With all due respect to your tree choices, I would like to suggest "Old Bradford Pear" as a nickname for our 45th President. Bradford Pears are overgrown "ornamentals" covered with flowers that stink of rotten meat. They are disease resistant but "have weak crotches that allow large limbs to snap off without warning." https://household-tips.thefuntimesguide.com/bradford_pear_tree/
Also, and most happily, they don't last long.
Also, and most happily, they don't last long.
58
Trump couldn't be 'Ornamental' anything. In the sense of 'non-functional', maybe, but not 'adding beauty and attractiveness'.
So 'D) Old Ornamental Dogwood' is out. And 'Old Stinkwood' wasn't offered. But really -- could he have any tree nickname? I think all trees have some desirable attributes.
So 'D) Old Ornamental Dogwood' is out. And 'Old Stinkwood' wasn't offered. But really -- could he have any tree nickname? I think all trees have some desirable attributes.
13
Jackson was a commanding general and was the hero of the Battle of New Orleans. Trump has done nothing of that order.
11
Cottonwood
8
At least Franklin Pierce was one of the most handsome men ever to be president, and there are daguerreotypes of him to prove it. Gotta go with what you have. Stand that up against the Stump.
8
I wonder what Jackson or any of them, including Buchanan, would say about cancelling Meals on Wheels for housebound and hungry Americans? Terrific, smart, informative -- who, besides Gail Collins -- knew so much about terrible presidents?
55
As Gail would say, come in people. We are talking about the president here. All of these catty and malicious remarks are nasty and unbecoming. We should all......ah, to hell with it. This way is much more entertaining and just plain fun. This is exactly what this fool deserves. Go for it.
27
Trump saluting the grave of Andrew Jackson, as captured in the photo accompanying Gail's column, is laughable. What a poser!
22
I think if you want to make a good comparison between Trump and former presidents you will need to look outside the U.S. border. The personal enrichment of family members and emphasis on military sounds like Indonesia's former president Suharto, and with his ties to Russia one could draw comparisons between Trump and former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych.
17
"Old Hackberry" works for me.
5
Old Osage Orange !
12
Jackson played a large part in our own American holocaust... the Trail of Tears. We now have another trail of tears with Trump's immigration policies. Yes, they do have a lot in common.
19
How about Old Swamp White Oak or Old Sourwood
5
Since Trump has an obsession with being tapped.....how about "Ole Sugar Maple?"
61
Any votes for 'Old Russian Olive'?
15
There are major streets in San Francisco named after James Buchanan, Zachary Taylor, Franklin Pierce, and yes, even the forgettable Rutherford B. Hayes, who were all recent presidents when the city's streets were being laid out.
I feel I can guarantee that not a single street, public school, or anything in California will ever be named after Donald J. Trump, and absolutely not in San Francisco!
I feel I can guarantee that not a single street, public school, or anything in California will ever be named after Donald J. Trump, and absolutely not in San Francisco!
20
Let's hope that by the end of Trump's term I'm not eating these words, but Jackson is still worse than Trump. Slavery and genocide cannot be excused.
It's telling that Trump admires Jackson.
Buchanan shares with Trump the potential for being a traitor. But otherwise I would not tie the Trump albatross around the neck of any of these mediocremen.
It's telling that Trump admires Jackson.
Buchanan shares with Trump the potential for being a traitor. But otherwise I would not tie the Trump albatross around the neck of any of these mediocremen.
10
Please don't disrespect the trees.
15
Might I suggest "Old Mockery" because that's what Trump is making of the Office of our Presidency!!
14
Grandpa Trump started out slinging drinks and women in his house of ill-repute in the good old days of the Yukon Gold Rush...until, that is, our proud Mounties showed up and gave him the boot. I love to dream of the symmetry if the grandson were to end of slinging drinks at Applebee's: as it was in the beginning, so shall it be in the end.
Our Mounties, on horseback, through neck-deep snow, made their way North to get their man. So come on, America, you've got spying microwaves: the job should be so much easier.
Our Mounties, on horseback, through neck-deep snow, made their way North to get their man. So come on, America, you've got spying microwaves: the job should be so much easier.
12
On his death bed, Jackson was asked what he regretted in his life. He reportedly answered that he regretted not having shot Clay and hanged Calhoun. So there's another similarity: Both men are first-class haters whose main motivation is revenge.
23
Jackson brought average white people without a lot of property nor influence into the political process, effectively increasing the strength and inclusiveness of democratic institutions. In addition, he strengthened the union when state's rights extremist Calhoun asserted the states rights to nullify Federal laws and to resist enforcement by means of state militias. On the other hand he broke treaties with peaceful tribes, especially the Cherokees, and expelled them from their traditional lands for the sake of white who coveted those lands. He was man who relied upon his own violence instead of the law, fighting duels and slaying assassins by himself. Finally, he was a white supremacist who owned slaves. For his time he was a better national leader and advocate for equal rights than many others but today, he would be considered an opponent of equal rights and a rather uncivilized and dangerous man. Trump is showing his lack of a significant database of knowledge.
14
Used to love visiting Van Buren's post presidential home, really not all that splendid, in Kinderhook, NY, near where I once had a home. Our president's used to live so much more like those who voted for them. How did we get from "Old Kinderhook" to the gilded tower with the captive princess at $400, 000 a day charged to the tax payers, and unlimited trips to Mar a Lago, ludicrously christedn "the Winter White House"? to us our "President's" favorite word: SAD.
16
Another possibility is press board. It's not a tree but some of the wood comes from trees. We could it Gropherwood to differentiate it from real tree types.
14
Trump is wearing out his welcome. Overexposed both on television and on twitter. The fact that he is hanging onto conspiracies about Barack Obama makes him seem especially unstable, especially with intelligence experts reiterating day after day that Trump has his facts wrong.
Trump is over-compensating for his lack of military experience. It was crazy to say he knew more than the generals. That salute at Andrew's Jackson's pad was positively bizarre. It reminded me of Richard Milhouse Nixon wandering about, talking to portraits of deceased presidents. He was losing it due to paranoia, and conspiracy fixation.
Trump is over-compensating for his lack of military experience. It was crazy to say he knew more than the generals. That salute at Andrew's Jackson's pad was positively bizarre. It reminded me of Richard Milhouse Nixon wandering about, talking to portraits of deceased presidents. He was losing it due to paranoia, and conspiracy fixation.
16
Great - ending with the image of DJT as the worlds most oblivious bartender, serving with small hands what he decides the customer wants.... and ranting at customers who have the nerve to refuse that he dishes out.
8
Trump displays his gratuitous reverence for our military at every opportunity. To me, he is the embodiment of Stolen Valor, having the nerve to accept an unearned Purple Heart, after dodging the draft himself. Why Trump won among veterans and military is one of the great mysteries of my life.
21
Because they think their paychecks and entitlements will go up.
5
Zachary Taylor led his troops in battle. Ulysses S. Grant learned from Taylor how to lead from the front line.
Donald Trump is playing golf in Florida, not leading troops in the Middle East.
Andrew Jackson used violence to remove tens of thousands of Indians from their homelands to distant reservations, ignoring the decisions of the United States Supreme Court. This forced removal, with countless deaths, was ethnic cleansing of non-white people from the Southeast. Jackson drenched his hands in the blood of innocent Indians to give land to whites. Andrew Jackson is not a person to be admired nor an example of morality.
If Trump has Jackson's picture on his wall, then we know what kind of human being Trump is.
Donald Trump is playing golf in Florida, not leading troops in the Middle East.
Andrew Jackson used violence to remove tens of thousands of Indians from their homelands to distant reservations, ignoring the decisions of the United States Supreme Court. This forced removal, with countless deaths, was ethnic cleansing of non-white people from the Southeast. Jackson drenched his hands in the blood of innocent Indians to give land to whites. Andrew Jackson is not a person to be admired nor an example of morality.
If Trump has Jackson's picture on his wall, then we know what kind of human being Trump is.
16
Since Trump will probably be impeached or quit, I suggest Old Weeping Willow to sum up his term in the White House.
8
Old Deadwood also has a nice ring to it.
15
He’ll need to find his own Indian population to maximally inconvenience, as “old Hickory” as well as whole line of other presidents did to our indigenous Americans in the 19th Century. If I lived in Mumbai or Delhi, I’d be a bit concerned.
Trump similar to James Buchanan? There’s no indication that Trump is or ever was gay. The “election” of Rutherford B. Hayes demonstrated that, as with HRC, it’s never THAT hard to steal an election from a Democrat. You’d think that after 140 years Dems would buy a clue. Reagan? Some potential there, but Trump hasn’t earned the comparison yet: the MSM TRULY despised Reagan because he wound up being SO effective.
As offensive as it might be to some in this commentariat who resolved to adopt the original Republican as their own, I’d compare Trump most closely to Lincoln. Both were summoned by history to the presidency for very specific purposes, and when it seemed to many that we had finally arrived at the end-times. While Trump is at the very beginning of his adventure and we know how Lincoln’s turned out, that sense of last-chance to get it right and walk us back from the precipice is historically very familiar.
However it ends with Trump, though, I do hope a D.C. theater isn’t involved. And I offer my best wishes for the residents of Mumbai and Delhi.
Trump similar to James Buchanan? There’s no indication that Trump is or ever was gay. The “election” of Rutherford B. Hayes demonstrated that, as with HRC, it’s never THAT hard to steal an election from a Democrat. You’d think that after 140 years Dems would buy a clue. Reagan? Some potential there, but Trump hasn’t earned the comparison yet: the MSM TRULY despised Reagan because he wound up being SO effective.
As offensive as it might be to some in this commentariat who resolved to adopt the original Republican as their own, I’d compare Trump most closely to Lincoln. Both were summoned by history to the presidency for very specific purposes, and when it seemed to many that we had finally arrived at the end-times. While Trump is at the very beginning of his adventure and we know how Lincoln’s turned out, that sense of last-chance to get it right and walk us back from the precipice is historically very familiar.
However it ends with Trump, though, I do hope a D.C. theater isn’t involved. And I offer my best wishes for the residents of Mumbai and Delhi.
3
After his campaigns and his first two months in office, it's clear that Trump has no equals amongst past Presidents. Despite his adeptness with audiences and ability to attract followers, Trump has shown time after time that he has no interest in government, international affairs, domestic affairs, economic affairs, nor any grasp of how large and complicated organization operate. Furthermore, he has an undisciplined intellect, which means that he does not focus on a task well enough to work it through to the end and to understand the whole of what he is about in his own mind. He operates on a trial an error basis from intuitive perspectives, which means his efforts often fail to develop in a way that he hoped. It is impossible to conclude that his I.Q. is at or above 130, he just does not operate like people who have intelligent level I.Q.s operate.
4
Funny you should imagine Trump tending bar at a food chain started (in part) by one of Tennessee's least effective Republican senators: Lamar Alexander. As for comparisons with Jackson, it's pointless. To what end? Trump is a loon. Jackson may have been a barbarian and a low-life populist, but he was at least a rational one. Finally, I know that since Ronald Reagan, presidents have been saluting. And while Clinton, Obama, and Trump did not serve in the military, there is something particularly irksome about seeing Trump saluting at the grave of an American war hero -- even a genocidal one. It's fitting that The Trail of Tears runs virtually right past the Hermitage's front door. I can only imagine what many Native Americans may be thinking of today's Nashville Trump photo op.
14
Andrew Jackson changed Presidential politics, turning elections into popularity contests as they had never been before, and extended the franchise amongst people who did not own a lot of property who had been considered less qualified to select good elected officials. Thus his reputation for extending democracy. But he was a slave owner, a white supremacist, and an old adversary of native Americans who was responsible for taking away the lands of the Cherokee and expelling them to a treeless plain in the middle of the continent so that white people could take over their lands. Yet he blocked the attempts of Calhoun to nullify federal laws and to encourage his state of South Carolina to war with the Federal Government over state's rights. He was a tough old man who survived wars, shoot outs, duels, and assassination attempts using his own combat skills. No modern American leader who is not a complete jerk would dream of emulating the man because to do so would mean that one is a half savage, stupid bigot, who struts around with side arm and bowie knife ready to fight adversaries to the death, a real archaic figure.
8
Just a geological technicality but the eastern third of Oklahoma, where the Cherokees were forced to march, is hilly and heavily wooded. I still wouldn't want to be forced to leave my home and walk there, but it isn't a treeless plain.
About in the middle of the state, Oklahoma turns into the flat plains. Thousands more Native Americans were forced to come here.. Cheyenne and Arapaho, to name just a few.
About in the middle of the state, Oklahoma turns into the flat plains. Thousands more Native Americans were forced to come here.. Cheyenne and Arapaho, to name just a few.
9
Thanks for the clarification. Despite the wooded hills, the robust fertility of the tribal lands from which they were expelled was probably a lot better than those to which they had to relocate in Oklahoma.
2
I live in the state that used to be Indian Territory, the ending point for the forced removal of thousands of Native Americans. Thousands of Native Americans from the south eastern U.S. died of cold and deprivation on the forced walk known as The Trail of Tears. Andrew Jackson was the president who implemented that.
At least Jackson fought in the War of 1812. He didn't use sore feet as an excuse to stay home and roll in his money. On the other hand, he wasn't concerned about starvation, cold, or sore feet when he made little children, old grandparents, and everyone in between walk to a place they never wanted to be.
At least Jackson fought in the War of 1812. He didn't use sore feet as an excuse to stay home and roll in his money. On the other hand, he wasn't concerned about starvation, cold, or sore feet when he made little children, old grandparents, and everyone in between walk to a place they never wanted to be.
19
Truffula Trump - the wild colors and fiction aspect would work even though 45 really has much more in common with the Once-ler.
The primary accomplishment of Andrew Jackson that Trump brought up, that this article conveniently neglects to mention, is that in his time Jackson was the only president to completely pay off the national debt. In fact, that was the main point of his comments about Jackson and our current situation. The USA is 20 Trillion dollars in debt. No matter how you look at it, that's bad, risky business.
It's quite curious that the author completely ignores this fact, but instead rants on with pseudo-clever character assassinations.
It's quite curious that the author completely ignores this fact, but instead rants on with pseudo-clever character assassinations.
2
George W. Bush was a pretty good Governor of Texas.
But there were two main reasons I strongly supported Gore. Most importantly there's the necessity of dealing with climate change.
The second reason was the fact that Gore wanted to protect the federal treasury, with baby boomer retirement looming, and as I recall the Republicans in 2000 were talking about how dangerous it would be if we continued Clinton era balanced budgets and actually paid off the federal debt.
I'm not familiar with Trump's plans to balance the budget. During the campaign I remember the projections were that his tax cuts would blow up the deficit. Is there a credible budget balancing plan that I've missed?
But there were two main reasons I strongly supported Gore. Most importantly there's the necessity of dealing with climate change.
The second reason was the fact that Gore wanted to protect the federal treasury, with baby boomer retirement looming, and as I recall the Republicans in 2000 were talking about how dangerous it would be if we continued Clinton era balanced budgets and actually paid off the federal debt.
I'm not familiar with Trump's plans to balance the budget. During the campaign I remember the projections were that his tax cuts would blow up the deficit. Is there a credible budget balancing plan that I've missed?
9
Jackson is Bannon's choice, not Trump's. Trump has no knowledge of, nor sense of, history whatsoever. He's simply following orders, couched by Bannon as suggestions. And it's Bannon's contempt for ordinary Americans that leads him to champion Jackson and Jackson's mindless populism.
I would offer "walnut" for consideration for tree nickname. In deliberating what is most appropriate and whether it should apply to either or both Bannon or Trump, keep in mind that walnut is a toxic wood, deceptively pretty, it'll in fact kill horses, something we know about here in the Midwest.
I would offer "walnut" for consideration for tree nickname. In deliberating what is most appropriate and whether it should apply to either or both Bannon or Trump, keep in mind that walnut is a toxic wood, deceptively pretty, it'll in fact kill horses, something we know about here in the Midwest.
7
I have known some great trees in my life and Trump is no tree. He is a noxious weed.
26
The closest parallel is with Andrew Johnson who opposed the Slaveocracy and had each apply individually to him for restoration of citizenship. Trump was denied funding by Wall Street and now many of it's leaders are working for him.
2
If Jackson's "Old Hickory," then maybe Trump is "Old Slippery."
6
Typical that Trump should elevate Andrew Jackson, a slave owner, a bigot, and a shameless self promoter. One big difference Jackson tried to remove and impoverish the native born Americans by taking their rights and land. Trump is trying to do the same with immagrants.
11
My vote is Old Peckerwood.
Trump doesn't drink. Neither did Rutherford B. Hayes. In his Whitehouse it was said the water flowed like wine. In Trump's Whitehouse the lies flow like wine too.
Trump doesn't drink. Neither did Rutherford B. Hayes. In his Whitehouse it was said the water flowed like wine. In Trump's Whitehouse the lies flow like wine too.
18
Old Staghorn Sumac
1
I have been to Franklin Pierce's grave in Concord N.H. The sign at the edge of the cemetery notes the Pierce is buried there and give a short bio, but totally omits that he was President. I think that they are ashamed of his term in that office.
5
I'm going rogue and picking the Dragon Blood Tree. It's leaves remind me of Trump's hairstyle and the name is quite fitting. It should be planted across America as a silent protest against this lunatic administration.
3
Certainly not a tree that has a lot of pith. So, maybe something citrusy...say, an orange tree, maybe? Old Orange blossom, then.
1
Trump, as did Jackson, is busy developing his own Trail of Tears. Those affected will be both immigrants and the poor working class in this country,
6
Love the list of tree names. How 'bout e) Ole Igotwood?
3
Giving Trump a tree nickname is an insult to trees everywhere. I would simply call him Trump The Stump, in honor of his destruction of trees, denial of climate change and, if you have mind similar to his, in honor of his physical attributes. His hands, Gail, his hands.
11
Come on, Gail! No comparison between Old Hickory and the rating machine DJT can be complete without drawing attention to both men's utter contempt and disregard for the separation of powers, particularly as it relates to the judiciary. Let's hope DJT's attention span snapped before catching wind of the time Jackson said with regards to a Supreme Court ruling, "John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it." If Trump finds precedent for ignoring the courts, and failing to enforce the courts' rulings, we will have even more reason to be afraid than we already have.
