2007. And then, we had Obama who responsibly dug us out.
Trump is no Obama.
12
@Hana daHaya She is a satirist and a darn good one. And she is truthful which is more than I can say for the President and the Republican Party which has given us the worst economy and presidency in many years.
12
"Trump is no Obama."
Too bad. We could use a classy president not given to lying and name-calling right now...
10
@hdtvpete....Contrary to Michelle Obama's advice...When Trump Goes Low...No One Could Go Lower !! But who in their right mind would want to ?
1
The best way to get under Trump's skin is to vote him out of office.
In the meantime, tell him, remind him, he lost the popular vote by over six million.
Tell him 60 percent of voters think he's a lousy President.
Tell him Eric takes after his father.
Tell him he lost more of his father's money than he inherited.
Tell him Donald Jr. looks just like Ricardo Montalban, I mean. really, really looks like him.
14
@Joe Kernan
..... and Ricardo was seen around Mar-a-lago early in the morning.
2
Another way will be to sign the MoveOn petition which says,
""We request the stretch of Fifth Avenue between 56th and 57th Streets be renamed "President Barack H. Obama Avenue. Any addresses on that stretch of Fifth Avenue should be changed accordingly."
28
@hnj If DeBlasio made this happen, I'd consider voting for him! Love it!
7
The real way to torture any narcissist is to ignore them. Being president and all he is hard to ignore. But we could start by not publishing his puerile tweets and not talking endlessly about him. Attention of any kind is oxygen to him. Let’s cut off the oxygen.
7
what a wonderful idea....but use twitter to propagate.. and a little disinformation thrown in too (aka lies).
1
Check Wikipedia/google: Trump University, Trump Shuttle and other projects he had his fingers on (Trump Taj Maha, Trump Marina and Trump Plaza casinos, all of which he went into bankruptcy on).
ROLLING STONE: https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/donald-trumps-13-biggest-business-failures-59556/
Or his tweet: "... Trade wars are good, and easy to win..."
Ask the farmers who voted for him: "How's that working for you?"
8
Here's a better way to torture Trump and spare the nation: Stop talking about him.
6
There is only one way to torture Donald Trump that is by remembering him every other day that at the end of his mandate he would end in filthy jail.
7
Thank You Gail Collins , I wish the Times would reassign you to the Trump beat and you would have an opportunity to actually , confront ' sorry not sorry ' ask Trump questions as he walks the grounds of the White House to his preferred mode of transport a tax payer sponsored helicopter trip.
Your colleagues should by all means call Trump out on his lies, do head counts at his rallies and all in all show him to be the very small unpopular being that he is.
I too believe this to be the trick to truly drive him ' I was going to say off the cliff ' but we have well past that point .
9
It's an accurate but sad portrayal of our leader, but I appreciate the tongue-and-cheek strategy. A little levity in these trying times is appreciated.
650
@Doug Wilkins I appreciate levity, too. It smoothes the edges. Allows everyone to take a step back and breathe more easily. In this case, though, that is a mistake.
17
@Doug Wilkins I also appreciate levity. Gail Collins is a master of confronting turmoil and angst with levity. But writing on the Opinion page about Trump requires much more than her very funny piece about Romney and his dog.
Trump is true disaster....Romney was just a joke.
25
@Doug Wilkins
For Pete's sake, quit referring to Trump as "our leader." He is The President, not "our" president. He's sure as heck not mine. If you want to jack him around a bit, keep pointing out how much better Hillary Clinton would have been in her actions and decisions, and in uniting the country.
95
According to David Remnick's editorial in this week's issue of The New Yorker , "FDR characterized the Presidency as 'preeminently a place of moral leadership.' Trump by contrast, once told his his circle of advisors that they should 'think of each Presidential day as an episode in a television show in which he vanquishes rivals.'"
A sad reminder that we can expect more of the same ad infinitum.
720
@J A Bickers
More of the same until he's voted out in Nov 2020.
45
@J A Bickers
Truman said, " The Buck Stops here".
Trump passes the Buck to Congress, the Squad, the Fed, Democratic voters, president Xi ad nauseum
36
@Mary
I'm a Michigan native who believes that you get everyone you know there in Michigan to work hard to support the Democratic candidate, it can happen.
35
I just wish we would adopt the word "Trump" to indicate a continuous stream of lies, with no relation to the truth. That would establish the legacy of this buffoon in history.
Examples?
"Joe tried to Trump his way out of trouble."
"He kept Trumping when we questioned him."
"His Trumps did nothing to help us figure out the facts."
1393
@WestHartfordguy I would prefer to never hear his name again.
If you do wish to use it as a verb, it shouldn't be capitalised.
94
@WestHartfordguy ... What a great idea. Putting aside the history of despair turning to comedy just to cope, (they pretend to pay us and we pretend to work), Mr Hartfordguy, you are on to something... and I'm not Trumping ya.
38
@WestHartfordguy
"After a moment of gastric distress, I left the room to go take a Trump."
188
Mr. Trump's campaign reportedly has not paid more than $500,000 to the city of El Paso for his campaign rally there earlier this year. Apparently a number of other cities are having this problem. Mr. Trump seems to be running his campaign as shabbily as he runs his real estate business.
2707
@Bearded One Other cities should tell the Trump campaign that space will not be booked for his rallies until the rental and other expenses are paid in full in advance.
1496
@Bearded One Maybe Trump will declare bankruptcy yet again.... (we all know that he's bankrupt!).... Would that mean that he can't run a campaign?
Here's hoping!
96
@Bearded One
Paying bills is for the little people.
199
Trump campaign slogan: "The Buck$ Stop Here!"
3
What a wonderful column. Great idea, too. Thanks, Gail. I needed that.
5
People pay to see Elton John. Trump pays people to go to his rallies or let's them in for free. One earns his money, the other inherited it. The only thing they have in common is ill-fitting hair.
10
Calling crowd size into question would rile Trump, but it’s not the best, most constructive way. In fact, such a comment could even be counterproductive, if it’s dismissed as fake news.
By far the best way to rile Trump up is to ignore him. Nothing is less bearable to him than the thought that he’a Irrelevant.
5
Responsible journalism would be calling out Trump's lies and stating the facts in a way that makes it absolutely clear what a liar he is, instead of what I see so often - burying the facts deep inside long stories that I doubt have nearly as much impact as a simple headline stating the facts would have.
4
Trump's one and only rule to late night show hosts was to NEVER QUESTION HIS WEALTH.
7
"Besides, he seems so confident [that] he’s a charmer nothing is going to shake him."
3
Has the Trump campaign paid El Paso YET for the cost of the February 2019 rally?
9
The proposal to rename the section of 5th Ave that Trump tower is located on to Barak Obama way in NYC is brilliant. Make livid everyone he steps outside
20
Gail Collins quotes Trump: “I’ve broken more Elton John [attendance] records, and I don’t have a musical instrument.”
True, but Trump does have mushroom. That must count for something!
3
Let’s draw few burgers with crayons and call it Trump’s Summer Reading List.
5
Politico reports that workers at the chemical plant who chose not to attend Trump's campaign, er, presidential visit were docked a day's pay. So, in essence, those who attended were paid to be there. Now there's popularity for you.
Also, how are these trips not considered campaign events which should be paid not by taxpayers, but by the Make America White Again campaign?
13
If you want to drive Trump crazy, give him limited attention. Don't mention his tweets. Unless it is important don't cover his rallies or visits. When he says something terrible mention it briefly. If he said something decent don't give him credit. Ghost Trump.
12
Bravo, Gail! Great idea.
Can’t wait for the accompanying hashtag.
3
How to Torture Trump:
Let him know every morning of every day of every week that New York recently enabled scores of victims who were sexually abused as children decades ago to file lawsuits.
The Child Victims Act has a provision that lifts the statute of limitations and now decades-old crimes against victims childhood sexual abuse can file CRIMINAL CHARGES, DONALD and seek damages in civil lawsuits.
7
Bravo, Gail! Great idea.
2
Eyes on the prize Gail. The key is defeating Trump, not playing silly games.
2
At this point, you can make Trump lose it if you disagree with him on what salad dressing you prefer on your side order of lettuce.
2
Headline: How to Torture Trump, underneath: Gail Collins, pictured smiling, yet did you create the headline? Say it ain’t so! for I feel you DON’T advocating torturing anyone or anything, comments including “the best way to take Trump out,” “hitting Trump where it hurts,” “attack Trump,” etc. reveal humans constantly at war, as we have been for untold centuries, ready, willing and desirous of hurting others, yet it is clear that when I say “I love you” this is never true when I also say I want another being hurt, tortured, taken out. 88 years young I now know I am here only to love-care-for all beings and things, that this is always possible and doing other than this extraordinarily painful.
1
Who could resist a headline like that?
6
I wonder who it was that convinced him that Xmas would be a blood bath if he went ahead with the 25% tariff?
As it is, I would caution Xmas shoppers to not spend too much, because next winter will be economically harsh.
6
Laugh at him the way you laugh at a flasher. If two people laugh it's even better. When thousands laugh and continue to laugh when Trumps defenders try to turn this around it will be over. When someone argues with you and you laugh at them eventually they will give up in frustration.
But, keep an eye on them anyway!
10
The most effective way is to ignore Trump. The media need to take him off the "front page". Stop covering his helicopter talking moments or his meeting comments. Stop telling us about his tweets.
His staff and all those civil servants in government who remain patriotic need to ignore him.
Anyone looking to play golf or reside in a development needs to ignore the Trump "brand." For those who have attending a Trump rally on their "bucket list," it's time to change the bucket list.
4
I was just talking with friends last night that crowds yelling and shaking their fist in protest against Trump doesn't work. We need a protest in the form of a circus where everything, EVERYTHING is openly mocking him and this "administration". Big puppets like the ones Bread and Puppet Theater make that are twenty feet tall making fun of him; not one Trump baby balloon, but a line of them, ten times larger; hundreds of placards with cartoon images of the guy; gigantic Big Macs and tiny, well. you can imagine; a hundred Trump impersonators in a group, stand-up comedians on floats... and a crowd bigger than at his inauguration.
6
The bunting in the associated photo is improperly displayed. The blue field is on top when correctly turned out. An easy way to remember this is that the “blue field is closest to the sky”.
6
It’s like an upside down flag.
4
Why doesn't the media write articles just about Trump's lies and misinformation? Maybe a front page space everyday in the NYT or Washington Post that analyzes his numerous lies for that day (or the day before) and what those lies and misinformation really mean and how they effect us. Trump and his lies ARE dangerous and hurting America. Journalists and the media stop the tiptoeing! Staying silent or tiptoeing is being complicit.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. If Obama lied the way Trump did, or did any of the other indefensible things Trump has done, the Republicans would be screaming! But he continues to get away with it. Part of that is the media needs to do their job with more in-depth analytical reporting on him. Not just report on what he does and says, but the implications, impact and repercussion of what he does and says especially when he makes up things. And I'm not talking about opinion column writers. I'm talking about real journalists doing real in-depth reporting.
7
Doesn’t help much if guys like you refuse to read them, let alone show up and vote, does it? I mean, that is exactly what happened, after all.
1
@Robert
Speak for yourself. I read the New York Times, The Washington Post, The LA Times, The Boston Globe, The Wall St. Journal, The Guardian, The Atlantic, The Economist, listen to NPR and watch The PBS Newshour. I have also voted in every US presidential and congressional election since 1980 and the same for my state's governor and congressional elections.
Actually I found what you wrote rather strange and quite frankly ludicrous. Maybe I'll let you off the hook if you were speaking rhetorically. But if your comments are directed at me you are completely mistaken. By the way "Out west" eh? How far?
3
Ms Collins, please post a running tally of the crowd size of any woman of color (Ilhan Omar to Beyonce) compared to little 45's crowd. And, like the vinyl, he only has one tune. Unlike the vinyl, 45's tune is imprinted on both sides.
Have Fox news talk poorly about him and his performance.
1
There is a petition going around to change the name of 5th Avenue in front of Trump Tower to Barak H Obama Avenue. I doubt Donald Trump will sign it, but I hope everyone else will.
12
Although I get the symbolic nature of the photo accompanying this column, what would be better is a picture of Trump's tiny rally in Phoenix.
https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/donald-trumps-rally-in-phoenix-was-kind-of-a-bust-8387861
1
"Maybe that’s going too far — despite the [loser]’s complaints to the contrary, the mainstream-media reporters covering him try very hard to be fair."
Not just fair, but downright supportive and laudatory. For one, the "left"-wing, "failing" Times (Collins included...) still refers to him as "President" and his bigotry as "divisive" or "racially charged", if with increasing exceptions.
They also STILL haven't stopped using and dignifying his ultimate source of attention. We need BDS, but for Twitter.
1
Let us not forget that when Elton John, the Rolling Stones, or even Trevor Noah draw a crowd, the audience must give up significant amounts of their hard earned cash to get in. Trump's crowd pay nothing. Of course, they get what they pay for.
12
Is this how low we've gotten? To figure out ways to annoy the president? Have we reverted to high school days? I don't want to "torture" Trump, I want to render him ineffectual during his current term, and then vote him out of power in 2020.
We have real problems that require real leadership. Leadership that we're not getting from either side. I don't want an anti-Trump tirade. To put him in his place is to address the issues in a serious and thoughtful manner. I don't want to live in the gutter anymore even if comes from the opposition.
1
As many before have stated, Trump is like a tempestuous little boy. His ego is as fragile as one can get for a tired, old crank. He talks about how great he is because he knows that he isn't, but if he keeps repeating it, it must be true. The same could be said for Ivanka, the mini Donald. Unfortunate for the 55% of us who abhor the man, his boastful words works well with those who don't think critically or who simply love his divisive rhetoric. He and his cult of personality are a sad reflection on the human race.
6
Even better, everyone un-follow him on twitter and stop talking about him at all-at least for a few days.
1
There is a petition out to rename the block in front of Trump Tower "President Barrack H. Obama Avenue". Sign it. It'll assuage your frustration a little.
https://petitions.moveon.org/sign/rename-fifth-avenue-in?source=petitionshomepage
4
The title of your column "How to Torture Trump" is very aggressive. When somebody is President of the country, you have to be more respectful in your expressions, despite probably you have reasons to express negative opinions about this person.
Why?
4
@Trassens: That is absolutely and categorically wrong. Unlike dictators and royalty, US Presidents are a) elected and b) work for the people. The ultimate winner of an election must, from the first day in office, EARN our respect. The US President is the very last person anyone should be called to respect purely on the basis of the office. When trump denigrates America (and he does, daily, with his un-American policies and pronouncements), he forfeits any respect he might otherwise be due.
6
I agree with Gail Collins.
His ego will be his demise.
And, it is really news, factual news.
Isn't that what the news media is supposed to do?
7
Trump has no idea what he's doing and his obsession with crowd size is an attempt to distract from that reality.
5
@Wayne
I don’t think he’s smart enough to use a distraction tactic, except on a very immediate and superficial level.
He wants to think his crowds are huge and he wants everyone else to think so. He is so shallow that he thinks like the teen who wants to be popular in High School. “I hope I can get lots and lots of kids to come to my party tonight. Than people will think I’m popular.”
Finally, to torture Trump? How about continuously calling attention to his small hands and small fingers! That should make him cringe.
5
Call him a "Thousandaire," this will definitely run him crazy.
11
Exactly! Hush money in installments is the most obvious sign a "billionaire" isn't.
—okay, second most. The bankrupt casinos top the list!
4
I wish this newspaper would follow your suggestion of reporting the small size of Trump's crowds. This from a die-hard reader of the NYT.
4
I've always thought that politicians should consult psychologists about dealing with a bully and narcissist.
I also think anything on Trump should start with Reagan's line, there he goes again.