6
Old Rotted Wood? Old Hickory Schtick? Old Plywood? Old Laminated Oak? Or maybe something more contemporary Old Yeller? Old Deluded Guy? Old Fat Billionaire? Old Swamp Gas? or the ever reliable Old Fart?
22
Andrew Jackson was the guy who was the white immigrant who took away people's land by imminent domain and many many lies.
Interesting that Baby Hands Trump sees himself as "related" to AJ.
He clearly got told his comic book version by spinmeister Bannon.
Interesting that Baby Hands Trump sees himself as "related" to AJ.
He clearly got told his comic book version by spinmeister Bannon.
9
Poison Oak. Although it is not a tree but an irritant vine, it applies to our current invasive infiltrator in the White House.
25
Please don't slander dogwoods -- they are graceful, honest American trees, unlike 45.
12
I pick D, Old Ornamental Dogwood; unless he actually builds the border wall.
In that case, I'd choose: Old Giant Rhubarb.
In that case, I'd choose: Old Giant Rhubarb.
"During the Revolution, while Jackson was a teenager, he served as a messenger for the rebels, was captured by the British, spent time in a prison camp, lost two brothers and his mother. The kinship here would be … that military-themed boarding school?"
No, it was Trump avoiding getting a sexually transmitted disease while sleeping around in the 1980s - his own personal Vietnam for which he should have receive the Medal of Honor.
No, it was Trump avoiding getting a sexually transmitted disease while sleeping around in the 1980s - his own personal Vietnam for which he should have receive the Medal of Honor.
4
Swamp white oak.
Swamp - his preferred location. (Rising seas will make Mar-a-Largo a swamp.)
White - how he plans to make America great again.
Oak - more expensive than pine because growers invest a lot of time tending the tree.
Swamp - his preferred location. (Rising seas will make Mar-a-Largo a swamp.)
White - how he plans to make America great again.
Oak - more expensive than pine because growers invest a lot of time tending the tree.
2
Quercia alba (white oak) is a magnificent tree. Trump does not deserve the name. He's more like athracnose, a fungus that damages white oaks.
5
I think we should go with "Old Particle Board."
It's fake, unreliable, and cheap. The people who use it mold it to whatever they like.
He's not good enough for an actual tree or real wood.
It's fake, unreliable, and cheap. The people who use it mold it to whatever they like.
He's not good enough for an actual tree or real wood.
18
Maybe"Blackberry"? Hard to eradicate, a nuisance that gets into everything in the garden, prickly, spreads its fingers (creepers) everywhere...
3
Thank you Gail,
I do not know how many other Canadians started sing the the Three Dead Trolls and a Baggie song The War of 1812 but many of us are starting to wonder what it will cost to build a wall and others studying Gandhi and Mandela.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QET4x2CzDOQ
I do not know how many other Canadians started sing the the Three Dead Trolls and a Baggie song The War of 1812 but many of us are starting to wonder what it will cost to build a wall and others studying Gandhi and Mandela.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QET4x2CzDOQ
4
Does the tree nickname have to be from a native tree? The best one I can think of for him is from a non-native: the upas tree. It's full of poison, you know.
3
The Wizard of Oz Scarecrow seems a more appropriate match for DJT than Old Hickory or any one else.
“Scarecrow: I haven't got a brain... only straw.
Dorothy: How can you talk if you haven't got a brain?
Scarecrow: I don't know... But some people without brains do an awful lot of talking... don't they?
Dorothy: Yes, I guess you're right.”
“Scarecrow: I haven't got a brain... only straw.
Dorothy: How can you talk if you haven't got a brain?
Scarecrow: I don't know... But some people without brains do an awful lot of talking... don't they?
Dorothy: Yes, I guess you're right.”
12
Russian Red Pomegranate Tree
4
I would have to go with clear-cut. Although the term describes a lack of trees rather than a specific tree, it is a good metaphor for Trump's presidency so far.
3
So what's the point of denigrating our past presidents, or even our current one?
How often are reminded that Martin Luther King was an adulterer, or that he routinely carried a gun (liberal sacrilege!)?
How often are reminded that Martin Luther King was an adulterer, or that he routinely carried a gun (liberal sacrilege!)?
Dr. King was a flawed mortal who had soaring spiritual and ethical ambitions for humanity. He did great things for our country. Trump is a flawed mortal who lacks the ability to care about anyone other than himself. He is doing terrible things to our country.
12
If nominations are open, I suggest 'Old Mock Orange.' Technically, the mock orange is a shrub, but it seems fitting.
4
Trump is a sui generis, and I hope it stays that way. One Trump is more than enough.
3
Don't insult trees by nicknaming Trump after one. I could suggest old Skunk Cabbage but it is too pretty of a plant for Trump. How about old bull thistle or tumbling Trump tumble weed, a rootless dead plant shoved around by the wind clogging up fences and grills on cars, a usless import not good for anything aside from being invasive.
3
Lemon tree? Orange tree? Old Hemlock?
1
Instead of a tree, it should be a noxious weed like Yellow Star Thistle. In the west here, we have to burn large swaths of land to get rid of it. It kills horses and cattle and kills the native plants. It was accidentally introduced to the U.S. through contaminated seed. It multiplies prolifically and is very hard to get rid of. Trump really is in a separate class of his own, so a tree just is not appropriate. Since Trump cultivates his racists and Neo-Nazi following I think that a reference to a yellow star is also appropriate as that is what the nazis demanded the jews wear in WW2, so perhaps it is only appropriate that we return the favor.
5
Gail,
As usual your chronicle of U.S. politics is very entertaining. I see his interest in Andrew Jackson and visit to the Hermitage as well as his recent visit to the African American museum as a good sign that President Trump in sensing his public policy role and an attempt to grow, not just swell, in the job.
Clearly, he is not ready for the Presidency but if he begins to use his position to educate himself on the history of the country and the world and the enormous changes that have come to society since our forebears first landed he has the potential of being a decent leader, albeit he has had a difficult start.
I am hoping that he will try channeling some of the modern leaders like FDR (Social Security), TR (Panama Canal), Harry Truman (Medicare), Dwight Eisenhower (Interstate Highways), John Kennedy,(Cuban Missile Crisis and the Apollo Program), Nixon (EPA, Opening China).
Certainly, he should invite the living Presidents, Jimmy Carter, Bush 41, Clinton, Bush 43, and Barack Obama for a week-end serious policy leadership conference with plenty of time on the agenda for personal exchanges. I think he could learn a lot and we might have a chance to restore America's respect that we have lost since the 2016 election.
As usual your chronicle of U.S. politics is very entertaining. I see his interest in Andrew Jackson and visit to the Hermitage as well as his recent visit to the African American museum as a good sign that President Trump in sensing his public policy role and an attempt to grow, not just swell, in the job.
Clearly, he is not ready for the Presidency but if he begins to use his position to educate himself on the history of the country and the world and the enormous changes that have come to society since our forebears first landed he has the potential of being a decent leader, albeit he has had a difficult start.
I am hoping that he will try channeling some of the modern leaders like FDR (Social Security), TR (Panama Canal), Harry Truman (Medicare), Dwight Eisenhower (Interstate Highways), John Kennedy,(Cuban Missile Crisis and the Apollo Program), Nixon (EPA, Opening China).
Certainly, he should invite the living Presidents, Jimmy Carter, Bush 41, Clinton, Bush 43, and Barack Obama for a week-end serious policy leadership conference with plenty of time on the agenda for personal exchanges. I think he could learn a lot and we might have a chance to restore America's respect that we have lost since the 2016 election.
Oh, please. He's not educating himself. Bannon gave him a "U.S. Presidents" coloring book. And visiting the African American Museum was a photo op. Trump is a man who does not learn. Respect for the U.S. will return when he is impeached.
13
There is no way Trump can be compared to any past President no matter how low the ratings. There is nothing presidential about him nor is there any consistency of thought or purpose.
I would like to think that past presidents did had least have some real concern or feeling for the office even while being second rate.
I am sure when this presidency is history it will be but an asterisk. There may not be any re-rankings for Pierce or Buchanan unless a footnote to Trump takes last place.
As for which tree, I think a 'Trumpstump' would be more appropriate since nothing healthy would grow but destruction of roots would have occurred.
Oh Gail, thanks for finding humor in this. The irony is that Trump cannot compare himself to any admired figure. That dog won't hunt.
I would like to think that past presidents did had least have some real concern or feeling for the office even while being second rate.
I am sure when this presidency is history it will be but an asterisk. There may not be any re-rankings for Pierce or Buchanan unless a footnote to Trump takes last place.
As for which tree, I think a 'Trumpstump' would be more appropriate since nothing healthy would grow but destruction of roots would have occurred.
Oh Gail, thanks for finding humor in this. The irony is that Trump cannot compare himself to any admired figure. That dog won't hunt.
10
My God! Associating Lying Trump with any historical figure is a joke.
When the final historical account arrives, Lying Trump will be on his own setting example as the lowest denominator.
Lying Trump being president is an accidental mistake.
If it lasts less than or four years, it is we all hope for.
If it lasts more than four years, then it confirms the fact that there are enough truly stupid Americans.
For we who don't deserve Lying Trump, we cannot help but live with the mistake of enough stupid people.
When the final historical account arrives, Lying Trump will be on his own setting example as the lowest denominator.
Lying Trump being president is an accidental mistake.
If it lasts less than or four years, it is we all hope for.
If it lasts more than four years, then it confirms the fact that there are enough truly stupid Americans.
For we who don't deserve Lying Trump, we cannot help but live with the mistake of enough stupid people.
12
Jackson was a racist and a murderer of Native Americans. There's a reason he was known as "Bloody Andrew Jackson" a man hated by everyone except slave owners, whose interests he represented. Trump is at least as bad, since his plans may result in the deaths of many people and the economic enslavement of those in our society who are the most vulnerable. Figures that the present President would admire one of the nastiest and most reviled of his predecessors in that office. Maybe Trump will replace Jackson as the most disgusting President in history - he's making progress toward that end.
12
I question your history - Jackson was very popular with most Americans, both during his life and after his death. He was quite unpopular with Indians, the British, the Spanish, and other non-American groups but those facts just increased his popularity with the American people.
1
If sitting with an aide in business class is the closest Donald Trump has come to sharing hardship and deprivation with people, I wonder how he can pretend to understand the problems of the working class!
I did read up on the different kinds of woods mentioned here.
I think Old Slippery Elm is the closest. Trump's mind is slippery - incapable of making strong coherent arguments.
Old Gopherwood was used to make Noah's Ark. It must have been pretty strong and reliable. Trump is neither strong, nor reliable.
Old Hackberry is a loner. But Trump loves crowds - people who cheer him on for every lie uttered.
Ornamental Dogwood is useful in adding color to the yard. Trump does add color to our life, except that he makes us scared and fearful of the future.
I did read up on the different kinds of woods mentioned here.
I think Old Slippery Elm is the closest. Trump's mind is slippery - incapable of making strong coherent arguments.
Old Gopherwood was used to make Noah's Ark. It must have been pretty strong and reliable. Trump is neither strong, nor reliable.
Old Hackberry is a loner. But Trump loves crowds - people who cheer him on for every lie uttered.
Ornamental Dogwood is useful in adding color to the yard. Trump does add color to our life, except that he makes us scared and fearful of the future.
7
So we're finally hearing the excuse Trump fans will someday use to explain his evil policies to the historians: Our 45th president was "a product of his time." What terrible times they are, if he personifies them.
15
Hopefully, like William Henry Harrison who only lasted 31 days in office. Poor William Henry, though, contracted pneumonia. This one's demise will be entirely self-inflicted. You keep getting better and better, Gail.
11
..."Old Hemorrhoid"?
18
That photo is as ridiculous as George Bush in his Mission Accomplished flight suit.
Trump is as phony as a 3 dollar bill, or his own fake bone spurs that his doctor awarded him during Viet Nam so he could get out of military service. No matter, he got someone else to give him their Purple Heart.
This guy is hollow to the core. Whatever kind of" tree" Trump is, he is going to get struck by the lightening of US Law.
Trump is as phony as a 3 dollar bill, or his own fake bone spurs that his doctor awarded him during Viet Nam so he could get out of military service. No matter, he got someone else to give him their Purple Heart.
This guy is hollow to the core. Whatever kind of" tree" Trump is, he is going to get struck by the lightening of US Law.
21
This could be funny if it was not so sad.
7
Trump should be called "Old Buckthorn".
From the Minnesota DNR on invasive species on why buckthorn is such a problem.
Out-competes native plants for nutrients, light, and moisture
Degrades wildlife habitat
Threatens the future of forests, wetlands, prairies, and other natural habitats
Contributes to erosion by shading out other plants that grow on the forest floor
Serves as host to other pests
Forms an impenetrable layer of vegetation
Lacks "natural controls" like insects
Given the threat of Trump's administration to the majority of the U.S. population, the U.S. political system, the environment and the future of the planet; the impenetrable layer of lies produced by Trump; the host of right wing pests hosted by the Trump administration; and the exorbitant waste of tax payer resources devoted to maintaining Trump and family's ostentatious lifestyle, buckthorn is the perfect symbol for Trump.
From the Minnesota DNR on invasive species on why buckthorn is such a problem.
Out-competes native plants for nutrients, light, and moisture
Degrades wildlife habitat
Threatens the future of forests, wetlands, prairies, and other natural habitats
Contributes to erosion by shading out other plants that grow on the forest floor
Serves as host to other pests
Forms an impenetrable layer of vegetation
Lacks "natural controls" like insects
Given the threat of Trump's administration to the majority of the U.S. population, the U.S. political system, the environment and the future of the planet; the impenetrable layer of lies produced by Trump; the host of right wing pests hosted by the Trump administration; and the exorbitant waste of tax payer resources devoted to maintaining Trump and family's ostentatious lifestyle, buckthorn is the perfect symbol for Trump.
12
How about, "Old Fake Christmas Tree"? You take it out, shake off the dust, and look at what bad shape it's in. You're too lazy and too cheap to buy a new one. But you figure some tinsel and a few ornaments and no one will notice how old and sad it really is.
9
The answer as to what type of tree nickname should Mr. Trump have is relatively simple: willow. Difficulties arise, however, as to what particular species?
4
how about "The Billy Bush" ?
3
"...Imagining Donald Trump serving drinks at Applebee's..."
Way to kill a nice evening out, Gail.
Wouldn't leave a tip, and for sure wouldn't go back.
Way to kill a nice evening out, Gail.
Wouldn't leave a tip, and for sure wouldn't go back.
10
Trump is such a mishmash of ideas and "thoughts," loosely strung together, that his nickname should surely be Old Particleboard. Appears weighty but is junk through and through.
17
Interesting that all the talk of tax returns have subsided now that it has come to light that Trump paid a higher rate than President Obama, Mitt Romney and ..gasp Bernie Sanders. So now the MSM has to change tack and talk about something else.
1
That's one possible hypothesis. Another is that focus has changed to influential Republicans going on camera to express their disbelief in Trump's tweets that Obama "wiretapped" Trump Tower.
4
Tip of the iceberg my friend.
2
"Interesting that all the talk of tax returns have subsided now that it has come to light that Trump paid a higher rate than President Obama, Mitt Romney and ..gasp Bernie Sanders."
If, by "come to light", you mean leaked by Trump himself, then sure. 2005 is an aberration, otherwise, it wouldn't have seen the light of day.
If, by "come to light", you mean leaked by Trump himself, then sure. 2005 is an aberration, otherwise, it wouldn't have seen the light of day.
7
Well, with regards to Andrew Jackson we know a few things that would probably make any meeting between him and Donald Trump pretty interesting:
1. Trump is incapable of holding tongue and has no qualms about insulting veterans or spouses to win an argument. He is also prone to making wild, unfounded accusations in the heat of the moment.
2. Trump often exhibits a delusional belief that he has knowledge and skills making him superior to experts in any given field (including military matters), which makes him incapable of telling when he has bitten off more than he can chew.
AND
3. Andrew Jackson was not only a military man and an expert marksman, but a very accomplished duelist who reportedly fought in 103 separate duels (often over some insult to his wife) and kept a small arsenal of pistols at the ready for the specific purpose of officially challenging anyone who impugned his honor.
With these three facts in mind, I would pay good money to see Trump transported to the 1800s and see him run into Andrew Jackson.
1. Trump is incapable of holding tongue and has no qualms about insulting veterans or spouses to win an argument. He is also prone to making wild, unfounded accusations in the heat of the moment.
2. Trump often exhibits a delusional belief that he has knowledge and skills making him superior to experts in any given field (including military matters), which makes him incapable of telling when he has bitten off more than he can chew.
AND
3. Andrew Jackson was not only a military man and an expert marksman, but a very accomplished duelist who reportedly fought in 103 separate duels (often over some insult to his wife) and kept a small arsenal of pistols at the ready for the specific purpose of officially challenging anyone who impugned his honor.
With these three facts in mind, I would pay good money to see Trump transported to the 1800s and see him run into Andrew Jackson.
11
Let us hope that it is not the Trail of Tears that he most closely emulates.
7
The big difference between Trump and Jackson is that Jackson supported the immigrants (i.e. white people) and knocked off the native born, Trump the opposite. Oh and by the way when out at the Hermitage, did Trump pop by his hero's slave quarters?
6
Ms. Green derides "Zachary Taylor, who had done absolutely nothing but be a soldier. " Could not the same be said of Dwight D. Eisenhower, the last great man to serve in the presidency?
2
Trump uses his chain saw willy-nilly to cut off the limbs of a healthy country. Heedless to sound practice and with no interest in evidence or science, he hacks away until all that is left is firewood that fuels the flames of his rage.
3
Trump is a poser. Jackson was the racist architect of the Trail of Tears. I guess their alike in that Trump wants to exploit others for his own gain. Neither should be revered.
6
Like some sports "champions", Trump will always have an asterisk after his name on the list of presidents. He won't be "worst" because he isn't qualified to be judged on the same standards as our prior highest public servants.
3
Another pathetic attempt by Donald Trump to 'look presidential' this time by likening himself to Andrew Jackson. Too bad the similarities are based on the most negative qualities of the 7th president and not the positive.
5
If we're considering appropriate tree names for Dirty Don, here are several that I gleaned from a pretty exhaustive list, my favorites marked with an asterisk:
- Bully
- False Mangrove
- Chicken
- Coconut
- Monkey pot
- Finger cherry
- Nutmeg
- Poisonwood
* Prickly-ash
- Purpleheart (ironic, of course)
* Swamp Wattle
* Stinking Yew / Stinking Ceder (or simply Stink Tree)
* Poison Peach
- Tung Tree
* Wingnut
* Dense Logwood
- Bully
- False Mangrove
- Chicken
- Coconut
- Monkey pot
- Finger cherry
- Nutmeg
- Poisonwood
* Prickly-ash
- Purpleheart (ironic, of course)
* Swamp Wattle
* Stinking Yew / Stinking Ceder (or simply Stink Tree)
* Poison Peach
- Tung Tree
* Wingnut
* Dense Logwood
8
Definitely Swamp Wattle.
9
Andrew Jackson had his faults, but I believe that if he had the ability to meet Trump, a good old fashioned caning wood ensue!
6
As for a name: I suggest "Old Sourwood." There is such a tree, and I think it fits 45 perfectly.
3
If Trump were a tree I think he would be an ailanthus. It grows as a weed and smells like a substance that played a prominent role in a rumored Russian surveillance recording.
8
Old Hackberry works. The man continues to chip away at the fundamentals of our democracy, undermining every program that advances our common good. He represents our basest instincts. Andrew Jackson turned over in his grave yesterday.
6
Old Poison Ivy. It's not a tree, actually it strangles trees, but that makes it even more appropriate.
8
Poisonwood!
8
You leave out Jacky's rejection of the Supreme Court's order to stop deportation of the Cherokee nation. Hmmm... et tu Donald?
9
This man can't possibly be our President. Isn't he just playing one on TV?
No?
My God, are we in trouble!
No?
My God, are we in trouble!
6
How about "weeping willow"? Fits his cry baby persona and electire dysfunction.
5
Thanks Gail, I got a real laugh over Trump's statement at Jackson's home: “It was during the Revolution that Jackson first confronted and defied an arrogant elite. Does that sound familiar?” This from the man who appointed how many - 5 or more? - Goldman Sachs executives, Rex Tillerson and many others, and who lives in a gold tower, spending multi-millions of our tax dollars to support his lifestyle at Mar-l-Largo. The best example of complete hypocrisy in years.
As to tree names, I can't think of a tree I hate enough to bestow on Trump, but for the rest of us, perhaps Weeping Willow?
As to tree names, I can't think of a tree I hate enough to bestow on Trump, but for the rest of us, perhaps Weeping Willow?
6
As a teacher in New Mexico, I would cringe every time the rankings of state education systems or the ranking of the general wellbeing of children would come out. We'd gather with colleagues and sadly say, "Thank God for Alabama (or Nevada, Arizona, Louisiana or any of the one to five states that might have clocked in lower than us.)" Future presidents will indeed have Minority President Trump to provide that cushion at the bottom.
5
Collins seems to have forgotten that Jackson was a strong proponent of federal power over "states rights."
He's more of a termite, greedily devouring the forest and some don't notice the infestation until it's too late.
9
You left off Russian Olive, an "immigrant" tree that is a blight on the environment here in Colorado. Of course, olive is a lovely Mediterranean color, sometimes used to describe the healthy, sun-drenched skin of some people. So I looked on Google to see if there was such a thing as Russian Orange. Didn't find anything, but maybe we could just assert it exists as an alternative fact.
5
Trump's just bummed because he can't create his own "Trail of Tears". Actually, he can, and he already has in some ways. Just not in the way his hero A. Jackson has.
4
How absolutely nauseating to see this draft-dodging hypocrite saluting Jackson's grave, or saluting anyone, for that matter. He should be on his knees begging forgiveness. Or would his heel spur make that too painful?
4
Every time I see Trump saluting anyone it makes me ill. My blood pressure rises to the point I think I'm going to have a stroke. He will never be my President . I respect the office but never him. IMPEACH him now not later! SMSGT USAF Ret.
5
Donald Trump's presidency is actually just an image-burnishing plot by George W. Bush. Not saying I'm nostalgic, but recently W hasn't seemed nearly as bad as did at the time.
2
I want Trump to be like the unfortunate Ash trees. Soon to disappear.
7
Donnie seems to be a fan of lots of people he never met and are also dead. He knows little of American history other than maybe the robber baron era. His legacy will be that of a do nothing executive leaving a trail of broken bodies and governmental departments that will take years to fix. Think of some Corporate CEO's with a similar history and you get the picture.
3
You could try a Fringe tree (although on the fringe is really too close to reality for this guy) and its just a beautiful specimen tree, with elegant branch structure and glossy dark green leaves. Trump looks like a character from the Belgium Netflix series I'm watching, slightly ghoulish, bulbously fleshy with garish orange/pink/scarlet skin tones.
This presidency is an abomination. Of course, so was Jackson's.
This presidency is an abomination. Of course, so was Jackson's.
5
Any tree with a lot of bark.
8
So Jackson was a "product of his time" according to Trump. They have that in common. Trump is a product of empty, useless celebrity. By the way, we are all products of our time. But in our time we know right from wrong. Trump tries to explain away Jackson's racism towards Indians and Blacks. Jackson didn't believe the national government had a role in infrastructure and he hated the idea of a national bank. I would hazard a guess that the only things Trump knows about Jackson is what Steve Bannon has told him.
6
Your article brings to mind Molly Ivan's name for Bush 43, it was "Shrub."
It is sad she is gone, I would love to know what she would have to say about our current president.
Reading the comments, it would seem Stump is a popular choice for Donald.
It is sad she is gone, I would love to know what she would have to say about our current president.
Reading the comments, it would seem Stump is a popular choice for Donald.
11
The Trump tree? Channeling St Exupery's transcendent Little Prince, Trump is a baobab, who will take over and destroy the planet if not dealt with promptly.
3
What, no mention of Jackson's horrendous treatment of immigrants? And by immigrants I mean Native Americans that committed the crime of getting to the white man’s land before the white man. Get them outta there!
Very Trumpy.
Very Trumpy.
3
Well, would you look at that snappy salute Trump delivers. He's been practicing ever since he stole the presidency. It was easy for Trump since there is nothing he loves more than looking into a mirror, practicing: the scowl, the puckish lips, the smiling sneer, and the military salute. How he must have loved looking at himself and saluting, thinking 'I'll show that Obama how it's done'. Yeah, he'll show "that Obama" all right.
To his followers, Trump looks the part, whatever he wants to pretend to be. A rich and successful business "genius", a Reality TV schlock peddler, a presidential campaigner, leader of the Free World and CINC of the most powerful nation in history.
The problem is Trump only looks the part to his loyal poorly educated and extremely gullible followers. Trump is a poor person's idea of a rich person. All that glitters in not gold, except in Trumpworld. And then it's faux gold plating.
For someone who has lived 70 years, Trump knows very little outside of his Manhattan Madison Avenue bubble. He knows marketing. He knows how to sell ice cubes to Eskimos, ice cubes with the "Trump" brand on them. And he sure knows how to fool the foolish, the down and out American who frequents gambling casinos, OTB parlors, plays the Lottery. Those people are made for a snake oil purveyor like Trump. The question is: when will they realize they're being taken for a ride?
DD
Manhattan
To his followers, Trump looks the part, whatever he wants to pretend to be. A rich and successful business "genius", a Reality TV schlock peddler, a presidential campaigner, leader of the Free World and CINC of the most powerful nation in history.
The problem is Trump only looks the part to his loyal poorly educated and extremely gullible followers. Trump is a poor person's idea of a rich person. All that glitters in not gold, except in Trumpworld. And then it's faux gold plating.
For someone who has lived 70 years, Trump knows very little outside of his Manhattan Madison Avenue bubble. He knows marketing. He knows how to sell ice cubes to Eskimos, ice cubes with the "Trump" brand on them. And he sure knows how to fool the foolish, the down and out American who frequents gambling casinos, OTB parlors, plays the Lottery. Those people are made for a snake oil purveyor like Trump. The question is: when will they realize they're being taken for a ride?
DD
Manhattan
11
Jackson hated the press and even started his own newspaper while President so that he could get good press. If Twitter existed, Jackson could have saved himself the bother. By using Twitter, Trump is his own press. Unfortunately, he is so incapable of uttering a clear statement that his staff must spend countless taxpayer dollars providing post-publication editing. Jackson fought Clay and Calhoun who believed that states had the right to disapprove any federal law and therefore not to be bound to it. This idea was federalism on steroids as well as the germinal idea that led to secession and the Civil War. So Jackson can get points for winning that fight. Yet Jackson had no issue with slavery. Further, he forced a death march on Native American moving them out of Florida and Georgia on the Trail of Tears to Oklahoma. There is a certain similarity in Trump's wanting to force 11 million Mexican immigrants out of the country or to intern them while their cases are heard in court immigration proceedings. Jackson is accused of creating the imperial presidency. Never before had any President accrued onto himself such centralized power. Trump is trying to take that concept further into the dictator/demagogic presidency where he accrues onto himself all the power as well as being the final authority on what is real. He wants a world where Trump beliefs are the facts that everyone must accept. Jackson never went that far.
4
Trump no doubt unaware that when Jackson "battled centralized financial power" he almost destroyed the economy, and ruined tens of thousands of...common men. Farmers. It was a disaster.
3
Please don't malign the name of any tree to this presidency.
3
Trump will kick all of the previous presidents up a notch. George Bush will probably be relieved to get out of the cellar.
3
I'm just waiting to see what the "glorious destiny" it's supposedly time to "embrace " is. I get the bad feeling I don't want to know.
1
No doubt Trump will follow in Jackson's footsteps. Just as Jackson defeated the Brits in the War of 1812, so Trump will defeat the war cries of the Evil Empire of North Korea with a preemptive strike that will blast Kim into oblivion.
1
That situation is literally a gun pointed at America's head. Hopefully China can be persuaded to take care of the madman Kim in Pyongyang but if not then the U.S. must take action soon. We cannot permit the mortal danger of half the U.S. being vaporized in a nuclear attack from a rogue state in the Far East.
1
Jackson, like Trump, was notoriously thin-skinned who never, never forgot a slight. Some historians believe that Jackson's hatred of the Bank of the U.S. began years before he was president, when the institution wouldn't cash one of his checks in New Orleans.
Jackson, like Trump, professed support for the "common man" but preferred to associate, after election, with upper-class elites, the "billionaires" of his age.
Jackson relied on a clever assistant, Amos Kendall, to articulate his administration's policies. Trump has Steve Bannon's brain to pick.
Jackson, like Trump, was a racist who had no problem with the forced removal of Native Americans from Georgia and other states when their homeland--guaranteed by treaties with the U.S.--became coveted by greedy whites. (Gold had been discovered on tribal lands).
But there's one MAJOR difference between the two men which makes the entire comparison absurd: Jackson, even for his times, was sincerely respectful of women. Trump's opinion of women is well known. Had Trump lived back in the 1830s, Jackson most certainly would have recommended horsewhipping (and probably offered to do it himself).
Jackson, like Trump, professed support for the "common man" but preferred to associate, after election, with upper-class elites, the "billionaires" of his age.
Jackson relied on a clever assistant, Amos Kendall, to articulate his administration's policies. Trump has Steve Bannon's brain to pick.
Jackson, like Trump, was a racist who had no problem with the forced removal of Native Americans from Georgia and other states when their homeland--guaranteed by treaties with the U.S.--became coveted by greedy whites. (Gold had been discovered on tribal lands).
But there's one MAJOR difference between the two men which makes the entire comparison absurd: Jackson, even for his times, was sincerely respectful of women. Trump's opinion of women is well known. Had Trump lived back in the 1830s, Jackson most certainly would have recommended horsewhipping (and probably offered to do it himself).
4
There is no previous President to whom to compare Trump. The Jackson Trump comparison is utterly ridiculous in every way.
1
Trump's not a tree; he's Stumpy. Ren refuses to sing along.
3
... just been listening to the Donald's "conversation" with Tucker Carlson on Fox -- folks, the 48% has elected a US President that cannot speak English. If he's given something to read, he can pass as a fourth-grader reporting on a book he hasn't read; without notes, he pronounces random words in a defensive tone obviously selected because he knows he's going to have to lie, but he can't formulate sentences.
Let us hope the North Koreans will be nice to us.
Let us hope the North Koreans will be nice to us.
5
Gail
Please don't insult either the noble hickory nor the honorable former President.
Anyone familiar with NYC flora would agree the most suitable name is Alanthus. This tree is widesprad in New York; it grows fast, has very soft wood, is truly a weed, formerly treasured, now avoided because it has a very foul smell. In fact the Chinese common name for it is choucun: stinky tree.
L
Please don't insult either the noble hickory nor the honorable former President.
Anyone familiar with NYC flora would agree the most suitable name is Alanthus. This tree is widesprad in New York; it grows fast, has very soft wood, is truly a weed, formerly treasured, now avoided because it has a very foul smell. In fact the Chinese common name for it is choucun: stinky tree.
L
3
As far as trees go, I would add Invader Bamboo, which continues its march no matter what unlucky conquered people do to stop it.
1
Trump is like the emerald ash. Bugs are infesting and destroying these trees across the country, just like Trump is infesting and destroying our country.
4
The Osage Orange tree, also known as Horse Apple, with a short trunk and round-topped canopy, thick, fleshy roots covered with bright orange bark.
Horse Apple fits trump perfectly.
Horse Apple fits trump perfectly.
2
In answer to your tree question, I suggest last year's left over Walmart fake Christmas tree. Lots of lights, bells and whistle's, but in the end just plastic. Oh, and just for fun, make it orange.
6
Andrew Jackson was also the president who let people from the street roam around the White House. Some rode horses in to do what horses do. Trump can be compared favorably with those horses.
Trump is a uniquely awful President. The big orange cheese stands alone in his awfulness. George W. Bush can now breathe a sigh of relief, and all the rest vying for worst President ever, can rest easy in their graves.
I would not want to disgrace any tree by attaching its name to him.
I would not want to disgrace any tree by attaching its name to him.
3
Any tree that leaves.
12
The picture of Trump saluting sums it up. He is play acting being patriotic. Phony. I am no fan of Andrew Jackson but had Jackson and Trump been contemporaries, Jackson would have had one name for Trump - charlatan.
5
Gail Collins
You have outdone yourself with this piece. I have nothing to add because you so eloquently said it all and kept me laughing about that which lately makes me angry or sad. You have managed to do what therapists across the nation are trying to do with the overload of patients they suddenly have.
You have outdone yourself with this piece. I have nothing to add because you so eloquently said it all and kept me laughing about that which lately makes me angry or sad. You have managed to do what therapists across the nation are trying to do with the overload of patients they suddenly have.
5
The greatest challenge Donald Trump faces is that he simply did not win the election by having people vote for him because they supported him. Not only did he not win the popular vote, anyone who has talked about voting last November that I know either voted for him because he was not Hillary Clinton, or that he was the republican candidate. If citizens honestly stated why they voted as they did, much less than the total counted votes would have been an endorsement of him, his convoluted "policies" or his ability to put his cast of billionaires and warlocks in his administration. He is working to a very small number of actual supporters, all of whom could not name Jackson as one of our Presidents.
1
Another similarity is that Jackson's first presidential win was accomplished by the 2/3 rule which gave southern (slave) states more weight in the electoral college then northern (non-slave) states. The GOP has actually improved on that situation with their voter suppression laws. Disenfranchised blacks now count 3/3 in the EC weighting of southern states.
2
I would say he is more like a termite, slowly eating away from the inside out. You know it's there, you see the telltale signs; but most don't realize how bad the damage is until the whole house collapses.
3
"It was during the Revolution that Jackson first confronted and defied an arrogant elite. Does that sound familiar?”
Yes, unfortunately it does. It's a perfect description of you, Mr. Trump. Many of us have never witnessed the level of arrogance exhibited by you during your speeches and confused rants marked by your "faux-pouts" of unbearable deservedness. Well, there is Newt to pick on. The fact that you portray yourself as a non-elite while exhibiting the exact opposite with your gold-plated lifestyle only underscores your lack of awareness and the level of your disturbance.
Yes, unfortunately it does. It's a perfect description of you, Mr. Trump. Many of us have never witnessed the level of arrogance exhibited by you during your speeches and confused rants marked by your "faux-pouts" of unbearable deservedness. Well, there is Newt to pick on. The fact that you portray yourself as a non-elite while exhibiting the exact opposite with your gold-plated lifestyle only underscores your lack of awareness and the level of your disturbance.
4
This military wanna be that we call our president apparently learned one thing at military school - how to salute, which he does with disgusting arrogance at every opportunity. I would say his tree is a stump.
As for Andrew Jackson, why is there no mention of his signing the Indian Removal Act, the most glaring commonality to DJT. Racial bigotry.
As for Trump, this statement in Detroit might be one of the most ignorant statements he has ever uttered, setting aside the fact that only 38 of the 42 words quoted were monosyllabic and Flesch Kincaid gives it a readability level of 1.35. In other words, a child of 6 stands a good chance of reading and speaking at a higher level than our president.
“They say my election was most similar to his, 1828 — that’s a long time ago. Usually, they go back like to this one or that one, 12 years ago, 16. I mean, 1828, that’s a long way, that’s a long time ago.”
As for Andrew Jackson, why is there no mention of his signing the Indian Removal Act, the most glaring commonality to DJT. Racial bigotry.
As for Trump, this statement in Detroit might be one of the most ignorant statements he has ever uttered, setting aside the fact that only 38 of the 42 words quoted were monosyllabic and Flesch Kincaid gives it a readability level of 1.35. In other words, a child of 6 stands a good chance of reading and speaking at a higher level than our president.
“They say my election was most similar to his, 1828 — that’s a long time ago. Usually, they go back like to this one or that one, 12 years ago, 16. I mean, 1828, that’s a long way, that’s a long time ago.”
3
Do you think Russia might have sabotaged the election to help Jackson into office? That's my unit of measure. Nicholas I was an imperialist so it's possible. I think Trump might rather be compared to him - he also hated the Press and was pretty corrupt, and into autocracy. He probably stiffed his contractors, too.
2
Similar to a tree while much beloved by dogs, I would suggest the Red Tied Hydrant.
4
Jackson served as Congressman, Senator, state Supreme Court judge and US Army general before being elected President. Trump's sole distinction is that he's the only guy in the world to go bankrupt owning casinos.