2
The patients at the hospital did not want to see the President.
That’s all that needed to be written.
Our Current POTUS has no ability to bring people together.
5
@Novicaine - I'm not sure about that. I've bonded with a number of people who can't stand the thought of him.
9
But that would leave Pence to take Trump’s seat. Better Trump should lose the election.
2
Manafort chose Pence, so he's even EASIER to impeach!
1
Just as effective, point out that he is not nearly as rich as he claims to be. He hides his tax returns because they would show that his income is smaller than he says. His indebtedness is much larger than he admits, and is suspicious because he owes so much to foreigners. A President beholden to foreigners, possibly under control by foreigners, is a very bad thing for America.
9
We need a film loop of "Green Shirt Guy" running next to all of his news clips that show him rattling on about his "mine is much bigger than yours" comments. That would be awesome.
5
Thank you, Gail, for some much needed comic relief. Love it!
4
Gail, let's look at this in more realistic terms that will work. Start by having Trump use Elton's music at his rallies. ("Philadelphia Freedom?", or "Saturday Nite's All Right For Fighting", or any other of his songs). Elton finds out, sues Trump for all he's worth (Trillions!). Game over! Or maybe bombard the White House with 24hr Elton John music like they do at Guantanamo until Trump becomes even more crazy. Maybe that could be kind of dangerous.
1
How about the fact that Hillary got 3 million more votes than Trump and he is not really president except for an electoral college scam.
8
trump will continue to use our tax dollars and every possible presidential perk and power to campaign for re-election. That is all he is doing now. Every action is intended to be a vote getter for the bottom of the pond so that he can continue his naked power grab and stay out of jail. Only Congress can stop him.
2
"Weak Trump" - a perfect nickname, as weakness is what he fears in himself.
6
A good way to torture The Unmentionable One would be for the press to stop congregating on the White House lawn. He hasn't held a real press conference for more than two years because he knows he couldn't handle one. Instead he gives short answers to shouted questions as the helicopter in the background makes it hard for anyone to hear. Stop pandering to him. Insist that reporters will only question him during traditional press conferences. Even if he never speaks to reporters again the lack of attention will drive him nuts.
7
He (DJT) should simply be ignored. Although it will likely make him go nuts, that is not the sole intention.
DJT is incompetent. He gets validation simply by being talked about.
The American media has to start putting DJT related stories- NOT on the front page!!
Ask any teacher.... the best way to handle a poorly behaved adolescent, is to simply walk away.
Take away their audience. Change your proximity!! It works with 10 year olds, so there is no reason to believe it will not work with DJT.
2
This article is a perfect example of how Trump uses distraction to game the media. Gail seems to lament that Trump speaks so frequently about crowd sizes when he really should be talking about bigger and better things. So she uses her platform as an NYT columnist to talk about...Trump's crowd sizes, instead of bigger and better things.
4
@Jackson George - but Gail is a humorist, writing a column known for its satirical bent - she's paid to point out the trivial as well as the weighty.
4
Here's a thought:
Publish the testimony given by the woman who was (allegedly) raped by the Occupant when she was 13 years old. That would definitely get under his skin.
5
If Beto was the big baby that Trump is, he could honestly retort, "Mine is bigger than yours."
Just saying.
1
The current WH Occupant is obsessively planning Inauguration Day 2020 ... maybe Elton John will have a free concert in DC at the same time ... photographic drones will document the results.
Trumpf will sing: "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" ... "I'm Still Standing" ... "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me" ... "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" ... "The Rocket Man" might actually be speechless as Bernie Sanders takes the oath of office!
2
I think what’d really get under trump’s baggy skin is giving him the finger wherever he went.
The little finger.
Sooner or later, somebody’d explain it to him.
Or, there’s the “Mail Trump A Mushroom,” campaign...
3
So, it's okay to psychologically torture Trump, but it's not okay to psychologically torture terrorists?
@John Franklin...You're right...because fact is that Trump and Terrorists ..are really one and the same !!
1
@John Franklin - I suppose that depends. I'd have no objection to taunting terrorists about their crowd size.
4
Trump revels in tying people up in knots over his comments and pronouncements. If it weren't so dangerous it could be dismissed as the acts of an attention seeking child. But Trump's motivation is far more sinister. He is involving us in his pathology. He says something and he knows the media will cover it, parse it, and reject is as non factual. But he still accomplishes his goal...he says it. This is what happens when you put a failed television and commercial real estate personality in the White house. You get a toxic stew. I say bring the pot up to full boil. See if any frogs jump out.
2
Last line is the K.O. punch in this article. Bravo!
2
So when the story of Trump’s life is made into a movie, I have a title: Racketman. Works in a couple different ways,
6
I haven't devoted myself to a democratic presidential candidate yet, but I'm a bit giddy at the thought of a woman winning and then having a massive crowd at her historic inauguration.
1
Not to mention, the "crowd" at that Pennsylvania chemical plant were workers, ordered to be there, and paid to be there.
Like the famous escalator speech kicking off his campaign in 2016, it was filled with people who were paid to be there.
15
@J
Like his " ravenous fans" at his hate te rallies?
Yep, that's what they are.
But paid participants? You betcha!
2
Trump's own appraisal of his crowd sizes is as accurate as his great poll numbers, what a great job he is doing and, of course, how smart he is.
6
@BTT
AND his appraisal of his umm man size.
Can we supeana his ex- wives and gf's to testify?
Oh wait! Didn't that ex say he had a mushroom kinda thing? LMAO
4
I love Elton John.
I wouldn't cross the street to see Trump, even if it was to heckle him.
11
or just "trump size disappointing" and credit Melania
16
Ttumpty dumty sat on a wall
Ttumpty dumty had a great fall
All Ttump's minions
and all Ttump's gall
Couldn't end Ttumpty's 2020 recall
Apologies to Mother Goose but the age range of a nursery rhyme seemed about right given the subject. Better versions of same welcome.
11
Imagine if the NYT and other media outlets simply refused to rise to the bait and didn't use his name unless absolutely necessary. Refer to him as "the current president" or "the Chief Executive" or "the White House" or "the head of the GOP" or "the executive branch" whenever possible. Don't print his picture; use the elephant symbol or the White House symbol. Focus on Mitch McConnell's leadership role and let DJT fade into the background.
24
"The Occupant."
5
The best way to torture Trump is to hint at his inferior academic record. Trump wants so much to hide that he was a poor student. He may have money (not billions like he claims) but he does not have an intellect that can handle policy papers produced by executive branch staff. Since he cannot understand the policy papers, he simply doesn't read them and wings it. The Trump Recession is coming and there's nothing the bully-in-chief can do about it except blame it on the Fed, on Democrats, on immigrants and on Colin Kaepernick.
9
The entertainment industry needs to get behind this idea. Every time Trump stage is a hate Raleigh they need to provide a free concert starting 15 minutes before his start time somewhere across town. That would keep his crowds to a minimum and the entertainment artist could push Slater Democratic candidates and progressive agenda
6
He never mentions the millions of people all over the world who marched in January of 2017 in opposition and in horror to his 'winning' the election. Just keep posting the millions who marched. Videos from Colombia to Ireland to Birmingham to Flagstaff to Winnipeg to Vienna to Geneva to Jakarta to Seoul and beyond. A little constant reminder wouldn't hurt! Tom Steyer, you might use your money this way. Drive trump crazy...get your ads on!
11
"All over the world" does not matter here in the US.
1
@BorisRoberts . It meant something to me and my friends. The crowds were largest in the US, but the fact that the world was dismayed, or rather horrified, at his entrance to the White House, is something many Americans care about. The world matters. Our allies matter. Our lives matter.
4
Want to really get under Trump's skin? For a good start: Publish his tax returns and get Don McGahn to testify in public.
14
So, basically, we're all gonna be children now?
Just ignore him. If you hadn't noticed, the rest of the world with half a brain has. The few others are just taking advantage of his utter incompetence at just about everything.
The world sees him for a joke. And by association, America too.
8
@James Devlin that's a great idea. There's just one small problem: he is in office, actively promoting problems and not being restrained by anyone at all.
7
All of us with a connected brainstem are right there with you. Lyin' Agent Orange's need for ego reinforcement through his rallies trumps doing any real work a normal president would be honor bound to perform. Our payback will be election night 2020 when he is crushed by a landslide. Until then we can only hope the dude with the nuclear football knows how to hide.
4
I have visions of someone loping off his head. Symbolically speaking of course. Trump is a crackpot who should be immediately impeached.
5
Donald Trump, is such narcissic man.....
The best tool against him, is simply to ignore him totally....
I believe we would all feel so much better not to hear about his tantrums everyday!
6
How about a crowd of protesters at the White house with Trump wigs and pinocchio noses
4
DJT is such a needy man, that I almost feel sorry for him.
2
Today the occupant has tweeted that another nation, Israel, should bar two American Congress women from visiting the West Bank, saying it would be a sign of weakness if they allowed them to visit. When they do go, he will attack them for colluding with terrorists and threaten to not let them re enter the country until we see their birth certificates. He will be loved on the right for his strong stand and dutifully pilloried on the left for his thuggish practices. We don’t need to torture the man, and this ridicule tactic won’t work with a narcissist, because as always, ANY talk of the man in the media, whether it be crowd size or criminality, simply reinforces his inner agent, keeping the brand out there and constantly talking about HIM. My thought, ignore all the stupid stuff, focus on the criminal stuff. As I write this I see a notification that Israel HAS in fact banned the women....please focus on the thuggery, Gail? I know you are paid to be funny, but let’s not look away from the disaster to watch the clown.
2
I don't know why this sort of op-ed is on the Times. I learned nothing except that Gail Collins hates Trump and wants to hurt him psychologically. And probably all she's accomplishing is deepening the divide that's already deep enough.
OK, got it. I don't like Trump either.
Next.
Great to start my morning with this little bit of catty humor. Carry on. The ideas are great: kill him with headlines that hit his buttons about size and watch as he stunned, he stumbles off the stage, the path to the helicopter, the lectern in the "press room." Oh, never mind about that last one. Onward, Gail!
4
@Katalina
From where he sits there is no such thing as bad Press
What a sad day it is when we have to employ little tricks to make ourselves think it’s okay that this utterly unqualified man is holding the entire world hostage to his malignant narcissism—and we are forced to find ways to get through the remaining months before he is booted out, multiply prosecuted, and (please God) locked up for the rest of his life.
5
good. thank you.
1
I've always said, the best way to take Trump out is through his ego. Anyone who laughs at him, makes fun of his abilities as a business man, or emasculates him in anyway would absolutely drive him crazy.
Looking back (and why I will never vote for Kirsten Gillibrand), the only elected Democrat who could have easily beaten Trump was Al Franken. As a very accomplished comedienne and extremely intelligent man, he would have known exactly how to get under his skin without breaking a sweat. Too bad we ran him off.
956
@Janet
Agreed on both Franken & Gillibrand. If the very unlikely event she gets the nod I'll be writing in my wife for the general.
I doubt Franken will ever run for public office again after the way he was treated, he doesn't need it.
74
@Janet
Al Franken is Alice Franken?
18
@Janet
I agree with you on both Al Franken and Gillibrand.
Al Franken for President. I would love to see a women in the White House other than the first lady. On the other hand, Al Franken would make a tremendous president.
61
Trump is a textbook example of the self aggrandizement and insecurity of narcissistic personality disorder. He needs to pretend he is very tough, but in fact he is motivated by his overwhelming fears. He debases and insults women because like other misogynists he is terrified of women, especially strong women. He demeans minorities and immigrants because like other white supremacists he needs to denigrate "others" because he can't face his own inferiority. He denigrates all who challenge his ridiculous claims to avoid acknowledging that instead of being a "very stable genius" he is ignorant and under-educated. He refuses to release his tax returns because he isn't actually nearly as wealthy as he pretends to be, and has weakened the Endangered Species Act because animals scare him. No one is more dangerous than such a pathetic excuse for a human being in a position of power.
7
So, can we get beyond the headline? No, I want to stop there first. Why do the New York Times and a former editorial page editor need to front an article with a 'how to' on torturing anybody, and especially the President of the United States?
And then, after a semi-funny dissertation on how the New York Times wants to poke unmerciful fun at Trump's claim on drawing large crowds to his rallies, Ms. Collins closes with,
"Not responsible journalism. But maybe it’d shock him into reality. Or at least leave him curled up in bed, sucking his thumb while somebody else ran the government."
I guess that Ms. Collins does not recognize either the President's humor, his efforts to poke at the stuffed shirts in the media who tut-tut his speeches, or his ability to reach out and interact with those who attend.
Still, I will agree with Ms. Collins' conclusion. She is certainly not in the least respectful of the office. Not in the least responsible journalism or opinion writing. She draws a vivid picture of everything wrong with our media and our opinion providers.
If anything demonstrates what’s deeply wrong with Trump and Trumpists, it’s their ideas about what’s funny. The rest of us got over these kinds of jokes around what, sixth grade?
5
Yes, this is one way to poke holes at Trump. Want a better way? Power people detest humiliation especially at the hands of someone with more power. Watch Obama take Trump down to size:
https://youtu.be/HHckZCxdRkA
2
...and this is the best that the 'flagship of the liberal media' NYT can do
Noted.
Full disclosure and transparency is the best way to torture this clown. Hang all the skeletons in his closet out to dry and watch him whine and attack like a little baby.
4
He’s a narcissist. It’s easy to get their goats: ignore him. Don’t hangout with him. Don’t take his calls. It’s too bad he’s the President because we can’t do that.
Gail, great article! Thumb sucker indeed. Why can't we just take away his sucker--his Twitter account. Can't Twitter do that in a milisecond based on his racist remarks without even getting into the rest of his idiocy? That would stop all this ranting non sense. What would replace THAT megaphone? Nothing.
2
Quite frankly, I would settle for the curse of a week of strep throat and a broken index finger.
Believe me.
2
Keep him off the front page. See what happens.
Just turn your backs on the child-boy
1
I don't know how to torture Trumpsky, but it's easy to poke a stick at his cult members: Just go on social media sites and say that their leader was born in Russia, than demand to see his birth certificate. Wow, does that make them angry!
How ironic, eh?
3
It is incredibly irresponsible of the NYT to publish a piece trivializing torture, especially when the commander in chief has publicly stated his support for torture.
1
@Megan
I don't think ragging someone really counts as torture, no matter how painful it might be to their ego.
“The Emporer Has No Clothes” , Dear Media; I fixed your headlines for you. Imagine if you covered Trump in absolutely truthful terms; “Trump Lies Again About X” “Beto’s Crowd Bigger than Trump by 5,000” “Trump’s Disgusting Thumbs Up Pose with Baby, Victim Refuse Him” Instead the Media prints what he says with a slack jaw, frequently OMITING or burying the truth at the bottom. Forget “ignoring Trump” as so many suggest, why not print the actual truth? Media - listen - you made Trump and only you can can unmake him. Stop taking Barr at his synopsis or Trump “insert outrageous lie here” - headline the truth and not the dumb lie.
3
The TRUTH on virtually any subject not just crowd sizes should harm Trump in the American psyche but alas Americans loves a clown. This clown is a pathological liar, rife with Narcissistic Personality Disorder, a white supremacy racist bigot, a horrible negotiator or businessman and still it is possible our great nation prior to his election with Russian help could re-elect the 🤡 clown. It’s up to us the American voters to vote for facts over lies and morals over corruption I pray we do so.
4
Trump loves the attention. The only things that drive him nuts are: 1) Being ignored and (2 Being the butt of clever humor. Do remember the correspondents' dinner when Barack Obama poked fun and Donnie seethed.
5
If we want to torture him, I don't think disparaging his appearance should be beneath us. He is vain about practically everything.
Otherwise, he wouldn't lie about his grades (nor would he have his lawyers threaten to sue his alma mater if they released them), or his weight (nor have his doctor, the much-lamented but now-forgotten admiral Ronny Jackson, lie about that).
As for his hair - have we forgotten he wouldn't go to honor the soldiers buried at Belleau Wood because it was raining (!), and his hair (of the Tresemmé Tres Two hair spray) might get wet!
No, making fun of his appearance shouldn't be beneath us. Not after he has called Stormy Daniels 'horseface' and disparaged the looks of both Carly Fiorina (an erstwhile rival, but still beyond the pale) Heidi Cruz (a rival's wife, and therefore even more uncalled-for).
3
Way to go Gail.
They all ignored him, he slithered back to his lair.
The end.
1
Maybe the next time Trump brings up the February crowds he had, and Beto had, at El Paso we should demand that he answer: Why hasn't your re-election campaign paid the city of El Paso for the more than $500,000 it spent in security costs for YOUR rally there?
Just two attendees at last weekend's Ross fundraiser for Trump's campaign (at $250,00 per person) would have reimbursed El Paso. But Trump's campaign is doing a classic Trump trick: Stiff your suppliers and subcontractors.
Imagine: Trump stiffing El Paso for providing security for him.
6
Do any records of telegrams from those days exist? That would have been a likely means of communication.
I can think of another way to torture Trump: ignore his more bombastic statements whether he says them, tweets them, or finds another way to express himself. He thrives on the coverage. If he didn't get it and the attention was diverted to other, far more pressing issues than his latest lies, and it targeted the GOPs derelictions of duty to the country, two things might occur: the GOP might behave like adults and start to govern and Trump might have to do some real work.
He might be donating his check to charity but, in this reader's opinion, he shouldn't be getting a cent. He's not governing. Nor is Mitch McConnell. In fact, Sir Elton John would do a better job governing than either of them. So maybe we should bring Sir Elton in and see if he can run the show.
3
We need to start pointing out that Mitch McConnell is the true power and we need to point it out over and over again.
5
He is nowhere near as rich as he thinks or says he is. Not even a billionaire. Sad.
4
To whom it may matter: Psychological torture is torture. All over the world there are people thinking up, ordering, arranging, and inflicting torture on victims - physical and psychological. Where there a mythological devil it would psychopathologically delight more in the corruption of the inflictors, the directors, the enablers, and the passive observers. The target might be incidental, ignorant of information, or innocent. There is no supernatural devil, but there is sadistic cruelty coded somewhere in the DNA of animals that have survived by killing. Civilization will have succeeded when the word itself is archaic.
@JVM
Then we have been victims of torture since he became president. It should be no surprise that we might turn on him.
1
I'm sure that a 'crowd-size shaming' of one of trump's taxpayer-paid campaign rallies 'styled' as official WH business would be 'felt' by him as "torture" … but I'd rather see trump 'get his' at the end of a water-board.
2
Clearly, Trump constantly brags about large crowds for the same reason many men feel the need to buy Hummers or Smith & Wesson handguns - he's compensating.
3
You torture Trump by ignoring him. Turn your back on the parade; he's the void.
11-03-20 - A mere 446 days away.
@BillNeedle I fear for what actions he’d take if he is ignored.
1
That fear is what he and all other bullies count on.
How about the so-called progressive media put their money where their big flapping mouths are by refusing to EVER use the title "President" when referring to the current occupant of the Oval office?
2
or we could just tell him he'll never be as good as Obama.
3
With Trump, calling anything of his "small" gets under his skin.
1
"President frightens orphan baby and two dozen by-standers in El Paso visit" might be a good entry as well.
4
At every turn we must remind Trump that Hillary received 3 million more votes. Remember before election day when Trump railed at the electoral college as rigged and then praised it after he won? He cannot tolerate that he did not win both the electoral and popular election. The other way to torture Trump is to make sure the election of 2020 isn't tampered with by his buddy Putin.
3
I am English. What upsets me about all the comments, amusing as they are - and this applies equally to the mess in Great Britain - is the tone of defeated helplessness that pervades every one. Being intelligent, right-minded, amusing: all this seems like mere muttering in a corner, well out of the way of doing anything effective. I too am tucked away there with the crowds, and it distresses me.
8
“While someone else ran the government?” Be careful what you wish for, Gail. Could be Stephen Miller.
5
My suggestion is this: If you want to torture Trump, resisters should buy tickets en masse to Trump's rallies and boo him repeatedly. He is accustomed to having the equivalent of sheep attend these self promotional ego gratification rallies. He will freak if a large crowd boos him repeatedly. Maybe they could even chant "Impeach!"
6
Love you, Gail! You're way up there with Trevor Noah.
4
Trump loves to denigrate by using nick names.
His has been and always will be "Putin's Puppet". It not only made him repeatedly mumble "No puppet-- No puppet", during the debate with Clinton, it is provably true.
8
Nice try Gail with the suggested headlines about crowd size, or the lack thereof, but D.T. (Delusional Teflon) would quickly brush off all such headlines as fake news.
5
Trump has been giving clues of his deepest insecurities from day 1:
1. "They are laughing at us"
2. "Weak"
3. "Loser"
4. Infantalizing name-calling.
Hit him with those same things! So far only Biden has done it, calling him "low energy". Trump is so weak and pathetic that it's frustrating to see Dems' uncool, grandma approach to jabbing. Trump would be in fetal position after two minutes with a group of savvy Hispanic or African American men who know how to dismantle psychologically a fake persona.
5
The worst torture for Trump is to ignore him. Unfortunately the NYT and the rest of the media are constitutionally immune to this strategy.
6
As long as he is on camera and there is a microphone in front of his pursed lips he doesn’t care what reality is he will create what ever reality he wants.. if you want to torture him, stop putting his bloated face on the screens and stop broadcasting what comes out of him mouth.
6
@Bruce Pippin Here! Here!!
I believe that many in the crowd at Trump’s rallies are there to watch the freak put on his show.
I think they are there to see the yellow hair combed like a duck’s bill. They are there to see his little hands and watch his shoulders swish from side to side. They are there hoping to hear the next most outrageous statement that will come out of his mouth which moves like a guppy’s capturing its food.
I have heard that the campaign buses in the truly converted from afar to make sure that he has his large crowd.
I must confess that when he was in my area I secured tickets to The Trump Freak Show. Then I could say I saw it like I saw Hamilton. Ultimately I was unable to bring myself to go knowing I wouldn’t be able to stand the stench.
However, I could see Hamilton over and over for its shear brilliance!”
4
If you want to torture him, ask him 'does your inability to grow facial hair make you feel like less of a man?' That question would truly crush him IMHO.
5
I have an idea .... depict, over and over again, Trump wearing a T-shirt that says - Obama 2020, 4 more years...
5
A REAL torture....Fred Trump lamented that his son Doanld was his greatest disappointment!
6
I want my tax dollars back, I didn't pay them to facilitate the campaign travels of this dolt.
5
Trump is difficult to attack because he appears to hold no convictions that do not in some way directly serve or act in defense of his ego.
If I can conceive of our president pro tem holding any practical philosophy at all -- it's to appear as candid or as reckless as possible, to seem to reveal every private thought and impulse, so as to better hide his true motives.
His own verbal attack style is somewhat passive aggressive, relying heavily on the ironic 'praeterito' construction (saying something insulting about someone by saying that he won't say something insulting about someone) and has been for years. That style came across as snarky during his 90s or 00s interviews with Stern. As president, it comes across very differently: rude, yes, but also weaselly.
One thing is for sure, though. He doesn't like to feel ignored or forgotten. I'm longing for the day when we can finally ignore him for good. And I'm also worried that, if he does not perform well in 2020, and is not reelected, that he (and, by extension, his supporters) will cry foul and refuse to stand down.
6
Trump is difficult to attack because he appears to hold no convictions that do not in some way directly serve or act in defense of his ego.
If I can conceive of our president pro tem holding practical philosophy at all -- it's to appear as candid or as reckless as possible, to seem to reveal every private thought and impulse, so as to better hide his true motives.
His own verbal attack style tends is somewhat passive aggressive, relying heavily on the ironic 'praeterito' construction (saying something insulting about someone by saying that he won't say something insulting about someone) and has been for years. That brash style came across as snarky during his 90s or 00s interviews with Stern. As president, it comes across very differently: rude, yes, but also weaselly.
One thing is for sure, though. He doesn't like to feel ignored or forgotten. I'm longing for the day when we can finally ignore him for good. And I'm also worried that, if he does not perform well in 2020, and is not reelected, that he (and, by extension, his supporters) will cry foul and refuse to stand down.
What a great idea! I would love to see those headlines.
4
Trump un enthusiastically asks the people to unite against white supremacy and hate. The problem is he is lying. Our founding documents hold truths, "that all men are created equal," we can unite around truths. We cannot unite around lies. That is why Trump will never unite our country. Blue wave 2020 !
3
I don't know. It seems like responsible journalism to me. Pointing out his outright lies is very responsible. Don't let him get away with it.
I also think when the Democrats rally, we should have them discuss Mueller's findings and start a chant of Lock Him Up. that would really get to him!
3
Thank you Gail, I think being catty at this point might be all we have left! That being said your opinion is spot on. The Destroyer in Chief has spent far too long throwing himself all over the American people. Try as we might ignoring him is impossible. I hope the editor sees this and takes your suggestion seriously.
4
“...while someone else runs the government”. Like Pence?
1
To get to the President psychologically, you have to to hit him where he lives. Wave a magic wand and turn him into a double bogie ball player. That will take the wind out of his sails.
1
If we want to see fair and fact filled headlines and front pages a good start would be this headline on the front page:
"The so called president lied again today."
And nothing else.
How about the media just find one reporter and one camera person and use them as a media pool for his appearances.
Let US be done with 24/7 coverage of this buffoon and just put out the barest minimum of coverage, except for his lies.
Point them out daily.
Let US stop pretending that this so called man is anyway normal.
Let US stop pretending that he is actually a president and maybe eventually he will become so bored he will go away.
Or We the People could insist he is impeached.
2
Nothing is going to shock this narcissist into reality. He will go to the grave, bankrupt, claiming he is the richest man on earth.
It is responsible journalism to report disappointingly small crowds of white supremacists at his rallies. It is not responsible journalism to report is lying tweets nor republican party agreement with them in a positive light.
4
Persuade Michelle Obama to run for president. Getting two Obamas in the White House? That should do it.
6
Gail, you are on to something. After having to hear this bozo for over 3 years, it is clear that he cares about very few things, but crowd size and tv ratings are 2 of them.
5
The way to send him round the bend? Have a woman, preferably Rosie O'Donnell, play him on SNL.
6
@dd Preferaly Leslie Jones, I think.
2
A couple of thoughts. Did you ever think that since Commander Bone Spur often wears a MAGA hat (white of course, like the Lone Ranger) so no one can see his hair, that perhaps all the MAGA wearers in his crowd are bald, like he is? I know, stupid and silly. I think the more we can make fun of him, loudly, the better. He hates to be laughed at because he knows the truth about himself; he's a stupid man, with little hands, (and a small you-know-what), fake hair to cover his BALD head, with much smaller crowds than President Obama had. Basically when you compare him to anyone else what you see is a fake-fox-made actor trying to play a president and doing it badly.
2
Who's Trump?
3
Here’s some crowd size numbers i saw this morning
A quarter million people have signed a petition to rename 5th ave out front of trump tower in NY Barack H Obama Avenue
9
Better yet, ignore him. Stop writing meaningless articles about him.
Gail always makes me at least smile, if not laugh out loud.
Yes, the media must begin to tell the truth about this moron.
Remember, it was the media taking him seriously that helped get him elected.
1
Trump's crowds are very small and kind of pathetic.
Nothing at all like Hitler's crowds.
Ever see one of Hitler's rallies? Now that guy drew big crowds.
Trump? Not at all.
It's sad how tiny and mediocre Trump's rallies are.
3
Gail - despite the tongue-in-cheek nature of this piece, I couldn’t agree with you more. The best way to get under his skin is to talk about his FAKE wealth, SMALL crowd size and to re-brand him as WEAK, unintelligent and incompetent. The ‘isn’t he a pig and a danger to the presidency’ thing he wears like a badge of honor.
Stop elevating him. He is a pathetic CLOWN.
4
So that's the big idea? Ignore him?
Okay, NYT - you first.
Make curled in bed sucking his twitter account.
1
Beelzebub in orange hair
who claims to be a billionaire
forever spouting hottest air
a simple rat in Fox underwear
ensuring spectacle everywhere
that crushes hope unto despair
and silent masses kneel in prayer
to end this too long nightmare
for fortune smiles upon the fair
that, for a better future, have a care
for sneetches living anywhere
regardless of the skin they wear
or what religion they declare
or for whom they choose a life to share
4
What a sick headline. I'm losing a lot of faith in the judgment of editors at the Times.
1
I have often said that he would dry up like a husk and blow away, the moment he realized no one was paying attention any longer.
May it be so!
1
This columnist says hitting Trump where it hurts, criticizing his obsession with pulling in an audience isn't responsible journalism. In Trumpland America showcasing the President's ego mania is not only exercising a responsibility of participatory democracy but demanded by the condition this country now finds itself in. One of national crisis. Get real America! We have a severely dysfunctional President fueled by an unrelenting arrogance that could do nothing less than crash this country.
328
@Rose Uh, it's called sarcasm. (Collins sometimes does that.)
18
@Rose 1. Trump stole your sense of humor.
2. Whadaya mean "could" crash the country? He HAS crashed the country.
37
@Rose
Did you miss the part where she said responsible reporters have to be fair but that this was the Opinion section, "So let's be catty."
9
I could be wrong but i suspect another comparison between the two events in the Pittsburgh area are the folks who came to see Trevor Noah were paying, unlike the employees at the plastics plant.
1
Someone else already IS running the government. The real question is who...
5
How much mental energy does this man and his petty upsets consume every day? It is entertaining and somewhat satisfying to consider the perfect retort, but ultimately we all have to find a way to stay with the reality, the issues, and the things we can control. What will it take for this nightmare to be over? Our earth is dying. Children are in cages. The gun victim counts are skyrocketing. When will the government again work for the people who pay for it? I feel so tired.
8
The media has been thumping presidents and candidates since I’ve been an adult. The difference is that Trump, thumps right back and his base loves it. Presidents are supposed to take it, Trump doesn’t. Plus, he thumps even when unprovoked, starting fights with anyone and everyone out of the blue, remember Gold Star Families? The NYT recently talked about the media jumping on Biden’s gaffs which are inconsequential compared to Trumps. Most of any given week, Trump endures an amount of valid criticism that would have sunk previous administrations. “Presidential time,” the amount he golfs, his refusal to read anything, his constant misspellings, his jabs at what were previous sacred cows, sniping at people out of the blue. Even a story suggesting that a president used an offensive nickname for a political opponent in private would have been devastating, and Trump uses them openly on Twitter. Any politician caught telling a lie, just one of dozens that Trump can issue in a single “speech” or on Twitter would be out on rails.
The game has radically changed, pretense and decorum has been forgotten the Deplorables can’t get enough of him. Every time someone criticizes his spelling, or him misspeaking someone or some place’s name his base’s (somewhat deserving) hatred of intellectual elites grows. So, what is left? Real issues & facts.
Surely someone can start actually counting the crowds accurately?
2
Go Gail, what a lovely idea and I too think it will work.
1
Departing from our "fun" for a moment, it must be said that foreign leaders including adversaries have long ago figured out how to manipulate our 45th president. Usually we see evidence of this in personal flattery that begets substantive alterations of policy or diplomacy. And you can bet that they also know how to get under his skin, whether it is clandestine threats to expose some compromising material or something as benign as jabbing at his ego, whether it's the size of his crowds or his waistline or his hands or his tax payments.