11
None of those trees. The locust tree, on which the needle-sharp thorns also have thorns, none of which you realize until you touch it, until it's too late.
5
I vote for one of those plastic palm trees one sees in the mall. Maybe add some twinkle lights to class it up.
8
He would be a Hackberry, they are useless. Mostly, people cut down hackberries just to get rid of them. Occasionally, the wood is claimed for crates or pallets; sometimes it gets burned as firewood. Even the name is an artifact of obliviousness, just like him.
2
The challenge with giving Trump a tree nickname is the disparagement to the tree. All trees have some redeeming value whether shade, generating oxygen, stream stabilization, etc. Despite my objective efforts, I have found nothing redeeming about Mr. Trump; therefore, my answer to your question would be "none of the above".
2
Interesting Jackson was captured. Thought Trump preferred soldiers who don't get captured.
3
I wonder how long it took Bannon to teach President Bonespurs how to salute.
3
Well, both are outsized racists. Jackson pushed the Cherokee down the Trail of Tears. I only wonder what Trump and Bannon are dreaming of doing. Their Muslim-smearing "travel ban", dog-whistle white supremacy, and campaign of hatred against Latinos doesn't bode well for those of us who believe in equality and diversity in our democracy.
3
No way he thought of this himself:
"Trump did say approvingly that Jackson 'battled the centralized financial power that brought influence at our citizens’ expense.'”
He doesn't know from citizens.
As for the tree: I look to Dr. Seuss. The Truffula Tree, from "The Lorax" Except Trump wouldn't get the irony, nor would he see his tuft of orange hair as fanciful.
"Trump did say approvingly that Jackson 'battled the centralized financial power that brought influence at our citizens’ expense.'”
He doesn't know from citizens.
As for the tree: I look to Dr. Seuss. The Truffula Tree, from "The Lorax" Except Trump wouldn't get the irony, nor would he see his tuft of orange hair as fanciful.
3
Zachary Taylor made his political bones helping the United States prosecute a completely unjust war against Mexico, so yes, there is some commonality there.
But, to his credit, and even while a soldier, Taylor clearly came to understand the immorality and stupidity of that war and his actions.
Maybe then Taylor and Trump don't share so much in common.
But, to his credit, and even while a soldier, Taylor clearly came to understand the immorality and stupidity of that war and his actions.
Maybe then Taylor and Trump don't share so much in common.
Mel Ayton, in his book Plotting to Kill the President, writes: “Jackson was ill-tempered, a fierce hater, unbending, dictatorial and vindictive.” It's no wonder that Donald Trump admires him.
1
I would never insult a tree, or even a stump
By comparing it to Donald Trump
Only a less noble plant would do
Such as parasites like mistletoe or kudzu
By comparing it to Donald Trump
Only a less noble plant would do
Such as parasites like mistletoe or kudzu
3
I imagine the Trump followers and even Republicans in Congress were as upset with President Obama as I am now with Trump. But, I am trying to be objective --- seeing the policies Trump is rolling out I see nothing in them for his populists following and so much in them for the 1%. Yes, he is throwing his followers some soft policies---tough on immigrants, buying big cars again, saving a few thousand jobs here and there---but, at the same time leaving those same voters with bad water, bad air, pending wars their sons and daughters will fight, deteriorating public schools, and no health care. Watching those fans of Trump jump and down, and fist pump, at his rally last night I guess makes you feel good---tell it like it is Donald...but, the rally will end, and these folks will have to return home to a quality of life that will get worse by the day.
2
“We have been told that [...] he is an energetic man, prone by nature and by habit to the use of force, covetous of power, and a despot by taste. [...]
He tramples on his personal enemies whenever they cross his path with a facility which no former President ever enjoyed; he takes upon himself the responsibility of measures which no one before him would have ventured to attempt: he even treats the national representatives with disdain approaching to insult. […]
A man of a violent temper and mediocre talents, no one circumstance in the whole course of his career ever proved that he is qualified to govern a free people, and indeed the majority of the enlightened classes of the Union has always been opposed to him.”
- De Tocqueville,
portraying President Andrew Jackson in 1835.
He tramples on his personal enemies whenever they cross his path with a facility which no former President ever enjoyed; he takes upon himself the responsibility of measures which no one before him would have ventured to attempt: he even treats the national representatives with disdain approaching to insult. […]
A man of a violent temper and mediocre talents, no one circumstance in the whole course of his career ever proved that he is qualified to govern a free people, and indeed the majority of the enlightened classes of the Union has always been opposed to him.”
- De Tocqueville,
portraying President Andrew Jackson in 1835.
6
Trump would never be a tree, he would be the invasive kudzu vine:
Kudzu was planted in attempts to stop the erosion of soil - Trump was planted in attempts to stop the erosion of white male domination;
Kudzu rapidly blankets trees and blocks sunlight and they die - Trump rapidly strangles civil rights & health care, causing untimely deaths;
Kudzu releases carbon stored in soil into the atmosphere - Trump has welcomed neo-Nazis, who used to have to hide underground with their horrid beliefs, up from the dirt and into the White House, and he is destroying the EPA's mandate to protect our environment, which will accelerate global warming, and
Kudzu does not disappear from just ripping out the vines, the crown beneath the soil has to be cut out - Trump and his ilk will not disappear until we completely remove the crown's (Putin's) interference in our elections.
Kudzu was planted in attempts to stop the erosion of soil - Trump was planted in attempts to stop the erosion of white male domination;
Kudzu rapidly blankets trees and blocks sunlight and they die - Trump rapidly strangles civil rights & health care, causing untimely deaths;
Kudzu releases carbon stored in soil into the atmosphere - Trump has welcomed neo-Nazis, who used to have to hide underground with their horrid beliefs, up from the dirt and into the White House, and he is destroying the EPA's mandate to protect our environment, which will accelerate global warming, and
Kudzu does not disappear from just ripping out the vines, the crown beneath the soil has to be cut out - Trump and his ilk will not disappear until we completely remove the crown's (Putin's) interference in our elections.
8
Trees, struggling everywhere with deforestation, increasing human population, over cutting, slash lumbering, a desire for precious first growth lumber, toxic air and water, acid rain, surface mining and hill topping, increased pest invasions, climate change, devastating fires and floods - all caused or contributed to by the activities of human beings...
should not have to take on the added stress of being compared to one of the most sadly - and badly - mutated examples of the species already pressuring them into extinction.
should not have to take on the added stress of being compared to one of the most sadly - and badly - mutated examples of the species already pressuring them into extinction.
4
Andrew Jackson created the Trail of Tears in which the Cherokee nation was force marched to Oklahoma . Thousands died along the way after being robbed of their land and property in northern Georgia, and western North Carolina. The Cherokees were the only indigenous people to make an attempt to blend in with the white men who eventually stole their property .
Jackson was a war hero and slave holder like jeffersonwho held an abiding hatred of anyone nonwhite. He was a man of the people though it depended upon which people you wer and in this Trump has similarities. Perhaps Trump is Jackson without a spine, more like a weed than any tree.
Jackson was a war hero and slave holder like jeffersonwho held an abiding hatred of anyone nonwhite. He was a man of the people though it depended upon which people you wer and in this Trump has similarities. Perhaps Trump is Jackson without a spine, more like a weed than any tree.
146
Thanks for this reminder. We have a painting depicting the Trail of Tears and it is a constant reminder of the inhumanity of the time and the fact that we appear to have learned little since. And speaking of weeds, how about Poison Oak, for this man is indeed poison.
6
Old Particle Board!
19
And like Jackson, his legacy will include a trail of tears.
17
How about the White Pine?
You know, pining for that time long ago when we were all Christians and men ruled. The White part needs no explanation.
You know, pining for that time long ago when we were all Christians and men ruled. The White part needs no explanation.
15
Folks, I just hate it when Collins ends a column like this:
"During Trump’s second week in office he started a review of an Obama rule requiring investment brokers to put their clients’ interest first. Do you think Andy would have approved? Just asking."
You know who's going to answer it, don't you?
"During Trump’s second week in office he started a review of an Obama rule requiring investment brokers to put their clients’ interest first. Do you think Andy would have approved? Just asking."
You know who's going to answer it, don't you?
2
Maclura Pomifera - the osage orange
short trunks
round-topped canopies
thick, fleshy roots covered with bright orange bark
short trunks
round-topped canopies
thick, fleshy roots covered with bright orange bark
10
Is it just me, or aren't US Presidents usually too busy with pressing business of the day to attend and event like this? Oh wait, I forgot....
10
Thought ya'll might like to know of the 108 slave accounts of singular survival, my family is stained by the chains of Andrew Jackson. His account was published in 1948 by the great Fred Douglass. Don't tell Donald he's late.
http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/jacksona/menu.html
http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/jacksona/menu.html
7
Old Siberian Fir
8
Crab apple.
9
Osage orange, hard and crooked.
7
Who is Trump like? How about Bush/Cheney, the dynamic duo that got us into the Iraq disaster? He really combines the worst of both men.
5
Osage orange?
3
Kudzu.
Bittersweet.
Both are invasive species which strangle their host plants.
Bittersweet.
Both are invasive species which strangle their host plants.
8
When you really think about it, Trump has made a living by putting his name on things, like buildings, golf courses, colleges casinos, steaks, ties, airlines. The brand's the thing.
And now. . . Trumpcare. He doesn't give a darn about the QUALITY of the thing that bears his name. Just get the name out there and collect millions of dollars. It's the American Dream come true.
Andrew Jackson is turning over in his grave just about now. About the only thing Trump has in common with Jackson is. . . Well, actually he has nothing in common with Jackson.
And now. . . Trumpcare. He doesn't give a darn about the QUALITY of the thing that bears his name. Just get the name out there and collect millions of dollars. It's the American Dream come true.
Andrew Jackson is turning over in his grave just about now. About the only thing Trump has in common with Jackson is. . . Well, actually he has nothing in common with Jackson.
4
He has promotion of white supremacy in common with Jackson. And wild hair. That's two things.
4
Andrew Jackson had a fierce and murderous sense of honor when it came to women, especially his wife, Rachel. He would have looked at Donald Trump's behavior with disgust and after saying so publicly, received a predictably juvenile itweet from The Donald -- to which Jackson would have then invited Trump to a duel and if Trump found the nerve to show up, killed him. As for what tree Trump resembles, does the pussy willow count?
13
Gail, to answer your quiz question, Trump is a manchineel, in Spanish known as "manzanilla de la muerte" or translated, "little apple of death."
His hands and mind are little, he dangles apples of white supremacy and Kremlin connections, over his deranged disciples, and what he really delivers is the death of the republic, death of freedom for immigrants and refugees, death of the environment, death of all the necessary and functioning branches of government. Trump's desecrates and desiccates all that fundamentally makes America an Eden. He is the serpent in the tree, offering his followers the rotten apple of lies and deceit.
His hands and mind are little, he dangles apples of white supremacy and Kremlin connections, over his deranged disciples, and what he really delivers is the death of the republic, death of freedom for immigrants and refugees, death of the environment, death of all the necessary and functioning branches of government. Trump's desecrates and desiccates all that fundamentally makes America an Eden. He is the serpent in the tree, offering his followers the rotten apple of lies and deceit.
11
The Whomping Willow. Lashes out blindly, lives around glitzy towers, and there is no evidence to support it's existence.
2
"Quick question: What kind of tree nickname should Donald Trump have?"
Is [breath mint] a tree?
[PS] Have to give that company a break, right?
Is [breath mint] a tree?
[PS] Have to give that company a break, right?
Maybe the next best thing to Trump serving drinks at Applebee's is cleaning toilets in prison. That's what I want to see. Some true accountability for this man who has never experienced one moment of it in his entire life. And that means, going to prison in humiliation. Then Jared can have something more in common with Ivanka: both fathers serving time.
11
Jackson, through the Indian Removal Act of 1830, initiated the "Trail of Tears" that drove the Cherokee and other Native Americans and free slaves off of their land and forced them to relocate in Oklahoma. The Act allowed the white population to steal their land. Thousands perished. Of course Trump sees the racist Jackson as a role model. Trump likely longs be a modern-day Jackson, he may soon be.
6
Another snooty, snide article. It's so tiring to have the continual whining. When will the NYT and the rest of the "intellectual elite" media get out and speak with real people? Wah Wah Wah Try listening to what he says without picking and parsing every word looking for a trivial misspeak. My view of Obama was - loved everything he said but hated everything he did.
Another Deplorable
Another Deplorable
not deplorable... despicable.
2
Among Jackson's most aggregious faults is the infamous Trail Of Tears involving the destruction of the great Cherokee Nation. Makes sense that Trump would see him as someone to admire.
7
Last fall before the election, I was telling my son of my fear that Trump would be elected. He tried to reassure me by saying that this country had survived Jackson and could survive Trump(one of his majors was in history and he is in the military).
The comment on NYT readers was a bit off. Where I live in central PA there are a number of people who came from this state originally or nearby West Virginia (in most cases coal country) left for military service, school and their careers. In many cases they have lived and worked all over the world so they are well acquainted with the world out side US borders. There are different groups that meet several time a month for either lectures or discussions and perhaps a meal. Do not think that everyone lives in a bubble, many of us try very hard to avoid that. By the way politically we are a mix and perhaps a bit more moderate than most.
The comment on NYT readers was a bit off. Where I live in central PA there are a number of people who came from this state originally or nearby West Virginia (in most cases coal country) left for military service, school and their careers. In many cases they have lived and worked all over the world so they are well acquainted with the world out side US borders. There are different groups that meet several time a month for either lectures or discussions and perhaps a meal. Do not think that everyone lives in a bubble, many of us try very hard to avoid that. By the way politically we are a mix and perhaps a bit more moderate than most.
1
I always get a chuckle out of Gail's columns. Today, however, I burst out laughing before even reading it, just looking at the accompanying photo. Hilarious!
4
Warren Gamlaiel Harding comes to mind. He was famously corrupt (Teapot Dome), a libertine (sex with a female admirer in a White House closet) and no fan of intellectual pursuits (not a big reader).
He was famous for tortured syntax, sentence structure that could not be parsed and a diction/speaking style that was styled 'Gamalielese' by no less than H. L. Mencken, whose saying, "Nobody ever lost money betting against the intelligence of the American electorate," became unaccountably popular and oft-quoted recently for reasons that escape me at present.
Trumplish is the new Gamalieliese.
As for trees, the crab apple comes to mind. Trees of course do not Tweet, but the birds that nest in them do.
He was famous for tortured syntax, sentence structure that could not be parsed and a diction/speaking style that was styled 'Gamalielese' by no less than H. L. Mencken, whose saying, "Nobody ever lost money betting against the intelligence of the American electorate," became unaccountably popular and oft-quoted recently for reasons that escape me at present.
Trumplish is the new Gamalieliese.
As for trees, the crab apple comes to mind. Trees of course do not Tweet, but the birds that nest in them do.
5
But Harding had some government experience and the good sense to die in office.
2
True, he was governor of Ohio, for two terms I believe and died under mysterious circumstances in San Francisco after attending the theatre.
What the Electoral College giveth, the left aortic ventricle taketh away. 45, I understand, is a big fan of Mickey D's.
What the Electoral College giveth, the left aortic ventricle taketh away. 45, I understand, is a big fan of Mickey D's.
1
The possibility of comparing the Dear Leader to a tree is utterly inappropriate and will continue to be so until he does something useful for society, such as breathing in carbon dioxide and exhaling oxygen.
11
"...you have to love imagining Donald Trump winding up serving drinks at Applebee’s."
Are you kidding? If the customer was an attractive woman (preferably foreign), I'd worry he'd put something in her drink and then grab...oh, wait, this is the New York Times.
Are you kidding? If the customer was an attractive woman (preferably foreign), I'd worry he'd put something in her drink and then grab...oh, wait, this is the New York Times.
4
Old Bradford Pear: It's invasive, it stinks and it falls apart at the least provocation.
5
I go with Old Hackberry. That's my vote!
2
A few miles south of us runs the Trail of Tears as it passes Trail of Tears State Park. Whenever my wife and I drive through the area we remark on the history of the native peoples who suffered so greatly at the hands of "Old Hickory." Close to 200 years after the fact, no amounts of rain nor snow nor present-day hagiography have been able to dim the facts of the pain and death meted out and running through this place.
And Trump's just getting started.
And Trump's just getting started.
7
Gail, trees are far too beautiful, store carbon and give us oxygen to breathe. Trump on the other hand stores fat and pollutes the earth with his rants and tweets. Given his sordid sexual history maybe we could call him "Old Hickey".
2
Forget the trees. How about OLD KUDZU. A noxious weed that spreads like crazy chocking out native vegetation. Or maybe TRUMP THE STUMP just because it rhymes.
6
How about "Old Log" When you look underneath all sorts of creepy crawlies go scurrying away from the light.
5
For those interested in pointy-headed intellectual stuff Old Hickory was a rabid racist, slaveholder, and prime mover of genocide inflicted on American Indians. Also of note he abolished the Bank of the United States (think Federal Reserve). This set off a brief boom followed by the first major financial crash in American history. Just saying.
10
How about calling Trump "Old deadwood"?
6
Old White Oak.
Heavy. Rot resistant. No one pays attention to it until it falls.
Totally fitting.
Heavy. Rot resistant. No one pays attention to it until it falls.
Totally fitting.
4
Trump has been in power less than two months and Washington is an ungovernable mess with bad bills being introduced and going nowhere,
justifiably so. This with the GOP controlling everything. I would like to see reader submissions for a name for the inevitable third party to replace the Republicans.
Maybe one named after Old Hickory. How about the Stick Party.
justifiably so. This with the GOP controlling everything. I would like to see reader submissions for a name for the inevitable third party to replace the Republicans.
Maybe one named after Old Hickory. How about the Stick Party.
3
The coastal media are concentrating right now on limiting how many different parties the Democrats break into. The old patriotic Democrats will go one direction and the all-government-all-the-time progressives in another.
Constructing Obama's two successful but inordinately expensive election campaigns to reach out to a dozen unrelated constituencies was probably doomed to end up with the Dems going in different directions as soon as they lost a thousand or so elections as a result of Obama's terribly divisive decisions.
Constructing Obama's two successful but inordinately expensive election campaigns to reach out to a dozen unrelated constituencies was probably doomed to end up with the Dems going in different directions as soon as they lost a thousand or so elections as a result of Obama's terribly divisive decisions.