The irony is that such an easily manipulated narcissist seems able to manipulate our attention with such ease. What does that say about our press and about consumers of the news? Who is torturing whom?
4
The responsible thing for the media to do would be to treat his self-serving comments differently than policy remarks or actions.
Leave "above the fold" for substantive remarks on actions or policies. Drop everything else (twitter rants, crowd size remarks, insults) to the deepest recesses of the paper or the website...and report them derisively.
Nothing bothers Mr. Trump more than to be ignored or dismissed as under-performing. Ask his father. [sic]
5
Great piece. However, the best way to get Trump's goat is to laugh at him. Long and hard.
4
Yes. Satire has always been the weapon that was underused. And one odd thing in the good parts of the Fourth Estate is the reluctance - nay self-enforced prohibition - to use the word flip-flop. Euphemisms abound: walked back, changed direction, 'blinked' in an article yesterday about the China tariffs, but the flip-flop is the right word. He is the Flip-Flop King and perhaps Ms. Collins can convince the Times to calculate the Flip-Flop count to date and then update it on a daily basis. By now the count must be in the thousands, starting from his entry into the primaries for 2016. Counting flip-flops is better than counting lies. Saying 'you lie' is a statement of powerless, saying 'you flip-flop' is the opposite. It will make him - and perhaps even his Fox defenders - squirm indefinitely. He won't be able to ignore it. And even better, it will be a constant reminder that as president he is a fish out of water. He is a sole without a soul.
1
He already has other people ‘running’ the government, all the lobbyists in his cabinet.
Love your columns and agree with you just ignore him!
4
It would be greater torture by far to eliminate him from any and all headlines such as the one above this article.
The Dem nominee should simply pretend he is not there on the debate stage: debate the policies, talk about the looming recession, discuss how much better things could be, but do not mention his name, even if he's leering from 10 feet away.
If he's not the center of attention, he might as well not exist. Let's all get his name out of our mouths.
2
It's gotten that bad Gail that you've resorted to tormenting Trump from trying to beat him at the polls? The guy has seen and heard it all and it hasn't slowed him down one iota. In fact I believe it is the fodder which propels him forward. Good job!
1
Just the other day I was daydreaming about a total news blackout on Trump; no coverage of anything he does, at all. His puerile rants aren't worth the attention, and we could all focus on lowering our stress levels and voting him out of office.
2
Gail you are right on the money with this insight into Trump's personality and psychological dynamics. You are hitting him where he lives. Our traditional notions of good or responsible journalism have to be updated to be able to address the things that really matter with our current president.
You are exactly right about how shallow, superficial, and self-centered he is. He wants nothing more than to be popular, to be adored and admired. As you said, “Trump can’t bear suggestions that he’s not a crowd megamagnet”. This is psychologically 100% accurate. It is unbearable for Trump not to wanted. It has all the earmarks of psychological trauma and damage. He literally cannot stand the thought, it’s too painful for him.
But he is not only a malignant narcissist he is also a clever sociopath so he knows how to manipulate people. And he uses an important truth about the human psyche in his attempts to manipulate others. As the existentialist literary critic and philosopher has said, “Desire is born in the imitation of Desire”. Trump applies the formula all the time, “these other people all want me and want to see me and love me, so you should too”. He keeps telling us lots of others want him, he gets huge crowds, etc. -- a lie he tells in hopes that people will believe his lie and then desire him in the same way these mythical others do.
1
The only way to attack Trump is why a man in a town meeting did in Arizona last week about two pro-Trump activists : laugh.
Each times he opens his mouth, burst from out of laughter.
Imagine the entire Congress laughing as soon as he open his mouth …
Imagine UNO rolling on the floor just as the man appears …
Why ? There is only one thing a paranoid has no clue about is laugh.
The rest, he knows by instinct even when he has no knowledge about the issue being discussed, he knows he'll get out of it.
Laughter, no.
2
Wonder how much it would cost to fly a plane with a big, beautiful, fluttering banner (there would be no bigger banner.. it would be so beautiful) that said, “He lost by 2.9 million votes” wherever Trump holds his rallies? It would be worth every penny we pay for it.
2
Surely Nancy Pelosi can make certain that Trump pays for his own campaign rallies and is not able to charge their expense to the American taxpayer.
1
I vote for an embargo on talkjng about Trump at all. If the White House has an official statement, cover it. Otherwise ignore Trump. I am sick of him and hearing about him.
4
It would be much more responsible journalism to report, consistently, the actual size of the crowds he draws, than to simply slide over it and let Trump do his own reporting. But unfortunately journalists are overcompensating for the contempt they rightfully feel for his lies thus once again they hand Trump the narrative.
One more thing never mentioned or even alluded to: we are a country of over three hundred MILLION people. Even if Trump drew a crowd of 20,000 to one of his taxpayer subsidized campaign rallys, a big if, that crowd doesn't come close to representing mass opinion. 20,000 (again an unlikely high number for Trump to attract) out of over three hundred million is a drop in the bucket -- so why does the media not point out that fact. It needs to be pointed out many times -- Trump knows the value of repetition; that's why he repeats his lies over and over again. Facts need repetition also. Get on it journalists!
1
I'd like to point out that the crowds for Elton John and Trevor Noah were paying to attend. How big would Trumps crowds be if his supporters had to pay $100 plus for tickets? "400 people in a parking lot"?
I'm still waiting for him to call somebody stupid and for them to call him out saying, " I may not be very smart, but at least I'M smart enough to know I shouldn't be president."
2
I think the best way to torture Trump is to not talk about him at all. No posts, no interviews, "no attention should be paid to that man behind the curtain." That would derail him.
Or just lock him up.
1
I think Gail's idea---to humiliate and expose Trump---is a very useful strategy.
Name calling is very important to he and his devotees because this is the way they think. They are amazingly immature and while Dems generally may want to avoid going that low, these kind of taunts are about the only thing the trump-mind pays attention to.
Forcing Trump into a defensive posture is useful because of his tendency to compound his lies as he attempts to protect himself. But for this to work you have to get it on Fo-Fox News.
I think this is a valid and useful strategy, regardless how humorously the astute and skillful Gail expresses it in her column. She may be my favorite Times columnist.
1
Here's an idea that would really drive him nuts and might even get the White House staff to change their tune on simply spitting out lies.
The major media outlets across the country stop reporting on Trump unless it really is news. Send reporters. Send cameras. But if he's just spitting out lies, don't report it. A week into it, things might change.
How much better would the stock market act if no one knew he was going to impose tariffs one day and not the next.
The Penn event is a perfect example. Go there. He uses it as a campaign speech so ignore it and move on. No one need know he's spitting lies again. That's not new as in the word "news."
And just think how much better the stock market act if no one knew he was going to impose tariffs one day and not the next.
1
Nice Piece Gail. Although, I think we need to stop focusing on how to Torture Trump. Torture isn't the answer, it is a loosing fight and a waste of time. Torture is fuel in Trump's veins. Trump is a new form of a highly evolved bully and since he started campaigning, NO ONE has been able to counter punch. It seems to me, those who oppose him have tried every trick in the bag. Additionally, there are factions in the democratic ranks. And, so Trump continues to be a bulldozer. Trump employs a unique strategy, he uses the "Victim Mindset" as a shield and a "Gunslinger" attitude as his weapon. This is hard to counter, and I wish I had a short term solution. My question is WHO and WHERE are the Great Leaders that are going to rise up, start collaborating, and take the Opposition to the next step in political evolution?
1
"How to Torture Trump"?
That easy, just keep telling the truth.
2
Truth be told, the only way Trump can draw large crowds is by arranging a deal with an employer to force employees' attendance at a Trump rally under penalties of anything ranging from lost overtime pay to dismissal for not attending. In other words, Trump has to have an captive audience to draw crowds at his rallies because most people in their right minds will never voluntarily attend his hate rallies.
3
Thank you Gail, for your brilliant idea. The spin masters of the GOP are eager to incorporate your suggestion as a challenge to the growing base of trump supports. They have added a point -in the next rally the crowds will be chanting " go Gail go we are here as your bail".
3
I strongly suggest that the headline be changed from "torture" to "torment," the latter suggesting purely emotional discomfort, the former physical. There are too many victims of torture for me to laugh at this use of the word.
Words matter.
4
Not the best use of the editorial column.
However, now that we're discussing it, the very best way to torture Drumpf is for the free press to ignore him completely.
Rather than repeatedly report his every utterance as "breaking news", cover the issues that really matter.
I doubt this will happen, because the free press depends on the Drumpf drama for entertainment and viewership/readership.
Sadly symbiotic and complicit.
7
Agreed. The title of the column is absolutely the wrong way to oppose Mr. Trump.
2
Trump is one of those who perceive *any* publicity to be good publicity. So the very best thing one could do to bother him is to simply ignore him.
8
These are great ideas. A silent protest is another idea. Have a large contingent attend one of his events but rather than face him, stand and turn their backs. He would have a crowd but it would be an obvious show of non-support.
6
RIGHT ON
Even better than taunting Trump via his narcissism would be suggesting how duped his followers ("Trumpists") are to believe he is really helping them.
As the economy weakens, this will become easier, as his claims for the coal industry, manufacturing, farming, and employment become more visibly and promotably false.
Making Trump embarrassed is new first down: Making Trumpists embarrassed at being duped is the ultimate field goal.
8
Trump's biggest crowd will be the millions who rejoice at his departure
I've already picked out the street I'll be dancing on and the song I'll dance to.
14
Thank you, Gail, for your wonderful columns. These times would be even darker without your voice!
7
The bizarre thing is, where does a person of hate get the idea that they are a person to be loved?
A person of hate only draws people of hate to themselves.
Even though his crowdsize is never as big as he says it is, it is still scary that he can draw what he does draw. It doesn't bode well for our country that such hate is on display at all, that so much rot is so evident.
8
Can't blame the surviving victims shot up with assault weapon ammo and healing in the hospital for not wanting to see trump.
7
Like in the case of the tantrum throwing two year old, our mental health would benefit from ignoring the screaming toddler that is Trump. Give him a perpetual time out.
5
The best way to torture Trump is to vote him out of office in 2020 in larger numbers. Nothing says rejection like being so unpopular you lose the popular vote and the electoral college as well. There could be no spin, no lies, no Fox News readers bending themselves into pretzels explaining the outcome. Totally reject Trump and remove him from office. Please God let that happen.
11
Brilliant! Thank you very much for this incredible gift, Gail! Keeping me sane! Love ya’.
6
Trump supporters are all hurt about this Opinion piece. It isn’t in the news section. Learn the difference.
3
Gail: Your columns are always a joy reading, but may I add something else? If the news media, including the NYTimes, would at least for a week, relegate all Trump Headlines to the back pages, it would make him furious. He would go even crazier. Times readers would love to see a front page without any mention of the "name" Trump, at least for a week, if not forever. I think it is possible to do this while allowing for the integrity of the news media.
8
Excellent idea. Get the media to down size his crowds, not cover them or diss them. That should get his goat.
2
Another unhinged opinion piece from Gail Collins. One can only assume that she'll be in sack cloth and ash on election night next year.
3
@George
Yes George. Trump did have the largest crowd. PERIOD.
1
Just send him to North Korea to meet Kim Jong Un and leave him there till a trade deal is reached.
4
What a complete waste of ink. Have we really reduced ourselves to this elementary school mentality. The Times should be ashamed of even printing this tripe. Gail Collins your distain for our President shines through. Appreciate how hard you had to work to become so insignificant. I also appreciate how you cover your hatred and divisiveness with comical satire. Gail, now go to your room without supper...
1
So don’t read it. I love Gail!
1
It’d be a waste of electrons, actually, it’s spelled, “disdain,” and it’s fall-down funny to see a Trumpist whinge about grade-school behavior.
Oh, well. Pretending to be somebody’s annoyed dad is a step up from the usual threats.
1
@Eddie That's rich; a trump supporter railing about an "elementary school mentality". It must be difficult to navigate the day denying the truth of trump's mental state. A man who makes up childish nicknames for his detractors and only cares about his "ratings" and crowd size. I'm sure you were moved to tears by his heartfelt thumbs up as melania (with a smile) held the newly orphaned baby from the El Paso shooting which was inspired by his hateful, racist rhetoric. Project much?
1
Also., talk about how stupid he is
4
Well, this editorial certainly comprises a deficient idea with feeble supporting argumentation.
2
"Not responsible journalism. But maybe it’d shock him into reality. Or at least leave him curled up in bed, sucking his thumb while somebody else ran the government."
Nice thought, Gail. But you can't shock a brain-dead moron!
5
A possible antidote: round up thousands of antiTrump folks to attend his rallies. Have them all turn their backs the moment he starts to speak. Not a sound.
He doesn't have any skills for dealing with being ignored; it clearly triggers his deepest fears of being unloved. He's be so right.
@ ShunningTrump
8
The only problem with this is Trump’s people make sure that only his supporters are allowed into the rallies.
1
Great idea, but the media will never participate. Heck, they can't go one single day without something about 45 and what he said or did smack dab on the front page. This is what he lives and breathes for -- attention. Stop giving it to him.
2
It's a great idea, and here's one that's even better: what if all media outlets refrained from mentioning him for a day-- or even a week? Fill the airwaves and papers with anyone -- or anything else -- but no Trump. If someone mentions Trump, bleep it out.
4
Is this what passes for journalism these days? A well-written piece of nothing?
1
She is an opinion writer not a correspondent.
2
Love the last paragraph...However I suspect more truth is Trump lying in bed, sucking his thumb, tuned to Fox and Friends to get his ideas for the next executive order while the acting chiefs of all the departments actually run the government (into the ground.)
1
perhaps also get him with book sales info: how have his books fared compared with Michelle Obama's Becoming? That should get him steaming for a while...
4
"Or at least leave him curled up in bed, sucking his thumb while somebody else ran the government."
And we aren't doing this ... why?
3
Thwart Trump at his own game.
Get thousands of peoplewho oppose Trump, for any reason.
Organize them to attend Trump rallies or open appearances.
Have them all - silently - turn their backs the moment he comes onstage.
Nice photo/video opportunity; Quiet dignity and cooperation can suck the air out of his balloon.
He can't take rejection . . . .
2
The ultimate in responsible journalism might be to just ignore Trump.
You folks might begin by NOT publishing every inane tweet from the knucklehead.
On any given day the Trump News is that he has screwed up something somewhere in the world. It's as predictable as the Sun rising in the East.
The daily litany of Trump's inanities is tiresome.
You, on the other hand, Ms Collins are a ray of sunshine. Thanks.
3
How about if for every event where he brags about the size of his, um, crowd, we each make a financial contribution, in an affordable amount, to something we know will bother him, like Planned Parenthood, or an immigrants rights cause, or to the effort to raise the money necessary to pay off the fines of Florida citizens who have done their time and need only pay off those fines and costs in order to vote in the 2020 election?
8
Let's irritate him by starting up a GoFundMe page for putting up billboards everywhere with the insult of the week. We could start with D.C. and NYC. You know, things like "Which is smaller, his crowds or his hands?", etc.
11
The news media has the responsibility to report what President Trump states, but even more important, to identify and report that which is not the truth.
If Trump lies about his crowd size, the media must call him out for his lie and correct with the truth. Otherwise their journalistic reputation is on the line.
My only complaint is that they too often whitewash Trump's incessant and flagrant lying by referring to it as a false statement, a fabrication or an exaggeration.
They must call it what it is: A big fat lie.
It would be good to assign a number to it too.
Trump Lie # 10,785:
6
Waste of time and print space.
The most gut wrenching thing you could do to crazy Trump would be to ignore him. Instead the media universally gives him an endless supply of high octane fuel for his gravely wounded ego.