How about "Old Poisonwood" Which is a fairly common tree in the Mangrove swamps of Florida and likely used to grow on the Mar a Lago site that he loves so dearly. The sap will cause you to break out in a rash just like poison ivy and maybe make you more careful next time you get near it.
11
How about "Old Persimmon"? The fruit is orange, and tart/sour before the first frost.
4
I'd go with old kudzu. I know its not a tree but it is an invasive species.
12
If he's old slippery elm at least he will help treat ulcers.
Trump should be called "OLD ASH" if you get my drift.
2
old buckthorn...
A terrible invasive that's almost impossible to get rid of and produces berries with no nutrition, which unsuspecting birds consume to their detriment
A terrible invasive that's almost impossible to get rid of and produces berries with no nutrition, which unsuspecting birds consume to their detriment
2
Andrew Jackson would have shot Trump in a duel.
E) Old Woodenhead
Funny, Funny article which I enjoyed entirely.
E) Old Woodenhead
Funny, Funny article which I enjoyed entirely.
2
How about old poison oak? Although slippery elm is good too.
2
e) old driftwood
I vote "Old Ornamental Dogwood", considering the legend behind the tree.
What kind of tree to represent Trump? I think it needs to be a parasitic plant. My first thought was the corpse flower. But I think mistletoe is a good choice. First it is a parasite, and second it is linked to a tradition of kissing without consent. Sounds right to me. Old Mistletoe!
4
I propose Old Sumac.
1
If Trump is truly such a big fan of Old Hickory, why hasn’t decried the removal of his beloved Jackson’s face from the $20 bill? Seems like a worthy topic for a tweet.
Wait wait, please no. Donald Trump compared himself to a historic president who "confronted and defied an arrogant elite" ? Was Donald holding a golf club at the time, and did he smell like Mar-a-Logo (well-done steak, well-done shrimp, chlorine, mown grass, and hairspray)?
Thank you. I did enjoy imagining Trump bereft of Fox News, Twitter, and all those attractive White House telephones. I realize these lines of communication had not yet been introduced in 1824.
But what about peeping microwave ovens? Did Old Hickory contend with those? No?
Boy oh boy, Presidents these days are really brave. They stand tall against curious microwaves and Saturday Night Live.
Thank you. I did enjoy imagining Trump bereft of Fox News, Twitter, and all those attractive White House telephones. I realize these lines of communication had not yet been introduced in 1824.
But what about peeping microwave ovens? Did Old Hickory contend with those? No?
Boy oh boy, Presidents these days are really brave. They stand tall against curious microwaves and Saturday Night Live.
1
I'm thinking "Old Driftwood."
Four tree varieties have thorns:
Honeylocust: Native honeylocust have thorns. Farmers with cows once planted them in rows to keep cows in and predators and thieves out.
Citrus trees: Though not always present, most citrus trees have thorns at some point in their lives.
Mesquites: Native to the southern region of the U.S., mesquite trees are smaller thorn-bearing plants that can be considered shrubs.
Hawthorns: The thorns can reach five inches in length. They also produce flowers and berries.
Honeylocusts, citrus, and hawthorns are useful or produce good things. I’d go with “Old Mesquites.”
Honeylocust: Native honeylocust have thorns. Farmers with cows once planted them in rows to keep cows in and predators and thieves out.
Citrus trees: Though not always present, most citrus trees have thorns at some point in their lives.
Mesquites: Native to the southern region of the U.S., mesquite trees are smaller thorn-bearing plants that can be considered shrubs.
Hawthorns: The thorns can reach five inches in length. They also produce flowers and berries.
Honeylocusts, citrus, and hawthorns are useful or produce good things. I’d go with “Old Mesquites.”
Trump's delusion of pairing himself with Andrew Jackson and Gail Collins' follow up of looking for a Trump Tree to match Jackson's, 'Old Hickory' only extends Trump's lunacy. I doubt that arborists could find a tree as twisted, destructive and vain as he is. Another route to a nickname for our president connected to trees would be one of the borers, weevils and dark bark beetles.
2
Any American who knows anything about American History, knows about "Old Hickory".
And any American who knows about Andrew Jackson, knows that this country is in trouble if Donald Trump sees himself as his "soul brother".
Jackson didn't have a soul. And if he did, it was dark.
As if the fact that he was born on the ides of March isn't foreboding enough; but as a self-taught, no-nonsense fighter of a man, he like Trump, saw an enemy in most everything...and everyone.
Trump fights Muslims. Jackson fought Native Americans, and his Indian Removal Act led to the by now infamous "Trail of Tears". And as a true son-of-the-South he also owned slaves.
Like Trump, Andrew Jackson saw himself as a common man, even calling himself a "Jeffersonian Democrat", so it's rather odd that Thomas Jefferson didn't think so, and considered Jackson a "dangerous man".
Unlike Trump, Jackson won the popular vote when he ran for president, and called for the abolition of the Electoral College.
We should have listened.
Too late now.
And any American who knows about Andrew Jackson, knows that this country is in trouble if Donald Trump sees himself as his "soul brother".
Jackson didn't have a soul. And if he did, it was dark.
As if the fact that he was born on the ides of March isn't foreboding enough; but as a self-taught, no-nonsense fighter of a man, he like Trump, saw an enemy in most everything...and everyone.
Trump fights Muslims. Jackson fought Native Americans, and his Indian Removal Act led to the by now infamous "Trail of Tears". And as a true son-of-the-South he also owned slaves.
Like Trump, Andrew Jackson saw himself as a common man, even calling himself a "Jeffersonian Democrat", so it's rather odd that Thomas Jefferson didn't think so, and considered Jackson a "dangerous man".
Unlike Trump, Jackson won the popular vote when he ran for president, and called for the abolition of the Electoral College.
We should have listened.
Too late now.
5
The Donald is like Rutherford Hayes in that both were willing to sell out the rights of minorities to racists. In return for getting southern electoral votes, Hayes ended reconstruction which essentially meant African-Americans were deprived of their rights for the next 90 years. Jackson may have been a slave holder but when other slave holders sought to follow the lead of John C. Calhoun and give the states primacy over the Federal govt., Jackson stood up to them and forced them to back down.
Old Andy frequently fought duels in protection of what he believed was the honor of his wife (there were rumors that she had never been divorced from her first husband). Trump just keeps trading wives in.
If Trump fought a duel he no doubt would be more like Thomas Hart Benton who faced Jackson in a fight and whose brother shot Jackson from behind.
Old Andy frequently fought duels in protection of what he believed was the honor of his wife (there were rumors that she had never been divorced from her first husband). Trump just keeps trading wives in.
If Trump fought a duel he no doubt would be more like Thomas Hart Benton who faced Jackson in a fight and whose brother shot Jackson from behind.
5
Andrew Jackson must literally be spinning in his tomb over this blasphemy by Donald Trump. Let us briefly explore the differences between Jackson and Trump. Jackson was a genuine military hero and leader. Trump was a draft dodger. Andrew Jackson went head to head with the banksters and won when he got rid of the so called National Bank which was a precursor to the current bankster controlled Federal Reserve that has bled our economy white. Trump is a banksters' henchman who has filled his cabinet with banksters and fingerciers from the most notorious Wall St. firm of Goldman-Sachs. Jackson not only favored high tariffs but enforced them to protect American jobs and industry. Trump just bloviates about it. Trump talks big about the federal courts being out of control and "judicial tyranny" while he rolls over and does whatever they order him to. Andrew Jackson refused to accept, enforce or obey a U.S. Supreme Court order that he viewed as unconstitutional and an intrusion on state powers. Jackson believed the executive branch was not subservient to the judicial branch and actually carried it out. It is a grave blood insult to the immortal memory of a true national hero like General Andrew Jackson for Donald Trump to pretend to idolize him as a personal hero while having none of the strength and morals, ethics and character of "Old Hickory". Andrew Jackson's collateral descendants should have protested vociferously this outrageous charade of play acting at the Hermitage.
2
diogenes, I wonder why along with your list of the differences between Jackson and Trump, you did not mention a notable similarity between them and that is making America white again. I don't think that we would let Trump go as far with that at Jackson did. At least Trump's travel /Muslim ban has been stopped, so far.
5
I disagree that Trump even rates anything as grand as a tree. How about a weed? I'm thinking "Old Skunk Cabbage".
Andrew Jackson had many flaws, especially his treatment of Native Americans. But he had genuine accomplishments and, despite his faults, was qualified for office. And there was that Battle of New Orleans thing.
Andrew Jackson had many flaws, especially his treatment of Native Americans. But he had genuine accomplishments and, despite his faults, was qualified for office. And there was that Battle of New Orleans thing.
2
When you burn a tree, you get ashes.
How about "Old Ashes"?
A tree is a living thing. He's against the EPA, thus living things, ASHES!
I'd love to see him forced to wear sack cloth and ashes. Preferably publicly - in the stocks. Without a smart phone, of course.
How about "Old Ashes"?
A tree is a living thing. He's against the EPA, thus living things, ASHES!
I'd love to see him forced to wear sack cloth and ashes. Preferably publicly - in the stocks. Without a smart phone, of course.
3
E) Old Box elder tree (covered with nasty Box Elder bugs, something like that thing on top of Trump's head).
2
How about Old Peckerwood?
4
"Old Stump" seems like an appropriate moniker.
3
How about "Old Dogberry" ...?
2
How about Old Lightweight Balsa?
2
The similarities are immense, except for the fact that Andy Jack was what Americans call a "self-made man" (though he paid the blood price to get his wealth).
It's important to highlight that, by the time he became President, Old Hickory was already a wealthy slaveowner. He was not a white trash anymore, although he was elected with white trash vote and was a white trash when he was born in the corners of North Carolina.
It's important to highlight that, by the time he became President, Old Hickory was already a wealthy slaveowner. He was not a white trash anymore, although he was elected with white trash vote and was a white trash when he was born in the corners of North Carolina.
4
Trumpery dost define the chump Donald Trump.
From Donald's lair,
the liar's stealth path leads
to Donny's switch,
The end of health care
taxes on the rich.
With nary a care
siphoning our wealth,
killing all the poor's health,
is the legacy of
our thin-skinned billionaire.
PS: Trump's tax returns will reflect he laundered hundreds of millions of dollars for the Russian oligarchs. That's why Trumpy was filmed with a pair of seasoned Russian prostitutes—to protect their assets.
What a deal maker—the golden shower was free.
http;//thegovernmentinexile.com
From Donald's lair,
the liar's stealth path leads
to Donny's switch,
The end of health care
taxes on the rich.
With nary a care
siphoning our wealth,
killing all the poor's health,
is the legacy of
our thin-skinned billionaire.
PS: Trump's tax returns will reflect he laundered hundreds of millions of dollars for the Russian oligarchs. That's why Trumpy was filmed with a pair of seasoned Russian prostitutes—to protect their assets.
What a deal maker—the golden shower was free.
http;//thegovernmentinexile.com
3
Clearing nonwhite residents out of "their" country.
Trump may be on to something, though, deporting undesirables. Today that would be the European descendant robber barons and their lackeys in the coal and oil industries who are blocking citizens from taking action through the government to lessen the degree of global warming taking place because of carbon emissions. Near zero emissions is possible and it would increase economic growth and bring down the cost of energy. Given the external costs of burning fossil fuels and the harm being done to the planet's ecosystems, renewables are already a cost efficient alternative. Business school MBAs are end-playing the wealth and health of the planet, and they know it.
Trump may be on to something, though, deporting undesirables. Today that would be the European descendant robber barons and their lackeys in the coal and oil industries who are blocking citizens from taking action through the government to lessen the degree of global warming taking place because of carbon emissions. Near zero emissions is possible and it would increase economic growth and bring down the cost of energy. Given the external costs of burning fossil fuels and the harm being done to the planet's ecosystems, renewables are already a cost efficient alternative. Business school MBAs are end-playing the wealth and health of the planet, and they know it.
Okay, this may be too on the nose but how about Old Pussy Willow.
3
Well, given he promised to drain the swamp, and according to some, he's living it up, in it, I guess we could refer to him as an "old swamp oak"? (A tree that is dirtier than sin, too. There is always something rotting on or under that tree, but then it makes for great mulch.)
2
How about "Old Buckthorn"? An invasive species that takes a lot of effort to remove in order to return a prairie landscape to health. Not really a tree, more of a pesky bush.
1
I'm plugging for 'Old Haystack'. Not a tree, but it seems right.. something you would not want to stuff your mattress with. Interesting that our worst President is channeling another absolutely terrible one.
2
Gail,
I say none of the above tree names. I would like to see Mr. Trump be translated to an old fig tree. Our first President wrote,
“every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and figtree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.”
"For happily the Government of the United States gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support."
Our first president and many who followed after understood why our Nation was created. Old Fig Tree needs to go back to the Middle East where the fig tree originated and listen to the voices he catches in the wind regarding the importance of Freedom.
Old Fig Tree will then understand the beauty of the elm(it's good to follow some traditions) the gopherwood( there is a beam in your eye too Old Fig) the dogwood(superficial beauty is only temporal Old Fig) and the hackberry(you are 70 years old....your bark is unnoticeable and unnecessary).
OLD FIG TREE- All men are created equal.
I say none of the above tree names. I would like to see Mr. Trump be translated to an old fig tree. Our first President wrote,
“every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and figtree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.”
"For happily the Government of the United States gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support."
Our first president and many who followed after understood why our Nation was created. Old Fig Tree needs to go back to the Middle East where the fig tree originated and listen to the voices he catches in the wind regarding the importance of Freedom.
Old Fig Tree will then understand the beauty of the elm(it's good to follow some traditions) the gopherwood( there is a beam in your eye too Old Fig) the dogwood(superficial beauty is only temporal Old Fig) and the hackberry(you are 70 years old....your bark is unnoticeable and unnecessary).
OLD FIG TREE- All men are created equal.
Key fact about Richard Johnson--when he ran for President against William Henry Harrison, known as "Old Tippicanoe" because of his prowess as an Indian fighter, Johnson countered with this memorable verse: "Rubby dubby dumsy/Rubby dubby dumsy/Richard Johnson shot Tecumseh". Voters were not moved.
It's all about branding without substance. I would think Old Orange Laminate.
2
Singular, but I have never had a dream about a president before. There was Trump, looking grungy in his suit, sitting in a dark room eating a few french fries with ketchup on a flimsy paper white plate that was about to fold. Interruption, I asked him to sign a document and it fell to the ground where I told him to 'leave it because it wasn't going any further'. He made a note of this and thought it amusing.
Poor Trump, and yes, there are times that I feel sorry for him but I don't know why. Comparing Trump to a tree is beyond my scope of imagination. Perhaps a wonderful green cluster of leaves on a trellis, the landscaper immune to my pleas, explaining that this was a mass of weeds.
When I think of Andrew Jackson rarely, it brings to mind a rare hamburger at Jackson's Hole. Trump and his crew, holed up at The White House with unusual aides scattered to the wind, a dark Bantam whispering in his ear 'Evermore, Evermore, the People will see what they See'.
It is all a bit depressing but a happy reminder from T.S. Eliot, he might have said 'Presidents come and go, speaking of Old Trees'.
Poor Trump, and yes, there are times that I feel sorry for him but I don't know why. Comparing Trump to a tree is beyond my scope of imagination. Perhaps a wonderful green cluster of leaves on a trellis, the landscaper immune to my pleas, explaining that this was a mass of weeds.
When I think of Andrew Jackson rarely, it brings to mind a rare hamburger at Jackson's Hole. Trump and his crew, holed up at The White House with unusual aides scattered to the wind, a dark Bantam whispering in his ear 'Evermore, Evermore, the People will see what they See'.
It is all a bit depressing but a happy reminder from T.S. Eliot, he might have said 'Presidents come and go, speaking of Old Trees'.
Andrew Jackson aka Old Hickory aka Sharp Knife only had one wife while engaging in three duels and fighting in several wars while working his African slaves and ignoring a Supreme Court opinion and sending the Cherokee on their "Trail of Tears" to oblivion. Jackson had political and governing talent and experience to out maneuver titans like John Calhoun and Daniel Webster.
Unlike Trump, Jackson was not smart enough to pick a multimillionaire real estate baron father. Jackson resembles Russian President Vladimir Putin more than he does our prancing, preening, pretending posturing and posing spoiled rich 70 year old juvenile delinquent Presidential Apprentice.
Unlike Trump, Jackson was not smart enough to pick a multimillionaire real estate baron father. Jackson resembles Russian President Vladimir Putin more than he does our prancing, preening, pretending posturing and posing spoiled rich 70 year old juvenile delinquent Presidential Apprentice.
2
"Old Cucumber Magnolia." Kinda ill formed, breaks easily, just not as elegant at Magnolia Grandiflora.
Jackson: Old Hickory
Trump: Old Repulsive
Trump: Old Repulsive
3
Of course Old Hickory and Old Slippery are twins. Who else gave us the "Indian Removal Act of 1831" and the "Executive Order: Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States." These old white guys are literally leaving trails of tears in their wake. Blood brothers.
3
How about "Old Goldenrod" or "Old Tumbleweed." One has a yellowish top and makes the eyes water, the other rolls fitfully in the wind. But perhaps too whimsical. "Old Hemlock" fits better.
1
Johnson was also a family tag along. He knew he did NOT kill Techumeh, but allowed it to be spread about like Small Pox to tip the canoe.
It's his cousin who went all the way to Canada to try to get back his runaway banjo band, but the Indians had another skin tone planned for him. Pinched him blacker than blue. Techumseh's brother recognized hm and sheltered the old coot until he could travel without being mistaken for a runaway. They had fought together in some other idiotic conflict. He told old cooter where Tecumseh is buried, and I'm not telling either.
Johnson was also famous for his mulatto wife who sewed all the clothes for the school they operated to exploit, or is it advantage, the Choctaw? My GGGGgrandma was said to be Choctaw. The press made a mess of themselves exploiting Johnson's "black" wife, although the law did not allow for their marriage, so it was doubly scandalous.
It's his cousin who went all the way to Canada to try to get back his runaway banjo band, but the Indians had another skin tone planned for him. Pinched him blacker than blue. Techumseh's brother recognized hm and sheltered the old coot until he could travel without being mistaken for a runaway. They had fought together in some other idiotic conflict. He told old cooter where Tecumseh is buried, and I'm not telling either.