The result is the progressive intensifying of the Donald’s brazenness, grave dysfunction and rank incompetency.
Trump is the only POTUS in American history to serially put the nation in grave danger — with impunity no less.
4
Comic relief with a basis in truth. Thank you.
4
If every democratic politician, every journalist, every entertainer and Hollywood celebrity, every person he has ever fired or every contractor he has ever stiffed started tweeting nasty things about the president, he would have a meltdown of epic proportions trying to respond to every single slight. He is compelled to lash out every time he is criticized. It's an obession. Even if he wanted to restrain himself, he could not.
3
"How to Torture Trump
Who’s less popular than Elton John?"
On this subject, I liked what the Washington Post reported yesterday:
"130,000 people sign a petition to rename Fifth Ave. in front of Trump Tower ‘Obama Avenue"
Except today, the numbers have increased as with this:
"More than 250,000 people sign a petition to rename Fifth Ave. in front of Trump Tower ‘Obama Avenue’"
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/08/14/people-sign-petition-rename-fifth-ave-front-trump-tower-obama-avenue/
That would be an excellent move. Trump deserves a constant reminder of his lying, racist campaign against President Obama when he started the "birther movement" against Obama. Trump so richly deserves this reminder.
7
Well, an elephant corpse will draw more insects and bacteria than we can count. Perhaps Trump will find that impressive. The Republican Party should ponder where Trump is leading them.
6
Another punishment option:
Vote him out of office, try him for the various federal crimes he is alleged to have committed and incarcerate him.
Might be more agonizing than crowd size. Just sayin...
7
If only he had a dog and put it on the roof of his car to drive to Canada.
2
@Kate McLeod I'm Canadian and we have enough fertilizer, thank you.
2
If you attend the rallies, wear the hat, and vote for Trump- you are a racist, stealing from your children and selfish.
It is that simple. Call them who they are. We know who he is and who his policies benefit and who he hurts
Silence is complicity
Vote like your life depends on it
12
Anything to tweak his nose, I'm for it.
4
I would like a day where his name doesn't appear in the paper at all. Just refer to "the President."
5
All I want is one day without Trump. Let's demand a day without Trump. A day where he just plays gold and doesn't tweet. Just one Donny. Most Americans are bigly sick of you and there are Pools numbers to support that fact. Bigly sick of you. If you won't go away please just shut up for a day.
4
To those calling for the Press to ignore Trump, there are a few unavoidable questions...
1). There will always be enough sycophantic press on the Right to give him the ego strokes he needs. Do you really think Fox News would go along with this?
2). What truly evil things will he get up to if all the press, except the sycophants who will praise everything he does, do not talk about what he has done or is planning to do?
Better would be to keep him off the front page. Does he ever get to the second page of a newspaper? Create a new section called something like “Stupid Stuff from D.C.” and put all the news about him there, on page 5. Then, those of us that want to see what he is up to can look there and he will think he has been forgotten (or, even better, been ignored).
For even more fun, create phony bylines, like Max N. Correct, and develop satirical pieces about him with those bylines and add them to the “Stupid Stuff from D.C.” section. A disclaimer at the bottom (does he ever read all the way through anything?) should give the newspapers enough legal cover.
6
Trump has such thin skin, not much is needed to set him off. All that you have to do is call it like it is, and he gets bent out of shape.
You can tell his his weakness by his tweets and actions. He had him press secretary say his inaugural crowd was “biggest in the history of the country”, when it clearly was not. He calls himself a “stable genius” and “the most fit president’, and then doctors his own physical fitness report and has his physician sign it. He says he is the “least racist “ person at the same time he tweets racist rants. He calls himself the most handsome president, and quaffs his hair for the camera. It is truly pathetic.
Reality is trumps worst enemy, and when reality creeps into his carefully curated fantasy, his fragile ego can’t take it. All that has to be done to troll trump is has him face reality.
5
Imagine headlines for all major news organizations on November 4th 2020:
“YOU’RE FIRED”.
Poetic justice.
10
I have a better idea: ignore him altogether.
8
Torture Trump?Just ignore him.
5
This is sophomoric. Progressives and Liberals need to FOCUS on our agenda no the President.
2
So far we've heard Trump get a crowd to roar: "Build the wall," "Lock her up," and "Send her back."
How about if the Trump crowd began shouting "Loser!"
Hmmmm?
7
Imagine if you took the time to write about important things rather than allowing President Trump to live, rent free, atop your fine mind.
2
@Harry Johnson
It is hard not to think about the man who is doing so many harmful things to our democracy, to our environment, to the future of our children.
He is a blight on our country.
2
Refreshing.
2
If you really want to torture Trump and make him absolutely bonkers just stop talking about him. He cannot stand being ignored.
Now it would probably cause a great temper tantrum by the baby in chief and he would probably try to get attention in some spectacular way like letting off a nuke or invading Mexico (Iran, North Korea, u pick).
8
All any news outlet needs to do is publish a photo of the O'Rouke rally with the caption, "Trump lies again". I cannot understand the acceptance of the lies that Trunp spews.
If there is a case for irresponsible journalism, it would be a case study of the press' coverage of Trump. Today, in 2016, and back to his rise in the New York tabloids. There is a sick fascination with the man's self-centered, adolescent narcissism by the press and the American people.
We deserve better.
8
I dunno, the ways I'd like to torture Trump are so vicious and maiming that I'm sure I can't write about them here.
7
@ Dan Stachouse
Good on you. I admire your self-restraint.
3
@Alberta Knorr
Stick him in a room without mirrors.
1
Hi Gail,
You know how papers refer to “Minority Leader Chuck Schumer” - apropos of your column today, what if every time you referred to Trump you called him “Minority President Trump”? Since he lost the popular vote by three million votes, it’s based in fact and will certainly drive him crazy. I’m hoping you could make it a continuing campaign - like Mitt Romney tying his Irish setter to the top of his car.
6
I was kinda hoping he would be put in a carnival cage, and taken from town to town so we could gawk at him, poke him with a stick, throw things at him and call him bad names.
6
Another idea. There is a petition being circulated to rename 5th ave in nyc. But just for a number of blocks in front of the Trump Tower. The proposed name (drumroll please) Barack H Obama Avenue. If you google it you will find the petition. Signatures are growing steadily in number. Wouldn’t it be grand!
8
@lila glogowsky I signed.
President falls confused after second paragraph, claims osmosis provides him with all the facts, reading is old school.
Torture? Make him a student of classical studies. Make him read and study FACTS. This is a guy with a huge lizard brain. It operates on high octane of the con. His brain is skewed toward the streets. Disable his bag of tricks--no rallies, no tweets, no Fox News--he'd dissipate like a noxious vapor.
4
What youshould say is that the best way to rattle Trump is the old 'death by a thousand cuts' idea. Not just bad headlines, but multiple law suits, requests for his tax returns, in your face responses to his arrogance by women, blacks and HIspanics. Wear him down, wear him out!
4
The headline is beneath you and only exacerbates his mantra of the fake press.
There are far more effective methods for dealing with him:
1. Stop talking about him; report on the Executive Branch, naming only his minions.
3. Don’t print his tweets
3. Start referring to the economic downturn as the Trump Recession.
9
There isn't a shock available on any power grid strong enough to make red Don's hair stand on end . We don't want any massive power grid outage- or any large detonation resulting from the overheating of his hair care products- or any orange flames flickering from his orange tanning balm when it ignites.
Because any words, no matter how plain will serve to embarrass or shock this president*.You need raw voltage for any hope of success at shocking.
See, Trump is the guy that no one invited to the party. The one who thinks he's just the funniest guy ever- the one who is so certain every woman in the room just has the hots for- while really being the only one everybody else wishes would take the overly broad hints and leave.
6
Unless they concern government policy or actions stop reporting on trumps tweets. Please.
6
Democrats have neither the smarts nor the sense of fun to deal with Trump. The nightly tv comics riddle Trump with pinholes and the power Democrats are watching Lawrence Welk reruns. The power Democrats think the likes of Biden presents voters with a meaningful alternative to Trump. Trump will deflate that balloon well before election day.
2
The truth is responsible journalism. This is brilliant.
Thank you.
2
The other thing that could be done to get under his skin is to simply stop covering him in the news. We all know what he is about and unless there are real issues then try focusing on what is good or focus on other policy matters - even parade state programs that are shining and have merit to be rolled out nationally.
6
What about crowd-sourcing a buyout to just get him to leave, with enough money thrown in to : (1) pay off his debts and (2) hire all the lawyers he’ll need to keep him out of jail until age brings him to his end.
Just how low is his price, or his greed ? One suspects , not very high. 150 million Americans putting in a dollar each might do it. If not, go up to two, or even three; $7 each would collect over a billion for the Trump Exit Fund. See how cheap (per American) he really is ? For myself, I’d pay a lot to definitively see him gone.
6
It would help us realize we're not alone. Even in Trump Country their tired of hot empty air.
2
The vile hate that forms the core of Trump and his administration is far too serious an issue for this type of mild, shrug-it-all-off humor. In fact, it's this kind of humor---an amusing column by and for the elite unaffected by his hate-filled nihilistic "policy"---that helped get him elected in the first place.
1
So the solution seems obvious. If Sir Elton is up for it, all he has to do is book a concert everywhere Trump goes.
10
@Mike Just one, on the Mall in DC, might do it. It'll hold a lot of people and I think he could fill it up, unlike you know who
5
How about you-all (mainstream media) take a vacation from even mentioning Trump until Labor Day. This would vastly improve the quality of the couple weeks of Summer remaining for the rest-of-us-all!
10
I suspect a big dose of reality will be the best way to torture Trump, because he is basically wearing himself, us, and the world out in exhaustion.
Trump is the phony incompetent Wizard of Sleaze, frenetically and desperately fomenting hatred, spreading outrageous lies, and creating messes and chaos on a worldwide level. Why? Just to keep himself in power and receive the adulation he so neurotically craves.
Trump cannot sustain the charade, circus, and ill will at home and abroad he has created. Maybe it is already unraveling with the erratic stock market and Trump executive orders and policies that are failing like his Atlantic City casino projects.
But someone needs to point this out effectively, and this will be the big test for the Democratic candidates. Who can trump Trump.
I think one of the best weapons may be Kamala Harris, who knows how to prosecute. Then there is smart, middle-class Elizabeth Warren who can bury Trump when it comes to a coherent positive policy and sincerity. How about Buttigieg, who can outsmart Trump every day of the week with his freshness, originality, good judgment, balance, and gentle humor.
I suggest the Democratic candidates play a coordinated team sport against Trump's lone-wolf, negative and abysmal accomplishments as president.
Each Democratic candidate plays her/his assets as a coordinated position and contrast to Trump while campaigning. This would be torture & too many assaults for him to manage or to dominate.
5
It would be wonderful if all forms of media just flat out ignored him; don’t even mention his name. And instead focused on positive news. There is a lot of positive stuff happening that we should be hearing about instead of all the hateful, painful, fear inciting ‘news’ that media seems to feel compelled to report on. I vote for positive news coverage. Just stop reporting on all the hateful things that come out of Donald Trumps mouth. We could all then have a positive outlook for the day while we enjoy our morning beverage.
7
Actually, someone else is running the government: Steve Miller.
8
I love Gail Collins... read every column, have for years. But, it's becoming increasingly obvious that even she, with her prodigious talent for political humor and satire, is finding it difficult to find anything funny about what's going on.
Comedians and newspaper humorists have always salivated at the prospect of a new president, ripe with opportunity for poking fun and pointing out various foibles and missteps. And it started out this way with Trump... the hair, the orange spray tan, the bluster, bragging and exaggeration about everything. Remember when he got all bent out of shape over the size of his, ahem, hands?
But the fun is gone, and even Ms Collins' last several columns have had a hard time finding humorous traction in the muck that has become the Trump presidency. It's one thing to make fun of a president who calls himself a "stable genius", with the chance to point out what most stables are full of. It's something else to find anything funny about the President giving a thumbs up while his wife holds the orphaned son of a two people massacred in El Paso because of his anti-immigrant rhetoric. Was he actually showing his approval and support for the effort to slow down the immigrant influx??
Usually clowns are a great source of amusement. Not this one. I continue to love Ms Collins' writing, and will continue reading everything she puts out. I just wish her job hadn't become so very, very difficult.
6
Two thoughts:
1) Trump is impervious to the bad headlines. Oh, they get his dander up, but he always has someone else to blame, claims "fake news," then has a stable of sycophants to affirm his truth.
2) Somebody else is already running the government while he watches TV and tweets.
2
I for one, would like reporters to skip Trump's "press contacts" where he shouts over the sound of his helicopter.
These episodes are the opposite of informative; they're simply an opportunity for Trump propaganda (except when he denigrates an out-of-favor reporter).
The press should skip them except for a few photographers recording him waiting in vain for his audience.
4
This is all fun but... The real fun will be to vote him out in 2020. Please remember that if/when your 1st choice candidate isn't on the ballot. The party after the election will still be worth it. The icing on the cake will be flipping the Senate.
Not showing up to vote with resolve would mean 4 more years of Trump news. No thanks.
10
@MIPHIMO:
The most important point to remember is: Flipping the Senate will NOT be the icing on the cake.
Flipping the Senate is actually MORE important than voting out trump. If Democrats win the Senate, they can remove trump no matter whether he's re-elected or not.
In 2020, winning both the Senate and the House (all of Congress) is more important than anything else!
1
There used to be a saying in the South about Democrats. We were referred to as "Yellow Dog Democrats", meaning that we'd vote for a Democrat, any Democrat, even a Yellow Dog, before we'd cross party lines and vote republican. I'm beginning to think those days are back, and not just in the South.
Crowd sizes are not the issue anymore - not to the voters who actually care about the country and about what we are leaving to our children and grandchildren. I'm 66 and widowed. I lost a sizeable portion of my retirement savings in the "downturn" in 2008-2010, and haven't really recovered. Now with the market debacle trump and his cronies have wrought, I may lose even more, and if the GOP in the Senate have their way the SS / Medicare safety net may disappear. I'm sick and tired of being on the losing end of the deal, and I'm not alone. The only way to rescue our Country is to Vote Democrat, any Democrat, even a Yellow Dog.
12
There is a petition to name the street in fornt of the Trump hotel in NYC after Obama. This is a wonderful initiative and is in the spirit of this perceptive article
12
When my favorite Gail Collins and Democratic friends are trying to find a way to torture Trump ( which is impossible), his reelection campaign committee is working vigorously to expand their winning map. They are recruiting volunteers and organizing committees in New Hampshire, Nevada, Minnesota and Colorado . They are working hard to keep Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan. What the Democratic candidates are doing ? They are killing each other. The Democratic Party is deeply divided. That is torturing me.
4
A way to attack Trump is through pointed satire. His thin skin and excessive ego make him an exceptional target. Some old tunes with new lyrics should serve the purpose.
The following are for starters.
The lyric of "Don't blame me for falling in love with you" can become "Don't blame me for whatever happens to you. I had to make a profit. I had to make a profit".
The lyric of "You're undecided now, so what are you gonna do?" can be transposed to "Tariffs, I'm undecided now so what am I gonna do? Who else can I blame now? Who else can I blame now? As long as I can't blame me."
Other readers are encouraged to submit entries.
168
@Pete Check out Randy Rainbow on YouTube. He is a genius at this!
18
Two more suggested lyrics from old tunes are:
"I can't help falling in love with me!" and
"I want a girl just like the girl that I groped yesterday."
I've used similar satire in the past in a business environment when having to deal with particularly selfish and clueless coworkers and managers. If one's first impression is to laugh at someone for good reasons, it helps to destroy their credibility.
18
@Pete how about:
"I would do anything for crowds (gun control?) but I won't do that!"
"Paradise by the Kremlin lights..."