Johnson was also famous for his mulatto wife who sewed all the clothes for the school they operated to exploit, or is it advantage, the Choctaw? My GGGGgrandma was said to be Choctaw. The press made a mess of themselves exploiting Johnson's "black" wife, although the law did not allow for their marriage, so it was doubly scandalous.
Gail, just when things are looking bleak, I can always count on you for inducing a huge belly-laugh! Thank you -- I really needed one this moring!
My vote goes for "Old Hackberry," but hope that you will consider adding to your list some of the most pernicious invasive weeds, too. For example, how about "Old Russian Olive," for the obvious affinity, or, although not a tree weed, still a hideous invasive weed, "Old Kudzu?"
My vote goes for "Old Hackberry," but hope that you will consider adding to your list some of the most pernicious invasive weeds, too. For example, how about "Old Russian Olive," for the obvious affinity, or, although not a tree weed, still a hideous invasive weed, "Old Kudzu?"
1
Well, down here in Tennessee, the most notable part of the Trump visit was what it did to Nashville rush hour traffic. Brought to mind the old Dylan song "You Ain't Going Nowhere."
And my vote for the Trump tree nickname -- "Old Hollow Stump Trump" -- I would think captures the feelings the president arouses.
And my vote for the Trump tree nickname -- "Old Hollow Stump Trump" -- I would think captures the feelings the president arouses.
1
The picture of Trump saluting is enough to turn ones stomach. Old Repulsive saluting Old Hickory. Donald Trump is such a fake. Barf!
4
Between Donald Trump and Old Hickory,
whose history’s replete with more trickery?
Dear Gail, if you please,
it’s not about trees:
let’s start calling Donald “Old Griftery.”
whose history’s replete with more trickery?
Dear Gail, if you please,
it’s not about trees:
let’s start calling Donald “Old Griftery.”
2
Andrew Jackson: Old Hickory
Donald Trump: Old Chicanery
Donald Trump: Old Chicanery
3
Trump might be known as old balsa wood. Except that it's a thing found in nature and Trump isn't.
How about Old fiberboard?
Old chip board laminate? Old Plywood? Old veneer?
They are all either light, cheap, weak, or fakes. They warp for no reason. They are also prone to chipping and breaking over time and are ultra flammable.
And none of them has a brain either.
How about Old fiberboard?
Old chip board laminate? Old Plywood? Old veneer?
They are all either light, cheap, weak, or fakes. They warp for no reason. They are also prone to chipping and breaking over time and are ultra flammable.
And none of them has a brain either.
2
Trump styles himself after one of the most divisive presidents our country has ever experienced and in one of the worst states in the country, worst in that it's a state that has gone from one of the most progressive southern states to one of the worst. I was born in Tennessee and I've lived there, well spent time there since it wasn't living, but I won't go back again. Ever.
Giving Trump a nickname after a tree isn't a good idea, as much as I admire (really, I love Gail) Ms Collins since all trees have value. Alder is a really beautiful tree that is terrible for camping since it smokes and smokes but never combusts, on the other hand it provides homes for animals and fixes carbon while Trump just spews hot air.
How about "old loggerhead" or "old snag"? Old Loggerhead means to be in a controversy or dispute with no obvious resolution while old snag is just a tree that's fallen into a river so that it blocks progression and endangers anyone trying to navigate the river.
On the other hand let's just call him the biggest jerk we've ever elevated to power so I guess that makes us idiots.
Giving Trump a nickname after a tree isn't a good idea, as much as I admire (really, I love Gail) Ms Collins since all trees have value. Alder is a really beautiful tree that is terrible for camping since it smokes and smokes but never combusts, on the other hand it provides homes for animals and fixes carbon while Trump just spews hot air.
How about "old loggerhead" or "old snag"? Old Loggerhead means to be in a controversy or dispute with no obvious resolution while old snag is just a tree that's fallen into a river so that it blocks progression and endangers anyone trying to navigate the river.
On the other hand let's just call him the biggest jerk we've ever elevated to power so I guess that makes us idiots.
2
I can't think of a tree obnoxious enough to deserve comparison with the "President" - however, for we the people, how about Weeping willows?
5
E) Old Sour Persimmon?
Trump is to Buchanan as Mississippi is to Alabama: a way to lift the other in the rankings.
Trump is to Buchanan as Mississippi is to Alabama: a way to lift the other in the rankings.
5
I am of the Davy Crockett generation. The Disney version of Andrew Jackson was the first president that figured in our historical consciousness. We learned that he was a grouchy old coot that didn't take good advice and that he screwed the Native Americans, who were portrayed as worth adversaries. There's a lot there for the Trumpster to relate to.
5
The picture hanging over POTUS shoulder in oval office is driving me crazy. Nobody should hold Andrew Jackson up as a good President or person. Jackson was the only President to openly defy the Supreme Court in Worcester v. Georgia, where the court sided with the Cherokee. That defiance led to genocide and the Trail of Tears. The fact that POTUS holds this man in high esteem says so much.
10
Gail, could you please do a column on Trump's promise to deliver the goods "at the appropriate time." First it was "you won't believe" what his investigators were finding in Hawaii regarding Obama's birth certificate. Then all claims of sexual harassment would be debunked "at the appropriate time" and now Trump will prove his claims of wiretapping "very soon." And I'm sure that I'm forgetting a few. He's really not bright enough to know that we know he's lying!
4
Trump is indeed like Jackson. Jackson was the only President to engage in the business of slave trading. In fact, he is the only President to lead a coffle. Jackson led the extermination of the Indian tribes of the Southeast in the name of making America great (not again, the first time). Just as we are erasing Jackson from our twenty dollar bill, we should erase President Trump from our collective memories as soon as possible, as both are responsible for unimaginable oppression of people without power.
10
What a truly pathetic and empty man you are Mr. Trump. You've become a national embarrassment in a very short period of time. You are mean spirited and hateful. You are selfish and, above all, you lie at the drop of a hat. You care for no one but yourself. I wouldn't buy a used car from you, let alone recognize you as the president of the United States. Get out of the people's House before you disgrace it even more. And always remember this Donald, you lost the popular vote because the majority of good decent Americans can't stand the sight of you. Just please go away.
16
Trump should be so lucky if historians in the future will say "Trump was a product of his time" as he declared Jackson's bigotry to be. Instead most historians will undoubtedly view Trump as a man who wasted time, resources and opportunities in pursuing image over substance. Unfortunately Trump has not risen to the office of the presidency. He has filled his time in office tweeting over petty grievances and failing at the most simple of presidential duties. Trump is a real gift to the presidents at the bottom of the list of effective, respective presidents.
6
If only he would emulate William Henry Harrison.
8
Old Fruitcake tree. This would be a hybrid bred to be an excellent source of fruit and nuts which could be harvested by older Americans who will have to resort to gathering food as they spend their money on escalating insurance costs under the nuttyfruitcake of a republican health plan.
4
Old Devil's Walking Stick.
4
How about Old Bonespurs?
7
I would think the Society To Save the Reputation of Old Hickory(if such an organization exists) would be all over this one. A man of such ill repute glooming onto the reputation of a true cultural icon. SAD! My answer to your question I offer you: Worm Wood. Ta ta.
4
How 'bout Old Hog Gum – it's poisonous you know and lives in Florida.
11
Gail, you left out one comparison: who will be Trump's Peggy Eaton?
1
If President Trump intends to emulate his hero Andrew Jackson, he can start by balancing the budget. In an era where the former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew felt expansion of the national debt should take place automatically, without so much as a vote in Congress, Jackson regarded saddling the people with debt as evil, swore to leave office with the nation free of debt, kept his promise, and was cheered by an immense throng when he left D.C. at the end of his term.
5
...An immense throng of slavers. Jackson was a criminal who orchestrated mass genocide on the Native American population. He is a blight on or history.
2
Pardon me if I suspect that Alexander Hamilton knew a tad bit more about money than Jackson. That musical has certainly drawn bigger crowds than he did, on the way out the door.
1
Had there been a succession of Jacksonians, you would never have seen the nation $20 trillion in debt- that is the work of central bankers working hand in hand with unscrupulous congressman, and our beloved Alexander Hamilton set the pattern. Being driven into higher income tax brackets despite a loss of real buying power is the result, but it never impacts those manning the spigot.
2
If only we could witness Jackson's reaction to Trump's self-described medal for his personal bravery during the Vietnam War--a medal for not having contracted VD while dishonestly avoiding service at all!
I don't think Jackson would have much in common with Trump recognizing that he is all posture with nothing of substance.
Trump compared to other Presidents? Not sure any of them can reach as low as Trump.
I don't think Jackson would have much in common with Trump recognizing that he is all posture with nothing of substance.
Trump compared to other Presidents? Not sure any of them can reach as low as Trump.
17
Trump has a habit of addressing the nation by shouting to a crowd of his die-hard followers in an airplane hangar. He screams "Bloody Murder!" and they eat it up like jelly donuts. To me this has uncomfortable echoes of Hitler.
I wonder if Jackson also preferred addressing a sympathetic mob to making intelligent, rational arguments to the thinking population. We do know there was a mob scene at the White House when he was inaugurated.
And Jackson's fiscal policies led directly to a depression that lasted for a decade. I sincerely hope that Trump does not succeed in reproducing that.
I wonder if Jackson also preferred addressing a sympathetic mob to making intelligent, rational arguments to the thinking population. We do know there was a mob scene at the White House when he was inaugurated.
And Jackson's fiscal policies led directly to a depression that lasted for a decade. I sincerely hope that Trump does not succeed in reproducing that.
5
Incorrect. Andrew Jackson was the only president who actually paid off the entire national debt by the time he left office. He also insisted on "sound money", i.e. backed by gold and silver. The Depression was caused by speculators who panicked and "cashed out" when their cheating and swindling was undone by these sound financial policies. The modern day descendants of these banksters and fingerciers now populate Wall St. and Washington and of course these cretins have rewritten history to vilify Jackson and suit themselves and make their 19th century predecessors look like they were good people and were the ones wronged instead of the working people who, then as now, fight the wars, pay the taxes, and suffer the results of the self styled elite's criminal actions and conspiracies.
5
@diogenes: Yes, Jackson balanced the budget and eliminated the national debt. By imposing steep tariffs which hurt international trade. And he was a hard money fanatic, just like you. Today he would be a gold bug. He hated the idea of paper currency, so he'd be happy to have his image removed from the $20 bill. And so will I.
Jackson hated the idea of credit and prevented re-authorization of the Second National Bank, leaving the country with no central bank. Then came the bank panic of 1837, caused by uncotrolled speculation during Jackson's 8-year tenure (does this ring a bell with W's tenure?), and there was no source of credit to shore up the economy. The US went into a 10-year depression that was worse than the Depression that your grandparents lived through. Blaming the speculators doesn't account for their enablers, for whom Jackson was certainly the fearless leader. Jackson was not just a murderous racist, but a financial idiot.
Jackson hated the idea of credit and prevented re-authorization of the Second National Bank, leaving the country with no central bank. Then came the bank panic of 1837, caused by uncotrolled speculation during Jackson's 8-year tenure (does this ring a bell with W's tenure?), and there was no source of credit to shore up the economy. The US went into a 10-year depression that was worse than the Depression that your grandparents lived through. Blaming the speculators doesn't account for their enablers, for whom Jackson was certainly the fearless leader. Jackson was not just a murderous racist, but a financial idiot.
2
Pierce was a terrible, polarizing president in the 1850s and his policies helped lead to the Civil War - quite Trumpian. He was fortunate, though, in having a lifelong friend and political supporter in Nathaniel Hawthorne, whom he favored with a consul's position in Liverpool. He also discovered Hawthorne's body when the great author died while they were on a hiking trip. Trump's literary connections are slim- Bannon and Ivanka seem to be the only people who may actually read and write, so they would be wise to avoid sojourning with the president in the White Mountains. Kindling wood suits Trump's character, and is the plentiful substance between his ears.
13
Isn't it discouraging that we elected two terrible presidents in the 21st Century? Will George W. and the Donald go down in American history as the two worst presidents? It is a contest who will win the race to the bottom? Republican voters should regret their votes. The religious right should confine their activities to their churches, not politics.
20
Weeping willow. And the weepers are US.
16
(E) Old Gnarly Crabapple
(F) Fake Gold foil Christmas Tree
(G) Nutty Orange Pine
(F) Fake Gold foil Christmas Tree
(G) Nutty Orange Pine
18
Donald Trump should invest part of TV viewing time to the History Channel. The Andrew Jackson he allegedly aligns with never existed.
11
How about "Old Yeller"
22
Only in his mad dog phase. Yeller was nicer than Trump until that skunk bit him.
1
Brilliant, Gail! Humor helps, but then, I'm not one of the immigrants suffering a presidential apocalypse. No Trail of Tears for me.
12
Um. Dogwood, elm, oak, maple.......
I think not.
Peckerwood?
Maybe.
I think not.
Peckerwood?
Maybe.
37
I'm thinking poison ivy
2
Ms. Collins might have been clearer in pointing out Trump's obvious misreading of his own speech when he said that Jackson had “'battled the centralized financial power that brought influence at our citizens’ expense.”' He meant to say "bought", not "brought". Never mind.
15
With all due respect, Jackson didn't have to "stiff his contractors" because they were slaves.
49
If you must name him something, make it Old Brier because he is a prickly scrambling shrub. We don't have to wait for Trump to leave office to get into the rankings... he's the worst, most destructive president we've ever experienced and we need to oust him and his odious enablers before they do irreversible damage.
26
dt would be the hollowed-out trunk of a dead tree, doesn't matter what kind.
As for me, I'm a weeping willow.
As for me, I'm a weeping willow.
42
Definitely Wormwood. Also known for "being super bitter" he definitely leaves a bitter taste in most peoples mouths after listening to him.
38
Not quite sure our current resident of the White House was referring to Andrew Jackson - not being much of a reader and certainly not a student of history he could well have been referring to Reggie Jackson, that former Yankee great or, perhaps somewhat of a stretch but not inconceivable, Michael Jackson, as we know our president likes to sing ... how about that beautiful rendition of "My Way" at his inauguration.
2
My tree vote goes to Old Black Walnut. Like Trump's skull this tree's fruit has a dense, rock-hard hull with minimal contents that can be extracted only in small fragments (the nut equivalent of 140 characters). The flavor is one of the love/hate variety; you do or don't. I have to admit, from a personal perspective, this is the only flaw in my nomination of this noble tree. I'd commit a felony for bowl of black walnut ice cream.
Regarding the rumor Trump once sat in a business class with an aide: I have it on good authority that was the only day he spent in any class during his entire collegiate career. The aide was his alter ego for all the rest. How else do you think he got high marks? Daddy's money? Surely not.
How many days until the next mid-term election? No, don't tell me. It's too long.
Regarding the rumor Trump once sat in a business class with an aide: I have it on good authority that was the only day he spent in any class during his entire collegiate career. The aide was his alter ego for all the rest. How else do you think he got high marks? Daddy's money? Surely not.
How many days until the next mid-term election? No, don't tell me. It's too long.
5
I went to Andrew Jackson's estate this summer with my children. The grounds include the actual carriage Jackson and his wife road in during his inauguration. It was beautifully restored. We asked the guide about the carriage who said she knew nothing about it except that it was the most popular piece of history at the museum. Sums up Trump perfectly.
7
Gail, you are a treat.
How about Old Valencia Orange subject to citrus greening and Mediterranean fruit fly?
How about Old Valencia Orange subject to citrus greening and Mediterranean fruit fly?
3
Russian olive seems more apropos. An invasive species that takes over everything and has a sticky residue.
24
Slippery Elm, not only for the lovely sound of it, but because elms have a reputation as tall trees with shallow roots.
8
Anyone can grow up to be President. At one time that was an inspiring message for boys and girls. We need to rethink that. Look where it got us now.
20
Trump is definitely "a product of his time."
But about that tree nickname--I've got one . . . Old Buckthorn.
In my neck of the woods, buckthorn is an insidious invasive species that spreads like weeds, chokes off growth of more lofty, reputable species (think, e.g., oak, maple, pine), and is all but impossible to eradicate. A nuisance to deal with in every conceivable way.
But about that tree nickname--I've got one . . . Old Buckthorn.
In my neck of the woods, buckthorn is an insidious invasive species that spreads like weeds, chokes off growth of more lofty, reputable species (think, e.g., oak, maple, pine), and is all but impossible to eradicate. A nuisance to deal with in every conceivable way.
15
Gail, you truly need to stop chasing Benedict Donald's red-herrings. Focus on the important thing: RUSSIAGATE!
As a columnist with a huge readership, you have the ability to keep pressure on the horror that can undo Benedict Donald.
You've got work to do so get to it.
As a columnist with a huge readership, you have the ability to keep pressure on the horror that can undo Benedict Donald.
You've got work to do so get to it.
11
I really like trees, and our kids all loved the children's book "A Tree Is Nice," so I am not in favor of likening Trump to nice trees. How about giving Trump a 21st century nickname, such as "Old Twitter Brain"?
As for presidential comparisons, I think Trump is most like Millard Fillmore, who did not hesitate to give wealthy slave owners what they wanted. Also, given a choice, Fillmore picked cruelty over decency and humanitarian values in his behavior.
For example:
When President Fillmore assumed the presidency in 1850, slave owners were upset, because if their slaves escaped to free states, the law enforcement people in the free states refused to return the slaves.
Like Trump, Fillmore said some nice things in public but then did the opposite. For example, though Fillmore said he "detested" slavery, he supported slavery with the Fugitive Slave Act of 1851. The act required the free states to return the escaped slaves to their owners, and furthermore, made it a federal crime not to do so or even not to assist in reporting or apprehending escaped slaves.
Also like Trump, Fillmore's bigotry extended to religion as well. Fillmore made himself popular with our nativist segment of the population by expressing his prejudices against the growing numbers of Irish Catholic immigrants.
Anyway, Trump's need to always appear strong and bullying at the expense of others and to surround himself with mean hardliners suggests he is very insecure in his own manhood--bad sign
As for presidential comparisons, I think Trump is most like Millard Fillmore, who did not hesitate to give wealthy slave owners what they wanted. Also, given a choice, Fillmore picked cruelty over decency and humanitarian values in his behavior.
For example:
When President Fillmore assumed the presidency in 1850, slave owners were upset, because if their slaves escaped to free states, the law enforcement people in the free states refused to return the slaves.