"Is this the real life? Elected by fantasy...Won in a landslide don't mistake that for reality...."
I'm just getting started....
11
You're the best, Gail! Keep the laughter coming. Because a guy who truly can't seem to smile without it looking forced or vaguely terrifying, that kind of guy goes into a rage when people are still able to laugh and point out what truly diminishes his over-inflated ego.
8
None of the patients in El Paso wanted to see him, and I’ll bet - a safe bet- that none will vote for him, either. The biggest crowd Trump will ever draw will be the one that lines up on Election Day 2020, specifically to vote against him.
He won by 77,500 votes, in three states. There are not enough wealthy self-interests, Moscow Mitches, racists and gulls to counter the crowd that will turn out to turn Trump out.
The times excellent series on slavery and it’s effects shows that Trump is no aberration, but rather the culmination of almost 200 years of “low” - i.e., immoral and rapacious- capitalism. We can do better than this; and we will.
9
@RCT The only thing I can say for sure is that I’ll be in that line to vote.
These rallies are completely choreographed to brag about crowd size.
First the Trump people pick small stadia - 10,000 capacity at most. Unlike Obama, Trump doesn't usually fill them to capacity; although the campaign says that they did.
Everyone who attends has to go through one single door in the entire building. That is one reason why the lines are so long. The other reason is that they wait to the last possible moment to open that door, making people stand outside for hours.
Trump is always late to these events, which agitates the crowd.
Trump is nothing but a showman. Gail is spot-on that our mentioning all this tortures Trump
7
I thought you couldn't campaign on the taxpayer's dime. Or is that just one more way Trump is thumbing his nose at convention and the law?
7
Jacque in Amsterdam. Couldn't agree more - When I was in teacher training, it was emphasized that when dealing with little kids (Donald?), remember this maxim "Children would rather be punished than ignored." Stop relishing in his blather, please.
4
Sure, challenge Trump on crowd sizes. Trump will reply, "fake news." Show pictures of his crowds compared to others? Trump will respond with "doctored images - fake news." The most pernicious tool in his belt is the absolute denial of truth, evidence, and facts. He won't blink an eye and the deplorables don't care.
4
How to Torture Trump? Gail, I recall a saying from a book titled, Sommerhill from the 1970s.
It went, "Love and hate are not opposites. The opposite of love is indifference. Love is turned to hate through thwarting." I believe it is meaningful and formative of him - being that he is a defect of normal, healthy human nature.
Trump draws an equivalence between love and hate, as they both gather attention, which is his elemental need. I'd suggest indifference, if you want to torture him. Thus: 1) drop news coverage for a day, cover his sycophants instead (and do it often). 2) don't accompany him on AF One (make other travel arrangements). 3) to those viewing him from afar, just turn your back, and lastly, 4) as he approaches you on the tarmac for one of his informal pressers, ask no questions (listen, record then turn and walk away).
As an empty vessel, he desperately needs to be the center of American and world attention, don't give him that nourishment. He'll lose what little hair he has, punch holes in walls, lash out, and ultimately melt away like a 'snowflake' on a hot summer day.
12
With this administration destroying the EPA, among other things, I'd rather we torture them based on things the matter. "As failed businessmen, they can only make money by destroying the environment."
"With zero success in foreign policy, they can only claim victories by gutting the state dept so they have no skilled voices to disagree."
"Unable to read well, the president gets his only information about the world from his golfing buddies."
6
When the economy finally heads south, and indicators show this is actually starting, name it "the Trump downturn" or "Xi's revenge", and totally ignore him when he blames it on Obama.
5
Trump Re Election “looking fantastically good.” Yes, as in the correct use of that word. IT is ALL a Fantasy. And next time he states that he feels " BADLY" about something, tell him that is because he has such small hands. The Correct way of saying this is "I feel BAD"! And yes I feel bad that Trump lives in a Fantasy.
1
Everything about the man is small except his character, it doesn’t exist.
5
Exactly, Gail! The pretender to the Oval Office cannot do math, nor tell time. Ergo, he doesn’t understand tariffs, nuclear nonproliferation treaties, NATO, global warming, ACA, and women, because he thinks he’s living in the post Civil War’s Gilded Age where excessive wealth and dire poverty flourished and there was no income tax.
4
Have you read the Kim article in todays Times? One of many places where Trump was going to blunder us into war. Still waiting!
"Mainstream-media reporters covering Trump try very hard to be fair."
I'd say they go overboard being fair to Trump, while they go the other way trying to be unfair to his political opponents. Just sayin'.
5
The problem is that the headlines need to be fair. Donald Trump isn't the only one who reads them. There's everyone else to consider. Also, even if being fair to Donald Trump irritates you when he's so unfair to everyone else, do you really want to provoke the sort of behavior that would result from his seeing "disappointing crowd" headlines etc. everywhere? Sorry to sound like a spoilsport, Ms. Collins. Maybe you can give us one of your great multiple choice tests.
It's not just his crowd size he is protective of. Calling his hands small seemed to set him off, too. Referring to his tiny hands and his diminished crowd size at the same time would no doubt result in an epic twitter storm. Everything with Trump needs to be big and exaggerated, and psychologists might say there's some compensation going on there.
14
There were more people at Trumps's earlier trip to El Paso than were to see Beto. PERIOD!
We don't care. Looks like you've sunk to the same "mine is bigger than yours" rhetoric as the man in the white house @AL
1
@AL
PERIOD !
Lol
I don't care about his crowd size, only the vote size matters.
7
Betos isnt drawing much of a crowd anymore
Gail, you spent a year tearing down Hillary, now it's Trump tearing down this country: do you see the connection or feel any remorse?
6
@Dr. M Yes, Gail and a number of other mean girls, e.g., Maureen Dowd were ragging on Hillary back in 2015-16. To what end.....?
Truth is the antiseptic that can stop the infectious ideals mulling around in the sick mind of this man. There are his hard core supporters that will idolize him regardless. (They're the: I-can-shoot-someone-on-5th Avenue-and-get-away-with-it crowd.) But they've already sold their souls to the devil - so forget them.
The Democrats should just hammer and confront Trump with reality. For instance:
Three numbers Mr. President: 3, 2 & 0. Republicans controlled all three (3) branches of government for two (2) years and in that passed 0 meaningful laws regarding immigration. Note: EO don't count as laws as they can be overturned by the next President (as Trump did with Obama).
11
We're far past the point of these cutesy pieces. Our country, as we know it and as we established it, is under attack by it's own president. We all deserve an apology for this light-hearted "how to annoy 45" column.
3
@Charlene, I share your distress about Trump's attack on our country. But a bit of comic relief (based upon fact here) is welcomed.
9
@Charlene, But Gail gives us a few laughs in the midst of the horror show we’re living in! It’s exhausting to lose so much sleep living through the demise of everything good about our country.
Gail, thank you!
2
Perhaps it isn't "either/or" and we can help keep ourselves same with some occasional humor at this dark and frightening time
@Charlene
3
Drive him over the edge?
How can I help? Seriously, how can I help?
21
@Diane Berger Hmmm....I thought he was already over the edge (exhibit 1: his latest Pennsylvania rally). Next stop for him, hopefully, will be the bottom of the abyss.
1
But he has Twitter. And followers. In the old days, the paper of record could dictate what folks thought.
Trump via Twitter has made an end-run around you.
And like him or not (I didn't vote for him), you cannot deny that no other politician can consistently fill areas like him.
So troll him on his crowd size, and he will ask: "Who can draw a bigger crowd? Bernie? Pocahontas?"
Sadly, he won't be wrong.
DT certainly is thin skinned, and would whine about the "fake news" "lying" about the size of his crowds. Unfortunately, his supporters would believe him, to the net loss, ironically, of credibility on the part of the media. A better strategy might be for the media to ignore his nonsense, and focus instead on more substantive matters, such as the environmental, economic, and diplomatic damage being done to our country by this incompetent, destructive, and corrupt executive.
1
Trump is a narcissist--plain and simple. Once we realize that many of his actions and most of his words are oriented towards his ego, we begin to explain his erratic behavior and complete lack of strategy.
6
Bingo! Nail on the head! I hope the media picks up on this idea. What fun it will be.
5
The best way to get to Trump is to boycott Twitter until they remove his account.
12
@DJ
But you have to alert Twitter that the reason for the boycott is Trump.
Somehow I doubt 63 milluon purported trump followers will not trump a few boycotters.
Sad but true. Twitter could ban him but at what cost to them? That's the key here.
Good idea though.
I like the idea of ridiculing him anout his size. Ummm crowd size. Everything is MUCH smaller than trump claims.
Laugh at him on Twitter and he might leave on his own AFTER he has those mockers investigated by the FBI.
Watch out Gail! ;-)
2
Focus on his golf swing, not his politics.
It's a flamboyant pea-cockery of wasted kinetic action just begging for fun-pundits' attention!
6
@Tim Scott
OMG yeah!
Couple that with a few pics of him from behind in his golf shirts.
There's also a hilarious one of him on a windy day with his giant combover flapping in the wind exposing that nearly bald scalp.
1
As Oscar Levant reputedly was asked, "If you had to do it all over, would you fall in love with yourself again?". Or, as the girlfriend asked of Narcissus while he's gazing contentedly into a mirror, "Is there someone else, dear?"
4
@JT Echo loved Narcissus..he bent over the water to get a drink, and fell in love with his own reflection. What's with all these echoes and reflections ?
2
I get so tired of Trump's name spoken on the airwaves and seeing it in print. My preferred torture would be to redact it from all communications. It could be replaced by █████ in print and "name redacted" in speech.
20
This trenchant commentary is decidedly Major League. Go, Gail, go!
5
How to torture Trump?
Ignore him.
23
@Mimi M
Nope. Mock him. Laugh at him and ask him repeatedly about his test scores.
Just ask: is it true President that your SAT score was 854?
Or: is it true President Trump that you pay people to attend your hate rallies and pretend they are ardent supporters? Even though they are not?
Or: Is it true President Trump that you still hire illegals at your golf courses?
Do you actually pay them?
4
I recognize this is lighthearted, but are we all just spiraling down into this never ending trolling the other society? Rolling coal, owning the libs, bringing guns to places to cause outrage.
@MWH
Lighten up.
Till we vote him out in Novemver 2020 we are stuck with him.
How long can we be outraged? How long can we wring our hands? How long can we lament thay the GOP will do nothing?
Nope. Time to make fum of the joke-in- chief.
You disagree? That's your right.
This is ours.
Have a great day!
3
In November of 2020, all of America should tell him, "You're fired!"
And life will be beautiful all the time
And I'll be happy to see those nice young men
In their clean white coats coming to take him away ha-haaa.. (with thanks to Jerry Samuels).
7
Trump supporters I have talked with are hard to talk with.
Their minds are made up, and the reason isn't reason.
It is a deep gut response. They identify with him.
The media and the liberals are out to get him because he is doing what they won't. The economy is great -- they say.
Applying reason is throwing oil on a fire.
But cut through it all. Be patient, and you will, as I found, discover someone who felt left behind and doesn't like to feel ignorant.
[That was an unrestrained comment from a very strong-willed Trump supporter I met weeks ago.]
Paul Tillich wrote a sermon: "You are accepted!"
A theolog I knew years ago said they spent an entire semester studying that sermon in seminary
Yet a highschool student I knew who was doing everything he could to find acceptance at home, at school, among fellow students declared when he heard it the first time:
"That was beautiful!!!!"
Guess which of the two felt a greater concern for acceptance
and was in a better position to understand what the words meant?
Trump is absolutely obsessed with the desire for acceptance.
"Trump this, Trump that, I'm the greatest!"
Yet within, he is the weakest. The least consistent because the need is so great. He doesn't care what he said before.
The need to hear adulation is too strong.
The only response he knows is "The Power of Positive Thinking".
and Roy Cohn.
I wonder if he ever felt accepted in his life.
Can you hear him?
"I'm the most accepted person there is -- Ask anyone."
11
Waking up each morning since Trump's inauguration gives one pause that it is imperative to keep birth control plentiful and legal in red states.
11
If Trump exaggerates his crowd size to his gullible fans I wonder what kind of exaggerations he expounds to leaders of other countries ? Does he think they believe him? Do they laugh at him behind his back and make jokes about him?
I think his trip to England was probably torture to him. He had to use a knife and fork.
4
@USMC1954
Yes they laugh at him.
Maybe privately but laugh they do.
Who, apart from those who fear him AKA his GOP enablers, doesn't laugh at him?
But, let's look at this. He is an oaf. A boor. But so are his supporters.
Saying he is a creep just strengthens them.
Laugh at him and make that laughter an everyday occurrence is the best bet.
1
I have often wondered what would happen if "the liberal media" took its attention away from tRump for just one day. Just think how this would trigger him!! It would almost be worth the acting out. Only trouble is, he's got the nuclear football.
@Laura Benton Like the idea....but we should designate that day once a week....he'd go bonkers.
2
Shoving shocked Montenegro leader out of way
can’t be topped for embarrassments.
13
Stop covering him as a political “leader”. Media, I know he’s all you’ve got right now but, come on. Start covering him as an entertainer playing a part in a sit com. Print media, leave him to TV Guide. That’s all he is. Trying to frame any of this in a conventional context isn’t working. It makes no sense. After opening with, “try and guess what he did today”, laugh at him. Bullies hate that.
9
His public appearances remind me of bad (reading-impaired) Vegas nightclub performers at the end of their careers. Repetitious, inaccurate, boring, and definitely unfunny.
2
@David M. PerryExactly...Rickles and Dangerfield...now, if he calls Biden a hockey puck, we’ll know...
"Trump Counts Opponents in His Rally Size Claims."
1
I'd like to see a mass "Laugh-In" in DC mainly featuring comedians and maybe a few big-name musicians. No politicians. No speeches. Just comedians making fun of Trump, humiliating Trump. Public humiliation is, I think, an effective strategy against narcissistic bullies like him. To have a 50,000 or a hundred thousand or a couple of hundred thousand laughing at and making fun of Trump for an entire day ... well, it's certainly something that I'd go to see and hear.
10
Journalists should stop covering Trump at all. Think about it. His words can't be trusted, what with his 11,000 lie rate this term, and still counting.
His policies--all of them--are harmful to the environment, to human, animal and plant health, to fair taxation and wealth distribution, to education and to the economy.
His toxic words, and those of his menacing cronies, arouse fear worldwide in the hearts of millions.
Trump, his Cabinet and elected Republicans are not ashamed of their racist, sexist and xenophobic policies, nor their singular preference for the wealthy.
What rankles Trump is being ignored. Since White House press briefings were cut off, the press should return the favor and cut off coverage of him and his administration.
He activities and words should be documented for the record, but not published or aired. Instead, news covera should go to State and foreign governments which support democracy, fair trade and the environment.
Imagine. A blackout on Trump news and Tweets. A chance to hear from elected officials who serve their people. Trump would hate it.
9
@Lilou
Ignoring Trump is simply not an option.
The news media has an obligation to report his public statements, lies and all.
Calling out his lies must be a high priority though. Followed by a statement of the truth..
Numbering each lie is a great idea.
1
@JM -- I'm not so sure a week without hearing one single tweet or policy announcement from the White House would be a bad thing.
I did say his words should be documented, just not published. If he plans to start a war, or drop a nuclear bomb, the press should, of course, release this news at full throttle.
But, are you not tired of almost three years of constant stress -- never knowing the next horrific pronouncement Trump will make, and how it will hurt Americans, and the world.
He doesn't respond to logical arguments, facts, criticism, he feels no shame. Whether we read about his actions or not, he will continue in his unpredictable and hateful ways.
But there are others in this country, and the world, who serve their people, and make the right choices to ensure that democracy and the law are preserved, and that climate change is fought. These beacons of light should get some media attention.