Like Trump, Fillmore said some nice things in public but then did the opposite. For example, though Fillmore said he "detested" slavery, he supported slavery with the Fugitive Slave Act of 1851. The act required the free states to return the escaped slaves to their owners, and furthermore, made it a federal crime not to do so or even not to assist in reporting or apprehending escaped slaves.
Also like Trump, Fillmore's bigotry extended to religion as well. Fillmore made himself popular with our nativist segment of the population by expressing his prejudices against the growing numbers of Irish Catholic immigrants.
Anyway, Trump's need to always appear strong and bullying at the expense of others and to surround himself with mean hardliners suggests he is very insecure in his own manhood--bad sign
15
I believe it was Jackson who, after the Supreme Court ruled he could not round up the Indians in the South and drive them out to Oklahoma, said something like "The Supreme Court has made it ruling, now let them enforce it," and he rounded up the Indians and drove them off on the Trail of Tears, where many died along the way. Yeah, Trump kinda does remind me of Jackson.
24
There is no comparison between Trump and Andre Jackson - Jackson was a soldier - Trumo avoided the draft. Trump shirks his responsibilities, lies and cheats. Do he, Bannon, and their billionaire buddies have defense contractor ties? Flynn does - who will profit from the defense contracts? Money for medical care, jobs training, medical research, clean water, and air will line the pockets of big corporations. Exxon and Tillerson will benefit from oil drilling. The quicksand of corporate greed is sucking in middle America.
Trump should heed Jackson's quotes - ooops - he does not read.
"Take time to deliberate; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in"
This describes Trump perfectly:
"It is to be regretted that the rich and powerful too often bend the acts of government to their own selfish purposes."
Trump should heed Jackson's quotes - ooops - he does not read.
"Take time to deliberate; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in"
This describes Trump perfectly:
"It is to be regretted that the rich and powerful too often bend the acts of government to their own selfish purposes."
9
I will now add Nashville - and the rest of Tennessee, for that matter - to my ever-growing list of states in which I will never again set foot or spend a dollar.
18
Nashville has a progressive mayor with no resemblance to the current tenant of 1600. Don't hold that city to blame for his visit.
Donald Trump is hardly a tough guy.
A few weeks ago, in his address to Congress, Trump praised Harley Davidson, but mentioned that he declined the chance to ride one of their motorcycles.
If Andrew Jackson had such an opportunity, he would have ridden that hog. And talked it up.
A few weeks ago, in his address to Congress, Trump praised Harley Davidson, but mentioned that he declined the chance to ride one of their motorcycles.
If Andrew Jackson had such an opportunity, he would have ridden that hog. And talked it up.
4
How about "Decayed Stump"?
22
Old Stinkweed, perhaps. Or Old Weeping Willow, ever droopy and crying about how unfair life is to Himself.
1
Well the only thing that Trump and Jackson have in common is their outsider status. They were never part of that clique of Washington DC insiders who are determined to maintain their precious status quo against the barbarians at the gate at all costs. Jackson was also the first president who wasn't also a Founding Father. Trump was the first Republican non-politician since Eisenhower to be elected president. Both men defeated very formidable entrenched establishment presidential candidates. The first Jackson presidential defeat, however, was the result of political chicanery when it was thrown into the House of Representatives who selected the safe choice, the scion of the second president, John Quincy Adams. However, everyone is still in a state of shock long after Trump shellacked the safe establishment choice Hillary Clinton. Both Trump and Jackson declared that the people had spoken. But what do the people know?
The 65,844,954 people who voted for Hillary Clinton, as opposed to the 62,979,879 who voted for Trump, know a con man when they see one.
8
Sorry NA but the popular vote doesn't count. The first presidential candidate to get 270 electoral votes gets to move into the big White House on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
1
Old Hornbeam.
For your quick question about a nickname for Trump, Gail, I'd like to add another answer:
E) Old Crooked Lyin' Donald
The "Old" is an accurate description of his age. The "Crooked" and "Lyin'" parts come from the unflattering nicknames he gave Sec. Clinton and Sen. Cruz, respectively.
E) Old Crooked Lyin' Donald
The "Old" is an accurate description of his age. The "Crooked" and "Lyin'" parts come from the unflattering nicknames he gave Sec. Clinton and Sen. Cruz, respectively.
3
Gail, you missed the most obvious tree nickname for Trump:
Old Manchineel
"The Manchineel tree, native to the Western Hemisphere, is known as the most poisonous tree in the world...the manchineel is often marked with a red band to warn passersby not to get too near it [ignored press warnings]. The tree is poisonous on so many levels that if you ever spot one, it is better you stay at least a few yards away from it.
The manchineel’s milky white sap is incredibly caustic and poisonous as well – even a drop could cause skin blisters, dermatitis, swelling or burns. This happens a lot with unsuspecting travelers [or voters] who use the tree for shelter from the rains. The sap [verbal nonsense] is so caustic that even the rain drops coming from the branches can cause burns. The bark [his barking to his acolytes!) is poisonous too – burning it releases a smoke that causes temporary (and in some cases, permanent) blindness. Considering all the ways it can hurt you, it’s no wonder the manchineel currently holds the Guinness record for world’s most dangerous tree....Manchineel trees have shiny green, oval leaves and can grow over 50 feet tall. They apparently lure people into a trap – providing shade and fruit that tastes sweet at first but later has devastating effects [the analogy is rather obvious!]."
Old Manchineel
"The Manchineel tree, native to the Western Hemisphere, is known as the most poisonous tree in the world...the manchineel is often marked with a red band to warn passersby not to get too near it [ignored press warnings]. The tree is poisonous on so many levels that if you ever spot one, it is better you stay at least a few yards away from it.
The manchineel’s milky white sap is incredibly caustic and poisonous as well – even a drop could cause skin blisters, dermatitis, swelling or burns. This happens a lot with unsuspecting travelers [or voters] who use the tree for shelter from the rains. The sap [verbal nonsense] is so caustic that even the rain drops coming from the branches can cause burns. The bark [his barking to his acolytes!) is poisonous too – burning it releases a smoke that causes temporary (and in some cases, permanent) blindness. Considering all the ways it can hurt you, it’s no wonder the manchineel currently holds the Guinness record for world’s most dangerous tree....Manchineel trees have shiny green, oval leaves and can grow over 50 feet tall. They apparently lure people into a trap – providing shade and fruit that tastes sweet at first but later has devastating effects [the analogy is rather obvious!]."
5
Like Jackson, Trump hates Native Americans, as we saw recently when Trump allowed for the continuation of the DAPL.
2
It's laughable to think Trump knew who Jackson was before these comparisons started to be made.
3
As much as Trump wishes to be compared to Jackson or any other ex-president, he is one of a kind. He will be happy to know that he is first in a class of presidents who squandered their first 100 days talking trash, promoting untruths and half truths. Future historians will say there was none like Trump; that expectation should make him happy. And that is sad!!
4
"Ole Hickory" was captured by the British?!
That makes him a loser. Sorry. Next.
That makes him a loser. Sorry. Next.
7
Winding up on the "bottom" when it comes to "worst presidents" makes one the best president.
1
Who told Donald Trump that he's like Old Hickory? Did they also tell him that Jackson's reputation has suffered for a variety of reasons: he owned slaves; he sent the Cherokees off on the Trail of Tears and his financial shenanigans created turmoil in the economy?
Donald may be a fan, but I suspect his actual knowledge of Andrew Jackson is similar to that of his knowledge of Frederick Douglas.Perhaps Fox and Friends should do a feature.
Donald may be a fan, but I suspect his actual knowledge of Andrew Jackson is similar to that of his knowledge of Frederick Douglas.Perhaps Fox and Friends should do a feature.
2
Actually, when I think of Jackson I think of the war of 1812, or rather the song, "Battle of New Orleans." As for his war against the banks? Huh? So, as Trump chases fantasies and conspiracies "through the briers and... the brambles...where a rabbit couldn't go," let's thank Johnny Horton for making 'Ol Hickory more than a passing face on the 20 dollar bill.
I always seem to break out into an itchy rash whenever I come into contact tRump's name, whether it be by sight or sound.
Thus, and although it's a vine, I think poison oak is most appropriate for me.
I certainly hope we don't devolve much further as a civilized country as I'd be tempted to search for some hemlock.
Thus, and although it's a vine, I think poison oak is most appropriate for me.
I certainly hope we don't devolve much further as a civilized country as I'd be tempted to search for some hemlock.
4
As a resident of Delaware OH, I take umbrage at your digs at Rutherford B Hayes, our native son. We care about Hayes so much we put a small marble monument on the curb in front of the BP station where his birth home used to be.
4
If Trump were a tree he could only be a weeping willow.
Jackson will always have the "Trail of Tears" hanging around his neck. That Florida expedition resulted in - well Florida the state. But Jackson's personal courage is unquestioned - along with his anger. He commanded from the field at New Orleans. He carried at least one bullet from a dueling opponent in his chest. Trump compared military school to military service. Has he ever placed himself in personal danger ?
2
Hackberry is a bush.
Trump is Balsa Wood.
Total lightweight.
Trump is Balsa Wood.
Total lightweight.
4
Old Redbud. They only grow so big and then the trunk splits and the branches fall off.
4
I don't think you have to look back too far to find a comparison. How about George W. Bush, who lost his credibility among critical thinkers by perpetrating fake news, but still managed to win the hearts of the American voter for a second term (mainly by denigrating his opponents with, what else, fake news)? Really, anyone who still trusts the tweets of President Trump after this wire tapp (sic) fiasco, most likely still wants to go to Iraq and dig for weapons of mass destruction?
3
Perhaps a better comparison is Richard Nixon. The more he asserted that , "I'm not a crook" the more people believed that was a fair description.
But unless democrats can make inroads next year in the mid terms, we can't count on republicans to have the good sense like Congress did in 1974 to launch hearings into " high crimes and misdemeanors."
Democrats need to take back Congress next year.
But unless democrats can make inroads next year in the mid terms, we can't count on republicans to have the good sense like Congress did in 1974 to launch hearings into " high crimes and misdemeanors."
Democrats need to take back Congress next year.
3
I agree, but on a more serious note, your brief allusion to one of Jackson's most despicable acts, the so called Trail of Tears, is a bit weak. Jackson's action managed to get thousands of Native Americans killed so their land could be stolen. Trump's action has no other purpose than blatant bigotry.
2
You did not mention the two traits that are common to both men: criminality and authoritarianism.
8
You're right! So how about fake cell phone tower tree? Looming , fat, ugly, fake, but way way too noticeable anyway
2
Spare the trees from Trump, please. Good plants have harmed no one.
8
One of the 6 times we have significantly paid down the federal debt was under Jackson. Just as in the other 5, Jackson's case ushered in a real gut-wrenching depression. But Jackson did not only pay down the debt; he paid it OFF. In addition, he wrecked the only semblance of a central bank we had so there was no institution to step in and prevent the depression as our FED did in 2008. The result was our longest depression.
One can only hope that Trump will be unable to emulate Jackson as he claimed when he said he would pay off the debt in 8 years.
One can only hope that Trump will be unable to emulate Jackson as he claimed when he said he would pay off the debt in 8 years.
113
This is utter nonsense. The banksters have drive this country into bankruptcy and saddled all of us down with unpayable debts. Trump will only add on more. Jackson did the right thing in paying off the national debt, doing away with the so called National Bank, a predecessaor to the Federal Reserve, then as now, controlled by a handful of super rich, greedy families and insisting on genuine money backed by gold and silver. The Depression you speak of was deliberately brought on the by the cheats and swindlers who "cashed out" fearing their exposure. The banks simply refused to lend money unless they were given free reign over the public prolonging the Depression and under presidents for over 100 years now they have been the ultimate rulers and exploiters of the United States. Re-writing history won't change it.
1
Well, diogenes how do you explain:
The federal government has balanced the budget, eliminated deficits for more than three years, and paid down the debt more than 10% in just six periods since 1776, bringing in enough revenue to cover all of its spending during 1817-21, 1823-36, 1852-57, 1867-73, 1880-93, and 1920-30. The debt was paid down 29%. 100%, 59%, 27%, 57%, and 38% respectively. A depression began in 1819, 1837, 1857, 1873, 1893 and 1929.
6 out of 6 is just a coincidence?
The federal government has balanced the budget, eliminated deficits for more than three years, and paid down the debt more than 10% in just six periods since 1776, bringing in enough revenue to cover all of its spending during 1817-21, 1823-36, 1852-57, 1867-73, 1880-93, and 1920-30. The debt was paid down 29%. 100%, 59%, 27%, 57%, and 38% respectively. A depression began in 1819, 1837, 1857, 1873, 1893 and 1929.
6 out of 6 is just a coincidence?
3
1. We need money to conduct commerce.
2, As the economy grows we need more money.
3. Money can come to the private sector from 2 places--the federal government or from a favorable trade balance.
4. Money comes from the federal government in 2 ways--spending (fiscal) or from the FED to the banks (monetary).
5, The FED has sent a lot of money to the banks with little effect. The money has sat in the vaults of the banks or been lent to the Rich who use it to speculate. This money has low velocity--it doesn't change hands in domestic commerce frequently.
6. Net federal spending is measured by the federal deficit, i.e. the deficit measures the net flow of money to people, businesses (not banks) and state & local govs. But we need spending with high velocity money.
7. Thus in order to get the new money the private sector needs, the federal deficit must be larger than the trade deficit. We have a large trade deficit. We need a large deficit.
8. If the above is correct, periods of negative deficits, surpluses, which pay down the federal debt should lead to a bad economy. They have. There have been 6 such periods of longer than 3 years in US history, They have ALL ended in a real gut wrenching depression. In fact this accounts for all of our depressions.
9. On the other hand, in 1946 we had the largest debt ratio in our history. The public debt ratio was 47% larger than today. We had deficits for 21 of the next 27 years. We increased the debt 75%.
And we had Great Prosperity.
2, As the economy grows we need more money.
3. Money can come to the private sector from 2 places--the federal government or from a favorable trade balance.
4. Money comes from the federal government in 2 ways--spending (fiscal) or from the FED to the banks (monetary).
5, The FED has sent a lot of money to the banks with little effect. The money has sat in the vaults of the banks or been lent to the Rich who use it to speculate. This money has low velocity--it doesn't change hands in domestic commerce frequently.
6. Net federal spending is measured by the federal deficit, i.e. the deficit measures the net flow of money to people, businesses (not banks) and state & local govs. But we need spending with high velocity money.
7. Thus in order to get the new money the private sector needs, the federal deficit must be larger than the trade deficit. We have a large trade deficit. We need a large deficit.
8. If the above is correct, periods of negative deficits, surpluses, which pay down the federal debt should lead to a bad economy. They have. There have been 6 such periods of longer than 3 years in US history, They have ALL ended in a real gut wrenching depression. In fact this accounts for all of our depressions.
9. On the other hand, in 1946 we had the largest debt ratio in our history. The public debt ratio was 47% larger than today. We had deficits for 21 of the next 27 years. We increased the debt 75%.
And we had Great Prosperity.
2
Old fake plastic tree
13
What joke to see President Bone Spur throwing up that crisp military salute. Must have picked that up in rich kids' reform school, NYMA, his Vietnam.
I wonder how much he actually has read about Andrew Jackson - probably enough to want to create his very own "trail of tears".
And given his lightweight intellect, I'll submit "Old Balsawood" in the nickname sweepstakes.
Thanks, Gail, for the much-needed comic relief
I wonder how much he actually has read about Andrew Jackson - probably enough to want to create his very own "trail of tears".
And given his lightweight intellect, I'll submit "Old Balsawood" in the nickname sweepstakes.
Thanks, Gail, for the much-needed comic relief
6
Gail, I can assure you that 48 hours ago, DJT had never heard of Andrew Jackson. Some aid mentioned the name to him shortly before his prep rally in Nashville. I can further assure you that DJT has no interest in finding out anything else about AJ. Do you think DJT has a clue as to what's in his health plan or how that plan differed from the ACA? Do you think he even cares? Do you think he could name six trees?
Come on. Gail. This is the Age of Ignorance and we have elected a man who is world class in his profound in his lack of any kind of curiosity. And you saw yesterday how much this excites his many fans.
Come on. Gail. This is the Age of Ignorance and we have elected a man who is world class in his profound in his lack of any kind of curiosity. And you saw yesterday how much this excites his many fans.
8
Spot on.
1
What kind of tree nickname would Trump have, if Trump had a printable nickname and not just "MAGA Con Man"? Gail, he could go down on your list as E) Old Thorny Black Locust. Poisonous to all, people and animals.
4
Old Tweet.
7
I wonder if President Trump's fondness for Andrew Jackson will persist after he reads this column and finds out that Andrew Jackson was a prisoner of war.
"`He’s not a war hero,' said Trump. `He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.'"
Seems like an admiration deal breaker for Captain Chaos.
"`He’s not a war hero,' said Trump. `He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.'"
Seems like an admiration deal breaker for Captain Chaos.
12
Andrew Jackson was racist, so is trump. To call trump a populist is to give populism a bad name. To be a populist you actually have to have a popular agenda. Trump is popular with a minority of this country. The militarists and xenophobic mostly white folk who think Fox News is real news. And the super rich. The sooner he is gone the sooner the White House will become once again the people's house. Trump IS ugly Americanism.
12
Old Hickory wore silver spurs.
Donny got dad's doctor to write him a phony excuse about his mythical "bone spurs" to get out of service during Viet Nam.
The Talk is Cheap chapter for Trump's biographer is going to be huge.
Donny got dad's doctor to write him a phony excuse about his mythical "bone spurs" to get out of service during Viet Nam.
The Talk is Cheap chapter for Trump's biographer is going to be huge.
10
Well, Trump has his Deplorables, and Jackson definitely had the most racous inaugural party at the White House, supposedly with crowds climbing through the windows. But Jackson never bragged that his crowd was the biggest since the creation of the world.
4
The world´s most dangerous tree is the Manchineel (Hippomane mancinella), found in the Florida Everglades and the Caribbean coast. The sap that its trunk produces is so poisonous and acidic that contact with human skin causes a breakout of blisters. There's your answer, Gail: E. Maniacal Manchineel.