The world has been saturated and dispirited by Trump news for too long. The world needs equal coverage of those not in agreement with him.
1
Or he'd press the nuclear button or...? He's psychotic enough that he would become more irrational and angry as opposed to being shocked into reality. Hopefully he will be voted out of office, then prosecuted and thrown in jail for the rest of his life.
3
"Not responsible journalism." -- and why wouldn't it be responsible to point out an actual fact-- his crowd size is smaller than Trevor Noah's, for example?
23
Donald Trump was born on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, UK. He's not qualified or eligible to be president of the U.S.
10
Bill Maher has the best description for Trump rallies......."daddy needs love rallies." Perfect!
22
Some people are saying they overheard some Women for Trump excitedly laughing after shaking Trump's hand, comparing his tiny fingers to slippery earthworms encountered when gardening.
18
Forty million Americans worship the salesman. His boisterous, proudly ignorant rally attendees are the tip of the iceberg. The cowardly will come out of the woodwork to vote for what he stands for.
3
trump is a vain, scared little man who know he is not worthy of the respect he so desperately wants from serious, moral , and virtuous leaders. He will do anything to keep the attention focused on himself because without it, he will wither and die.
He knows he will eventually be exposed and the adoring crowds will turn on him . He is envious of his rivals and fearful of the folly of the ignorant crowds that someday will feel contempt and disgust for a man who is a complete fraud.
"Non but the weakest and most worthless of mankind are much delighted with false glory "
Adam Smith
15
Any activity relating to rage inducement in the president is a worthwhile endeavor. I propose that finding these burrs should be easily accomplished.
9
Or just sell some stocks and keep the crash going.
3
Be very careful not to insult his base. That is who will determine his and our fate.
I was speaking with an acquaintance who is a multi-millionaire and devout Christian this week. He was raging against being called "deplorable" -- and calling for the wall. This is a true story, not fake news. ;-(
5
@EB
It is totally mind boggling that any seemingly intelligent human being still supports this narcissistic con man.
With all the documented evidence of outrageous incompetence, past corruption and insane, asinine statements/behaviors, it is just inconceivable that Trump remains in office today.
America is in grave trouble.
3
Even better way to drive him crazy, have the news media say, "This is what the President tweeted today. He lied once again.". THEN SAY NOTHING ELSE! Ignore his rants and raves, and he will simply spiral out of control and lose his ability to.deflect away from the real issues facing our country.
14
As I read this article about Trump, it dawned on me that he is not unlike The character Willy Loman in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. In an early scene Willy, home from the road, boasts about selling “thousands” only to admit it was only two hundred dollars. To the end Loman remains a man who can’t figure out the secret to success “had all the wrong dreams” and “didn’t know who he was.”
12
Tell me not in mournful numbers life is but an empty dream,
For the soul is dead that slumbers, and life is not what it seems.
He who has the hair of orange is the subject of our dreams.
In this paper every morning we awake to hear him scream.
He has left a mark upon us that has soiled our country's soul... not that it was without blemish, but was it ugly, rude, and cold?
21
Donald Trump no longer gives policy speeches or even, strictly speaking, campaign speeches; He delivers “stand-up.” Although during his “routines” he routinely mentions his popularity/crowd size, his genius I.Q., and his physical prowess, the underlying theme for his audience continues to be one long whine of “I don’t get no respect,” and what are you going to do about it!? Maybe from Rodney Dangerfield it was was funny, from the president it is excruciating. May we please “heckle” him off the stage in 2020.
23
@Susan - yes, Trump is a "stand-up" comedian, and a terrible one. He talks about the Democrats as though he were at a comedy roast. There's no intelligence, no substance, no thoughtful reflection on issues, lots of hokey smirks and mugging – painful to watch. I think Mike Huckabee is one of his joke writers.
4
I'd say the media should try a Trump-less news day but I'm afraid he push his big button just to get back in the headlines.
7
Trump is less popular than Elton John ?…
Nothing new.
I am less popular than Elton John too.
Which makes Trump closer to the common man, as he claims he is.
It's all a matter of perspective.
This is why putting together an RP strategy against Trump is so difficult : as any paranoid who's sure to be right and others wrong, there is no fool proof response… as we realized since almost four years now.
2
Cannibal Trump. As Mr Friedman succinctly describe, Trump's policy is simply cannibalising the American future and squandering away it hard earned international goodwill. 'America First' policy, also means "World First" policy because American is a global player and leader.
The destructive World Wars proves that American prewar isolationist policies does not work. Hence, American sacrifices (together with its allies sacrifices) in the World Wars, Korean War, Marshall Plan, Nato, Japanese pacifist constitution, "I am also a Berliner ! " etc earns trust and respect of Americans by most countries and has brought about peace and economic prosperity for Americans and world generally. Trump is too shallow and selfish wise to understand the importance of ENLIGHTEN ALTRUISM. He is squandering away this hard earned goodwill and trust overnight. International policies should be win win and to prosper all ( although America may get more for it greater international responsibility). Also America most crucial strength, it global leadership in STEM, industry, innovativenss and economics is slipping away as Trumps plays on destructive short term symptomatic tricks like trade wars, degrading long established military alliances, fascist white nationalistic mentality, etc instead of afdrrssing the real causes like lack of investment in education (STEM), attracting the best brains, research and development, infrastructure, climate change, income inequality, etc.
4
@Chan Jit Loon
Or how about as the featured news headliner each day:
What Has Trump Done to Harm Your Children and Grandchildren TODAY?
1
Trump is allergic to the common reality of most people in America. He has his own fantasy world. And he has symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder (an exaggerated sense of self-importance; a sense of entitlement and requires constant, excessive admiration; expects to be recognized as superior even without achievements that warrant it). He lies about outdoing other people all the time in his desperate need to maintain his delusions of superiority. I wouldn't trust him to be right about the time of day, let alone whether to deploy US nukes. Perhaps a nice vacation in Yellowstone is indicated; he could meet some of the bears and wolves and bobcats he's trying to hurry into extinction.
8
Agree, treat Trump the same way society treats women like your self. Don't look at him, don't pay attention to anything he says, don't socialize with him, don't care about him in any which way. Like invisible.
6
His true hero,Putin enjoys this circus act. The once greatest democracy on the face of the globe is in utter turmoil with this "greatest show on earth" ring master. One might enjoy a circus performance for an hour or so, but this sad show has gone on much too long.
The collective IQ of the people in his audience? If they had common sense they would be embarrassed to be there.
12
Love it.
The icing on the cake would be to have someone like Elton John pop in for a free concert across town at the same time as one of Trump's hate rallies. Then we could measure crowd size.
Elton not available? The list is huge. Lady Gaga, John Legend, Bruce Springsteen, Taylor Swift ……… Let's crowd-fund it.
16
@KJ
Perfect. Can someone pass this onto Elton and the others?
1
What is Trump’s ego ideal? His want-to-be? It is to be a “rock star”, an Elton John. He wants so be loved like Elton John or any other rock star is. This is why he hates sports stars, Hollywood stars, rock stars, any kind of stars because they are his hated rivals for the finite and precious amount of love and popularity available.
He keeps "priming the pump" by telling the public he is so in demand, so wanted, the lines are around the block, etc. etc.
He wishes that were true. With all his heart and soul. That's how lame the real Donald Trump is. He's fixated in junior high school. He wants what junior high school boys want. That is where he is psychologically stuck. That's why he has to lie about Beto's crowd size or any of the infinite potential rivals he has out there.
And he's right to be filled with envy and jealousy. So many people like Beto or Elton are so much more LIKEABLE than Trump. He's always been awful and never well liked by hardly anyone. This is why he is addicted to his rallies. It's one of the only times in his life he could delude himself into thinking that there was anybody that really liked him. But unlike Sally Field who people really did like people that actually know Trump only pretend to like him. Everybody that knows him knows that he's awful.
Deep down the fact that his parents didn't want him gnaws at his guts.
3
I had the devious thought around the middle of the Mueller investigation, when it seemed everyone was flipping on Trump and cooperating with the DoJ. What if Mueller was just playing on Trump's paranoia by just contacting people Trump knew and getting them to say they'd been subpoenaed. Imagine Mueller telling a staffer with a minor traffic infraction that he could make it all go away if the staffer just tells Trump he is cooperating with the investigation.
This piece seems to have been written by someone who hasn't been paying attention for the last 936 days. Trump has constantly lied about crowd sizes, the media has consistently pointed it out, Trump says it's fake news and they cycle begins again.
3
To the poster joking about trump’s Hebridean birth...his mother was MACLeod not McLeod so keep searching!
3
Perhaps responsible journalists will call a lie a lie. That would be a start.
19
Responsible journalism? That might mean not repeating every false tweet or false statement that is the least bit sensational. LIke the trope about Mr. King yesterday, stupid, why news? If you want to drive T crazy, just keep saying "Obama would have done it differently, Obama would have........" Just keep saying Obama over and over, not irresponsible journalism, he was our good president. But you guys repeat T's lies, and I don't get that, he is playing you like John Baron!
16
Better yet, I received an email today with the suggestion that the section of Fifth Ave. between 56th and 57th St. be renamed "President Barack H. Obama Avenue". You can sign a petition in favor of it here: https://petitions.moveon.org/sign/rename-fifth-avenue-in?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14442832
The result would be that Trump Tower would be located on President Barack H. Obama Avenue. Now there's something that would torture him!
32
@Sandy
It's a great idea,, but if you are not a resident of NY City, is it valid to sign a local petition?
"But maybe it'd shock him into reality. Or at least leave him curled up in bed, sucking his thumb while somebody else ran the government."
Add to the above watching Fox "News", and you probably have a realistic estimation of how Trump spends his "Executive Time".
4
I love you Gail.
6
If you want to troll Trump...ignore him.
It's as simple as that.
After voting for him in 2016 (my God, what was the alternative?), I have not followed his tweets or the twitter war and sewer that follows every single statement and misstatement he makes.
Life's too short to spend so much time focused on the Morons that Run DC.
Take the man seriously, but not literally..and don't engage him. Let him do his job...and meet him 1/2 way.
The man did more to get people like Chuck Schumer, Kirsten Gillebrand and Hillary Clinton elected to office.
He's won more African American Community Service Awards than Barack Obama (for work he actually did..not virtue signalling).
The man simply wants to give the nation back to the people in the nation.
#Resistance is futile.
Meet him half way and you can get 1/2 the stuff Democrats want for their constituents.
I'm not talking about Progressive things..but Liberal things...stuff the Problem Solvers Caucus is working towards.
The fact so many Democrats are so wrapped up in the minute by minute antics and theater of Trump is mind-numbing.
You're all a bunch of idiots letting this guy control you this way.
I used to think TDS was a made up thing, kind of like $2500 a year savings in my health insurance premiums if I'd support ACA.
Turns out TDS is real..and mental health experts nationwide are working overtime to cure it.
It's worse than a drug addiction on top of alcohol addiction on top of paranoia/ neurosis.
2
@Erica Smythe
There was a great alternative. Vast experience at high levels in the government vs. no experience at all in any government. Most of the negative "information" that was spread about Mrs. Clinton was not true....but for some reason a lot of people bought into the picture of her being a liar, a bad person, etc. I see that you did too. Instead of seeing Trump with all his bluster, his misogyny, his anti-white rhetoric, his divisiveness, his very flawed character, his bullying, - instead of seeing him for the despicable person he is - you voted for him. Now you - and the rest of us- get to live with him. Patronizing the wealthy, denying climate change, reversing successful EPA rules, on and on. Don't make the same mistake in 2020.
2
@Erica Smythe This is a White House Internet war room account.
Trump is sick. Gail is funny.
9
@pkbormes
Funny and spot on!
2
You know that earworm "Baby shark ba dump a dump dum"? How about "Baby Trump ba dump a dump dum". Fits, especially with the baby Trump balloon you see in the UK.
2
You want to torture him? Just ignore him. Turn off the TV cameras. That will drive him crazy and keep the rest of us sane.
10
@Mickey Topol
BUT
He still has his adoring base and fox news.
1
Just start writing that Trump is a one term president. Keep repeating it and hopefully it will come true. After all enough is enough.
18
Even if he gets completely trashed in the next election he'll claim forever afterward that he won handily.
5
This is music to Trump’s ears. His media flimflam works in part because he allows journalists to score some easy points in exchange for giving him attention. As in any good scam the bilked party walks away thinking she/he has gotten the better of the exchange. Of course the two are using different scoring systems. Journalists continue to think of Trump as a tabloid creation (NY Post, 1980s, etc.), and he is, but in the era of clickbait news everything is more or less tabloid. He’s in his element and conventional scoring methods no longer apply.
16
Trump's crowd sizes are "fantastically good"? Who cares? Give us a break. Beto O'Rourke, running for our presidency, spoke truth to power after the mass shooting in El Paso TX. His words resonate as words of earlier American patriots still do. Texas will be a battleground state in knocking off the Trump presidency.
We don't know what lies ahead for us all in the coming winter of America's great discontent. Be assured, Gail Collins, that Donald Trump's demented and clamorous caravan will pass sooner than we can imagine. And the dogs will bark.
21
@Nan Socolow
Crowd size, Ratings, Central Casting Looks....
all that matters to Trump.
The best way to torture Trump? Ignore him.
34
"Crowds Getting Smaller" would be a good one.
23
The best way to torture Trump is to ignore him.
15
@D. DeMarco
His base and Fox news will not ignore him.
They more than satiate his narcissistic ego.
1
You are missing Trump’s biggest obsession: Barack Obama. Check his comments over the years. Trump to Obama is like the class bully to the BMOC. All of his repeals of Obama proposals have less to do with policy than trying to erase Obama’s name. Want universal health care? Just promise the goofus that we’ll call it TrumpCare.
16
Trump is preoccupied with size because he is small minded, manually and phallically challenged. And we suffer the consequences of his Freudian obsession.
14
The most effective way to destroy a severe narcissist is to ignore them. Unfortunately, the media find this impossible.
14
@Robert Goldschmidt trump is ratings crack. The media can’t give him up.
1
There are many effective ways to deeply wound narcissists. Some will make them more beastly.
Some will destroy them psychologically.
Choose wisely, and watch the collapse of the false ego like the Wicked Witch of the West.
11
Ignore him. He hates oblivion. The media seems incapable of doing this, so we must do it for ourselves. He is a poisonous distraction from our real purpose. We must connect with our neighbors. support one another, be there for one another, negate his fear of the other and together we can defeat the evil of our time
12
Online venting provides an unfortunate outlet for our frustration with how horrible this administration is. If not for the “opportunity” offered by the internet, maybe we would be staging rallies opposing him. Getting out in the streets to show him and the republicans who bow to him that we mean business.
4
Note to all media: Be sure to investigate how many people are PAID to a) attend the rallies, b) act as section organisers of chants (they are not as spontaneous as they may seem - or reported) and by what process are people selected to stand behind the president? The whole thing is carefully stage managed....expose this....really...its the wizard of OZ all over again....
22
I like this idea Gail! Maybe the press will do it.
4
You want to really torture him.
Vote him out in a landslide in 2020. That type of rejection would stick in his craw to the end of his days, Plus if the Democrats could pull off winning the Senate they could reinstate many of Obama's policies. That would be a drip drip drip torture.
For all of us who have had to endure this miserable man the knowledge that he would be confined to playing golf while worrying about the swirl of legal problems hanging over his head would put us all in a great mood.
20
This is the best you can come up with? Trump is going to run on the issues of open borders, reparations, the Second Amendment, the economy, student debt forgiveness, and your approach is to heckle him about crowd size? See you next November, we’ll let the people decide.
2
You guys lost when he came down the escalator—keep underestimating him! That’s the ticket!
2
Stop hanging around in the blasted heat to ask questions with a helicopter blaring in the background to make him feel Presidential. His answers only incite and distract from the sneaky, stripping away of all institutions by the actual people left in the White House running the show.
15
speaking of that "big chemical plant" which is making plastics...please read the article in yesterday's Guardian on the dangers of micro-plastics in the atmosphere...scary...
6
ding Approval
None of the patients in El Paso wanted to see him, and I’ll bet - a safe bet- that none will vote for him, either. The biggest crowd Trump will ever draw will be the one that lines up on Election Day 2020, specifically to vote against him.
He won by 77,500 votes, in three states. There are not enough wealthy self-interests, Moscow Mitches, racists and gulls to counter the crowd that will turn out to turn Trump out.
The NYT’s excellent series on slavery and its effects shows that Trump is no aberration, but rather the culmination of almost 200 years of “low” - i.e., immoral and rapacious- capitalism. We can do better than this; and we will.
6
The crowd in back of Trump in Pittsburgh looked as though they were forced to be there. When he was speaking total nonsense, many faces in his crowd looked confused and some annoyed. A Fox News poll shows that the majority of Americans believe that Trump is "tearing the country apart". It appears that his lie. that China pays the tariffs is now recognized as ridiculous. The gold-plating is beginning to wear.
17
@batpa I pray you are right
1
Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to start ridiculing however many claims and maybe even accomplishments he's made, and continues to do so; for starters, try this: "Trump claims if he's reelected, he will cure AIDS. Who is he kidding? He couldn't cure a ham!"
....Then, go from there.
As for his "accomplishments," there has to be plenty of grist for that mill. If these are to be considered his "strengths," then take that one page from Lee Atwater's playbook - attack those "strengths." ....Shouldn't be that difficult.
The old expression, "Fight fire with fire" couldn't be more appropo.
11
If Donald Trump had one scintilla of human compassion in his body he would have had a nervous breakdown by now.
16
Maybe the Times and the Washington Post and other news outlets could start printing crowd sizes like sports scores--"Tuesday night crowds: Trump 2,000, Sanders 2,500, Springsteen 15,000..." Of course, Trump will always find someone (or weather, or Fake News) to blame.
16
The occupant is ignorant in math, science, history or geography. Facts ? He lives in a warp of hate, vanity & fear. He would fail to comprehend even a crowd size reality check.
11
Stop writing about him. Stop talking about him. Ignore him. Problem is the media is his enabler. Ignore his acting out. He'll eventually learn it doesn't pay to act out. Every parent with a two year old understands this.
22
Audience of one here: I love this column so very much.
17
@Jay Vithalani Make that two. We've doubled the crowd!
2
We'll be seeing plenty of torture when the Democratic nominee begins running anti-Trump ads 24/7 nationwide. Trump has more than written the ads himself with enormous numbers of video segments documenting his moments torturing the truth, the nation and the world.
Trump's self-flagellation -- showing his own short comings -- will be on enormous display to the world. He will absolutely hate it.
Beware his uglier to come.
7
Are you saying that his crowds are as big as his hands? Remember he defended the size of his hands during the campaign. Maybe while questioning his claims about the crowds, focusing on his hands will also stir up his size envy and lead to new revelations about his obsessions.
Next we can ask to see the lifts in his shoes.
All in all, humiliation seems like the perfect tactic at this point.
10
Maybe his crowds, like his fingers, are really really small.
4
Just start writing that Trump is similar in many ways to Jimmy Carter.
2
@Brock
No ... that would be a compliment that Trump hardly deserves.
2
Gail, ANYONE attending a rally for #45 is an accessory to everything he believes in including acceptance of lies every day. Any of those supporters that have a scant religious belief of the Golden Rule, acceptance of others, love instead of hate, have lowered themselves into the abyss and voided the positive side of any religion.
Keep supporting Republicans, they will bring you, and unfortunately us, more war armament murders that are commonplace as auto accidents in our Country.
Yes, it has deteriorated to you vs. us.
Vote for life and no weapons of war or vote Republican. Your choice...
8
If you’re familiar with trump’s past and have heard him talk in interviews and articles, it’s quite clear he’s not confident about himself and his appearance. If you’re familiar with “people” like trump, you’ll realize most of any of their boasts are designed to convince themselves they are not a failure or a grotesque caricature of a human being. He brags because he is deeply aware of the truth... it’s why he’s so thin skinned, the truth to him is like holy water to a vampire (not the sparkly variety). It causes him pain... and when he lashes out, you know you hit the mark.
He is keenly aware of how much of an inconsequential nothing he is...
He knows if it weren’t for daddy’s money he’d have be driving a taxi and leering at little girls in the park... he knows has got “nothing” and money he didn’t earn and could never earn on his own, got him where he is.
I’m all for both picking on his numbers and his other attributes... make fun of him in any way possible.
Sometimes it’s okay to stoop down to someone else’s level... as long as you don’t decide to stay down there, it’s the only way to deal with and wear down some jerks.
12
Not “Disappointing crowd,” showed up. How about “Disappointed
crowd?”
2
Sign the petition to name the street in front of Trump Tower after Obama. Imagine Trump and every visitor there confronting that name he so hates.
The petition is on the MoveOn web site.
11
The headline had me hoping that you had some suggestions for me as an individual on how to "torture" DJT. I was disappionted to read that the only strategies offered were available to the press.
Fox News and Sinclair will simply counter the real press by repeating his delusions and he will remain content in his media bubble.
Changing the name of 5th Ave in front of his building to Barack Obama Blvd might just do the trick.
8
I've been pondering Beto's remark that Trump is a sick guy. I agree. But the question is the nature of his sickness. As he stood in that El Paso hospital, where he was supposed to be giving comfort to victims and instead gloated about the crowd size there at a previous rally, I wonder if that's a function of dementia (he forgot where he was and why he was there) or schizophrenia (his delusions of grandeur). Psychologists studying Trump have ascribed to him several disorders as listed in the DSM (Diagnostic Statistical Manual) including Malignant Narcissistic Disorder, Paranoia, Dissociative Identity Disorder, and Inferiority Complex. Trump is a cocktail of all of them, and given that, I think Collins is on to something here. Instead of criticizing his myriad horrible decisions (tariffs, ICE raids, caging immigrants, etc) focus on reporting that he grossly overestimates his crowd sizes. Size matters to this man, so go after him on that level.
7
@nzierler Cognitive decline + narcissistic personality disorder = deeply impaired Donald.
1
Ms. Collins, Your last sentence made me laugh so loud that my cat went sprinting out of my kitchen ! But the image it conjured up ruined my breakfast appetite !
7
People are excited for the NH rally today. It should be fun.
1
More effective torture is coming when law enforcement and Congress have studied the financial data that now are said to be coming into their hands.
As always, the motto is "Follow the Money" and of course "Cherchez les Femmes" - perhaps les petites filles in the Epstein file.
6
Money. Crowd size. Intellect. Obama.
Those are a few of Trump's vulnerabilities.
If you were to write a sentence, such as, "Trump allegedly had poorer grades than Obama, hasn't drawn big crowds as Obama had, and, but for his father's largesse, would allegedly have been poorer than Obama," that would freak out Trump.
Once your reference to Trump, Gail, as a “financially embattled thousandaire” drew a personal attack.
The unfavorable comparison of the inaugural crowd that he drew vs. Obama got him all upset and his press secretary Sean Spicer summoned the press to loudly and weirdly declare that Trump's inaugural crowd was the largest in history or some such nonsense.
Trump is so scared of his academic record being known that his lawyer Michael Cohen, per Forbes, "had sent letters to Trump’s high schools, colleges and the College Board (creator of the SAT), threatening them with legal action and jail time if they ever released Trump’s academic records."
For a loudmouth braggart, Trump is quite insecure about his shortcomings.
7
Ms. Collins- I believe that your journalism is perfectly responsible in the respect that you are informed about your subject. I think it is important for public voices to articulate how small minded this person is....thank you
459
I'm pretty sure the crowd will be amazing on Jan 20, 2021 to witness Trump's last flight on Marine One. Certainly record setting for the event. And the roar of the crowd will drown out the engine noise.
9
You should have ended your column with the crowds chanting-"Lock HIM up!"
4
@Carol Josefowicz No.
Why do you need to lie? Isn’t that his thing? Can't you just point out that -- absent criminal activity for which he would have been indicted were he not a sitting president -- he would not have been elected in the first place? Isn’t he afraid that he is illegitimate? Didn’t Trevor Noah just make a strong case that his wife is an illegal immigrant who exploited chain migration? Why don’t you write about using the truth as a disinfectant?
4
@Lee Eils
What lie? No lie here
1
Nailed it!
4
Great Idea!
How about if one of you tech savvy youngsters out there came up with one of those imbedded adds like I see for Trump, the ones that say “Who do you think is a better leader? Your President Donald J Trump or barrack HUSAIN obama.”
But instead it would say “Who would you rather have sitting in the Oval Office? Donald Trump or a moldy old truck stop turkey sandwich.”
Turkey sandwich please! Some how I think it’s less diseased, and a far better public speaker!
4
Rename Fifth Ave in front of Trump Tower "Barack Obama Way".
14
It would work till some sycophant teach him to claim that Democrats bring illegal immigrants to their events.
Other possible ways:
Tell him Putin is more impressed with Macron since he's a stronger leader.
Tell him Jeff Bezos can buy 85 Trump organizations.
1
You're really too kind to him. But you're right about the headlines. Better to note the truth up front before quoting the Liar-in-Chief.
1
Since Mr. T constantly makes a mockery of his office as leader of the USA, the Press should always address him by the far more appropriate title P.I.C. Poisoner in Chief to give him due credit for what he has done to our political cultures and social media.
2
I think Gail's on to something!!! You know how they say "fight fire with fire". Well, we need to fight his lies and exaggerations with lies and exaggerations. He's already crazy. We need some Real Fake News. Stop this Fact Check stuff, we already know his facts are bogus.
4
trump’s pea-sized, life-long afflictionS made manifest
2
The ultimate torture for donald would be for all media sources to ignore him. That’s a narcissist’s worst nightmare.
3
Somebody else DOES run the government - his name is Vladimir Putin.
3
The disappointing crowd I would like to show him will be a HUGE defeat at the 2020 elections and let's have McConnell departing with him.
Now that would be noteworthy.
52
Trump and his most ardent followers will never accept defeat, should he lose the 2020 Election. That’s what I’m most worried about. We don’t need a 21st century civil war in the USA.
1
By all means let’s concentrate on the infantile exchange of personal attacks and childish taunts. This is an effective remedy for the Trump presidency. It relieves the Democratic Party from having to work on presenting a rational moderate alternative and provides the added benefit of selling newspapers. Way to go Ms. Collins!
2
@FNL What's your better idea?
@FNL
Is satire too much for you?
1
I think it would be great fun and very effective to resurrect Stephen Colbert's bid for the presidency circa 2008. If it were to come to a debate, who knows, Trump's looseness with the truth would be great fodder for Colbert...or even Amy Schumer or someone of that ilk. Hope springs eternal.
10
Its too late to save the nation from Trump, but its not too late to stop his would-be doppelgangers. Time to start holding dishonest, over-promising politicians, salespeople and other con-men accountable, in all aspects of our lives. Trump should never have risen to the level of C-list TV personality, never mind president. Restore the virtues of humility, honesty and pragmatism.
15
I think if every municipality, school district, neighborhood organization, etc. would consider renaming a street, school building, park, whatever as say Obama Avenue or McCain Jr. High that would go a long way toward achieving your goal.
28
No, no, no. His base doesn't care about crowd size. But they would care if he were exposed as a business fraud. The aim should be to target his base, exposing their hero as a serial business loser posing as a winner.
At every opportunity the media should expose his fraudulent Ponzi nature, by asking him what happened to:
Trump University?
Trump Steaks?
Trump Airlines?
Trump Vodka? (Yuk)
GoTrump.com?
Trump Mortgage?
Trump: The Game?
Trump Magazine?
Trump Ice?
The New Jersey Generals?
Tour de Trump?
Trump on the Ocean?
The Trump Network?
Trumped (radio show)?
Trump New Media?
He, and the voting public, should be relentlessly reminded that his serial business failures are the only true sign of what he can do, and is doing, for his country.
87
@Hamid Varzip
You forgot to mention six bankruptcies. There, now it’s complete.;-)
21
That will never work. Trump's base never responds to reason or logic. They just BELIEVE.
18
@Hamid Varzi The narrative should include the undeniable fact that Trump drove the family business into bankruptcy. We need articles detailing just how much his 3 casinos ended up costing him.
4
I don't want to know how to torture Trump.
I want to know how to make Trump stop torturing me.
Right. Vote 2020. For the Democrat. Any Democrat.
103
Even a dead dog would be better.
2
@D Price
Yes, I agree, I too feel tortured every time I see him holding one of his White House lawn gaggles and the way he condescendingly slaps the press around as they humiliated try and yell out questions over the sound of his whirring helicopter.
He's successfully replaced our time honored Press Conferences, now picking and chosing the questions he'll answer or simply avoid. And all the while, continuing to normalize his spinning, exagerrating, and outright lying.
3
The greatest threat to a malignant narcissist; Ignore him. Very difficult to do in the 24/7 news and social media modern world.
26
@JCX
Newspapers could certainly do a better job of ignoring him: look at the Opinion sections, it's often an all-Trump section. Trump is helping them make money (try cancelling your subscription, and see if it works).
1
But it's the best idea so far. Analyze his policy actions and presidential actions, and leave the baiting to the unsocial media. then it will be a pleasure to read the Times when most of its leads are not accompanied by pictures of the well-dressed current occupant.
2
The best way to torture Trump is to vote him out of office, and then press charges against him for his myriad crimes, and to ruin him financially. I am waiting for the day he is a nobody from nowhere with nothing and no one. See how well he copes without his millions and his minions.
47
@ach Trump doesn't have millions; given no American bank will give him a dime, he's deeply in Russian debt.
1
There are a number of good suggestions here to torment Donnie, the goal being to push him over the edge into total insanity.He's doing a pretty good job of doing just that on his own.
I'm for going after Republicans in the Senate and House. Ask them how they are able to look in a mirror, question their integrity, call them the cowards and crooks they are. Let them know they are dangerously close to being traitors.
52
The cowards and crooks are getting away with it so far! NOBODY in the USA takes voting seriously enough. Idiotic amateurs, not responsible citizens, wrecking America.
I realize that this article is just a light-hearted poke at the thousandaire-in-chief, but the sad, scary truth is that trump’s comparison of his El Paso crowd size vs that of Beto O’Rourke says nothing about his math skills and everything about his ego and his absolute disregard for the truth.
The really scary part is the fact that a steady stream of self-aggrandizing lies doesn’t faze about 40% of American voters, who unquestioningly devour every syllable that comes out of Dear Leader’s mouth like it’s the first book of the New New Testament.
And the geographical distribution of that 40% is frighteningly close to being optimized for trump’s re-election.
22
Donald Trump, the serial liar, is inconsistent in everything except his bigotry, his bragging about his intellect and his claims of being enormously popular.
Suggestions that he has no better than average intelligence, is well below average in knowledge of history and science and is fading in popularity make Trump foam at the mouth.
Gail Collins tends to be the opposite of Donald Trump – she is too unassuming about her own skills.
The Collins idea to focus on the inability of Trump to draw big crowds is not trivial, and every columnist, reporter and pundit should jump all over the White House braggart on the subject.
11
Someone like Gail should become the Trump Whisperer, responding around noon to all his crack of dawn tweets.
Today, a noon tweet back might have asked him how his 401K is doing?
Tomorrow should bring new opportunities to offer education at the feet of the Federal Reserve Board members...
2
@Mikee
Eh, he would just block her from his Twitter account.
1