14
Leave it to the marmalade maniac to pick as his "hero" a president a slave owner who committed ethnic cleansing by forcibly removing the Cherokee nation from its lands while passing the whole thing off as "a product of his times". Just one more reason to add to a very, very long list of why I loath this man.
By the way, I would not pick a tree if I was going to pick a particular flora to symbolize Trump. Trees are much too beautiful and useful to be saddled with such a burden. So I suggest we start calling Trump
OLD STINKWEED!
Using noxiously scented plants to symbolize a noxious man seems most apropos.
By the way, I would not pick a tree if I was going to pick a particular flora to symbolize Trump. Trees are much too beautiful and useful to be saddled with such a burden. So I suggest we start calling Trump
OLD STINKWEED!
Using noxiously scented plants to symbolize a noxious man seems most apropos.
26
Excellent column, one of your best in 2017. Thanks, Gail Collins.
13
OMG. This article is just very funny all around, Trump is truly the least intelligent and most embarrassing president we will ever have.
15
I only hope that Trump is the least intelligent and most embarrassing president that we will ever have.
1
Well the "old" part is accurate, as in "Old Fool".
This is the kind of crazy that happens when you don't live with your wife- she will tell you that you are NOT Andrew Jackson, or Abraham Lincoln, or General Custer when you start in. Maybe the old George Wallace.
Everyone knows Trump does not read anything longer than a bumper sticker. My Texas grandmother never quit calling people like Donald Trump "yankees", would not have cut Trump's fake southern act any slack, and would have built a wall to keep him out just because he was not born there no matter what he said. Intolerance cuts both ways.
Trump is using the South. He thinks he knows it. He knows nothing. Next he will be riding around in a golf cart he names Traveller. Go home Yankee Don.
This is the kind of crazy that happens when you don't live with your wife- she will tell you that you are NOT Andrew Jackson, or Abraham Lincoln, or General Custer when you start in. Maybe the old George Wallace.
Everyone knows Trump does not read anything longer than a bumper sticker. My Texas grandmother never quit calling people like Donald Trump "yankees", would not have cut Trump's fake southern act any slack, and would have built a wall to keep him out just because he was not born there no matter what he said. Intolerance cuts both ways.
Trump is using the South. He thinks he knows it. He knows nothing. Next he will be riding around in a golf cart he names Traveller. Go home Yankee Don.
11
If only we could find comfort in humor when it comes to Trump in the White House, but there's nothing funny about the shredding of the social safety net. Or an intemperate, xenophobic narcissist with troops and nukes at his disposal. Or a Congress of willfully exploitative enablers. Or an electorate gulled by lies and false populism. Or the wreckage that our children's children stand to inherit from our collective self-inflicted wound. You could laugh until you cry.
11
Dear Miss Collins,
Much as Jackson was "Ol' Hickory", perhaps Mr. Trump's moniker could be "Ol' Igarchy" not a tree but, rather, a fast spreading weed.
The ground for this weed must always be fertilized hence his spokes people are always spreading fresh "manure" for the rest of us to rake through.
But with his "admiration" of Mr. Jackson, perhaps his ultimate goal is to replace his hero on the $20.00 bill hence constantly reminding us of his presidency.
As far as comparing the "Hair That Roared" with any other president, my choice would be....sorry, the bar is set SO low that no other chief executive comes to mind. As far as i know, Alfred E. Neuman, of "Mad Magazine" was never president. He does have a great line for the times, however, "What, Me Worry"?
The answer being , of course, "Nah, I'm way past worry and moving to just plain scared"!
Much as Jackson was "Ol' Hickory", perhaps Mr. Trump's moniker could be "Ol' Igarchy" not a tree but, rather, a fast spreading weed.
The ground for this weed must always be fertilized hence his spokes people are always spreading fresh "manure" for the rest of us to rake through.
But with his "admiration" of Mr. Jackson, perhaps his ultimate goal is to replace his hero on the $20.00 bill hence constantly reminding us of his presidency.
As far as comparing the "Hair That Roared" with any other president, my choice would be....sorry, the bar is set SO low that no other chief executive comes to mind. As far as i know, Alfred E. Neuman, of "Mad Magazine" was never president. He does have a great line for the times, however, "What, Me Worry"?
The answer being , of course, "Nah, I'm way past worry and moving to just plain scared"!
15
Jackson was a vicious racist, surpassing even Woodrow Wilson in that sinking category and the forced relocation of the Cherokee Native Americans was worse than the WWII Bataan March. But unlike Trump, Jackson was a REAL bad-a$$. He wore a scar inflicted on him as a kid by a British officer's sword. Both his parents were Irish immigrants and his father died when he was young, leaving the family became poor. Jackson built himself up, educated himself, distinguished himself as a soldier, and was everything Trump pretends he is, but isn't. Jackson enjoyed portraying himself as the uneducated back-woodsman who could barely read and write that he once was, but also enjoyed shocking the "elite" with his actual vast knowledge, being an avid autodidact like Washington and Lincoln. He was a self-made man.
Every President before Trump had either government or military experience or both. Even Franklin Pierce was a general, as was Eisenhower.
Jackson's shake ups DID change the nation, but at great expense. He also is sometimes called the first Democrat because he rebuilt the Democratic Republican Party of Jefferson as the Democratic Party.
Jackson also brought in rampant, unapologetic corruption (ok, THAT is just like Trump) with his introduction of the "Spoils System" (to the victor...) filling government jobs with cronies and loyalists regardless of qualifications. Just like DeVos, Bannon, Miller, Carson, Tillerson, Perry, Price, Flynn, etc.
So Trump channels Jackson's WORST!
Every President before Trump had either government or military experience or both. Even Franklin Pierce was a general, as was Eisenhower.
Jackson's shake ups DID change the nation, but at great expense. He also is sometimes called the first Democrat because he rebuilt the Democratic Republican Party of Jefferson as the Democratic Party.
Jackson also brought in rampant, unapologetic corruption (ok, THAT is just like Trump) with his introduction of the "Spoils System" (to the victor...) filling government jobs with cronies and loyalists regardless of qualifications. Just like DeVos, Bannon, Miller, Carson, Tillerson, Perry, Price, Flynn, etc.
So Trump channels Jackson's WORST!
26
The photograph says it all. Trump at Jackson's grave, ramrod straight, salute held too long, for the cameras and the crowd - a fantasist hard at work, playing at a boy's idea of Presidential demeanor. Does he not remind you of George C. Scott in"Patton"? Pretending, and not very convincing.
20
According to Trump "many people" are comparing him to Andrew Jackson. He must be so grateful to those "many people", who show up like a Greek chorus to back up everything he says about himself, every time he makes a wild, unsubstantiated claim and who apparently beat up his Jiminy Crickett and left him by the side of the road.
10
If Trump really wanted to celebrate Jackson, he would remove his shoes and walk barefooted for the last mile; knowing for once what it’s like to stand in someone else’s suffering shoes, and getting a real feel for the meaning of policy beyond the realm of hate-fantasies of greatness through cruelty and power. As a real estate mogul, he is celebrating the largest land grab in America’s history through force and legal manipulation, using military troops. Does he have moral memory? Has he shown any regret or shame?
Trump joins Reagan in saluting this architecture of American domestic violence. His is the culture of greatness IA’s Steve King celebrates when he says “we can restore greatness with somebody else’s babies.” (Others are rarely so cruel.)
Question of the day: are we only a magnitude or two away from bare-foot marches; do others see in the zip ties, the box cars and the clanging gates of the fences?
Trump joins Reagan in saluting this architecture of American domestic violence. His is the culture of greatness IA’s Steve King celebrates when he says “we can restore greatness with somebody else’s babies.” (Others are rarely so cruel.)
Question of the day: are we only a magnitude or two away from bare-foot marches; do others see in the zip ties, the box cars and the clanging gates of the fences?
6
Trump is not a tree. He's more like an insidious slime mold or fungal infection that has wormed its way so deeply into the system that eliminating it could kill the host. He's not even a dead tree since they are useful to woodpeckers, owls, termites, and other creatures. Trump and his cronies in office are the result of years of race baiting, identity politics, lies, and GOP caused government dysfunction that boiled over into complete and utter disgust at the way things have been. However, as the last 52 days have shown, Trump thinks nothing of "revising" his campaign promises and the GOP doesn't feel obligated to serve any Americans but big business and their rich supporters.
Trump thinks he's channeling Jackson. In truth he's channeling a warped version of Richard M. Nixon without Nixon's smarts.
Trump thinks he's channeling Jackson. In truth he's channeling a warped version of Richard M. Nixon without Nixon's smarts.
37
Yes, Nixon indeed.
2
Trump probably never heard of Jackson, until his very own Iago, Bannon, whispered the name into his ear.
What an imbecile Trump truly is.
Why would he want to compare himself to a mass murderer like Jackson. only now mentioning Jackson, 55 days into his so-called presidency?
But if we're going to give him a nickname, and have to keep with the theme, let's please not insult any lovely trees.
I suggest Fake Wood. Fake wood is a combination of products, adhesives and veneers meant to resemble wood. It's less expensive than real wood and contains harmful chemicals like formaldehyde.
Or we could call him Particleboard, which is constructed of wood particles, and is mostly sawdust and wood chips, bound together with resin. The compacted substance is then coated with veneers that make it look like real wood, yet even with waterproof coatings does not stand up well to moisture.
Only 55 days in.
What an imbecile Trump truly is.
Why would he want to compare himself to a mass murderer like Jackson. only now mentioning Jackson, 55 days into his so-called presidency?
But if we're going to give him a nickname, and have to keep with the theme, let's please not insult any lovely trees.
I suggest Fake Wood. Fake wood is a combination of products, adhesives and veneers meant to resemble wood. It's less expensive than real wood and contains harmful chemicals like formaldehyde.
Or we could call him Particleboard, which is constructed of wood particles, and is mostly sawdust and wood chips, bound together with resin. The compacted substance is then coated with veneers that make it look like real wood, yet even with waterproof coatings does not stand up well to moisture.
Only 55 days in.
61
I'm absolutely sure that Trump never gave a thought to Andrew Jackson until Steve Bannon told him that this was the President he could claim as inspiration.
3
I really like "Old Particleboard" for its connotations of cheapness and fakery and also because it doesn't age well, turning an unnatural orange color. However, particleboard is useful and it recycles otherwise wasted products, so it's cruel to particleboard to be compared to the useless, wasteful Trump. What about "Old Poispn Ivy" because it's toxic, it creeps around, and it operates by sneakily blending in with other plants that aren't harmful?
3
Steve Bannon has done a good job in convincing Trump that he is the reincarnation of Andrew Jackson. Trump paid homage to the 7th president by travelling to Tennessee yesterday and celebrate Old Hickory’s 250th birthday.
No wonder Trump laments about the lost of popular vote, blaming "illegal" voters for spoiling his chance to match Jackson. In 1832 the 7th president polled more than 56 percent of the popular vote and almost five times as many electoral votes as Henry Clay. Emulating Jackson, Trump seeks to galvanise support from ordinary people and be their direct representative on Twitter. In his first Annual Message to Congress, Jackson recommended eliminating the Electoral College. In a 2012 tweet post Trump called the Electoral College a "disaster."
Jackson did not bow to Congress and used his veto power and party leadership to assume command. We might see Trump doing the same. Jackson also defended a protective tariff passed in 1828 and met head-on the opposition of John C. Calhoun. When South Carolina undertook to nullify the tariff, Jackson ordered armed forces to Charleston and threatened to hang Calhoun.
One thing Trump won't learn from Jackson is the sense of ethics. Jackson was hostile toward the Second Bank, which enjoyed a monopoly, and it threw its weight behind opposing him. "The bank," Jackson told Martin Van Buren, "is trying to kill me, but I will kill it!"
No wonder Trump laments about the lost of popular vote, blaming "illegal" voters for spoiling his chance to match Jackson. In 1832 the 7th president polled more than 56 percent of the popular vote and almost five times as many electoral votes as Henry Clay. Emulating Jackson, Trump seeks to galvanise support from ordinary people and be their direct representative on Twitter. In his first Annual Message to Congress, Jackson recommended eliminating the Electoral College. In a 2012 tweet post Trump called the Electoral College a "disaster."
Jackson did not bow to Congress and used his veto power and party leadership to assume command. We might see Trump doing the same. Jackson also defended a protective tariff passed in 1828 and met head-on the opposition of John C. Calhoun. When South Carolina undertook to nullify the tariff, Jackson ordered armed forces to Charleston and threatened to hang Calhoun.
One thing Trump won't learn from Jackson is the sense of ethics. Jackson was hostile toward the Second Bank, which enjoyed a monopoly, and it threw its weight behind opposing him. "The bank," Jackson told Martin Van Buren, "is trying to kill me, but I will kill it!"
9
"Can you imagine a President Trump with no connection to the outside world but telegraph?" Trump would be an ace at Morse code with his overactive (small) thumbs. BREVITY! BREVITY! BAD!!!!!
Not a tree, but I think of Trump as Phytolacca americana (AKA pokeweed).
Not a tree, but I think of Trump as Phytolacca americana (AKA pokeweed).
31
The article suggests that Trump will fail as a leader and not get anything done. Other than sit in his office and write executive orders what did Obama get done in eight years-and don't say Obamacare because it's in a death spiral. And don't say Republicans stopped him, he just refused to work with anyone who didn't share his point of view.
Trump attracts venom from many because he tens of thousands of government and private bureaucrats will lose their jobs when he drains the swamp. Many of you are simply regurgitating media half-truths and writing cheap hit jobs like Gail's column today.
Trump attracts venom from many because he tens of thousands of government and private bureaucrats will lose their jobs when he drains the swamp. Many of you are simply regurgitating media half-truths and writing cheap hit jobs like Gail's column today.
1
What exactly has 45 accomplished? Name one thing he has done that benefits all of us? Will I hear crickets from you?
5
All the facts you say are true. To say that in another way, there are no facts you state that are untrue. That's because, in typical Trumpster fashion, you state no facts, but just insult everyone who disagrees with you and, as "WildCycle" has says here, this draftdodging coward (a fact, by the way) (which I say as a non-combat veteran.) Perhaps you are just addled from trying to rationalize the hundreds of lies told by him and his sycophants (another fact.) As far as swamps are concerned, it seems that is now populated by (warning - facts ahead) science deniers (Pruitt, etc), incompetents (DeVos and Carson, to start), money-grubbers (Mnuchin, Ross), etc. Then again, not all his closest associates are incompetent: one is a very talented murderer, invader, international criminal, and election-subverter, ie, Czar Putin.
5
So it's the bureaucrats that are in the swamp, the people we hire to keep the government running, and not the lobbyists and self-serving politicians? Okay, got it. I'm glad you regurgitated that for us.
5
Photographs of don trump "saluting" make me want to vomit.
Draft dodging coward, he has a lot of nerve, pretending to respect honorable servicemen/women and veterans.
But perhaps it was just as well; can you envision this jerk as a young lieutenant platoon leader in an Army or Marine Corps rifle company? How many men would have been KIA or WIA because of his ability to delude himself?
The only silver lining would have been that he would have believed he was bulletproof and spared us all this turmoil 55 years later.
Draft dodging coward, he has a lot of nerve, pretending to respect honorable servicemen/women and veterans.
But perhaps it was just as well; can you envision this jerk as a young lieutenant platoon leader in an Army or Marine Corps rifle company? How many men would have been KIA or WIA because of his ability to delude himself?
The only silver lining would have been that he would have believed he was bulletproof and spared us all this turmoil 55 years later.
101
I suspect that if he was in command of any troops in the field (in Viet Nam) he would have been fragged.
1
Trump is actually most like President William Harrison: Declared dead after his first month in office
104
Was wondering if anyone would make that analogy.
"Old Swamp Oak" comes to mind, as does "White-Ash Donald," but a moniker that includes "Nut" may be most appropriate.
34
How about Beachnut? (apologies to Beech trees and baby food).
1
Old Bradford Pear. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but ultimately a scourge on the landscape.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2016/03/30/curse-bradford-...
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2016/03/30/curse-bradford-...
34
Jackson would duel. trump would sue.
51
Angela Merkel is meeting 45 tomorrow. Chancellor Merkel, we apologize.
233
I hope someone has warned her about 45's "handshake".
1
Jackson was taken prisoner. I like people who weren't captured.
150
What tree produces the most nuts?
156
We could consider "Old Walnut" because its roots produce a toxin that kills most other plants underneath it.
Your humor is still in evidence, Ms. Collins, but I still miss Seamus.
28
Not fashionable I guess to mention that Jackson owned slaves. But facts are stubborn things.
44
And slaughtered lots of Native Americans.
1
According to Ben Carson he owned immigrants seeking a land of dreams and opportunity.
2
Or that he invaded Spanish Florida, killed hundreds of
Seminoles and arranged the Trail of Tears.
Seminoles and arranged the Trail of Tears.
1
I know it's not a tree, but it fits: Stinky. Stinky 45.
29
Homework assignment for NYTIMES readers. Go to the internet and check out the 44 Presidents of the U.S. Read the strengths and weaknesses of each
man, and the times of the world during which they presided. After a short
time, readers will have a historical perspective to compare to Gail Collins views
of Trump. Trump was never in the military, never held public office before his
victory 11/08/16, and has introduced the "Twitter" as connecting with
the pubic. Trump does not accept criticism because he does not make mistakes, even when facts stand in the way. Surviving Trump democracy needs
a Democratic opposition, which is lacking at this time.
man, and the times of the world during which they presided. After a short
time, readers will have a historical perspective to compare to Gail Collins views
of Trump. Trump was never in the military, never held public office before his
victory 11/08/16, and has introduced the "Twitter" as connecting with
the pubic. Trump does not accept criticism because he does not make mistakes, even when facts stand in the way. Surviving Trump democracy needs
a Democratic opposition, which is lacking at this time.
25
If only I had more time, I would be the smartest man in Washington!
Hey, he attended NY Military Academy!
2
I hope your "pubic" was a pun. Trump is certainly familiar with those nether regions.
2
Gail, I love ya but the tree question was first asked by Barbara Walters, and we know how that turned out. But your descriptions of Trump behavior are spot on.
17
Donald Trump and Andrew Jackson.
There are similarities between a house mouse and an elephant -- both are gray, quadrupedal mammals.
E) Old Orange Tree
There are similarities between a house mouse and an elephant -- both are gray, quadrupedal mammals.
E) Old Orange Tree
57
Clearly balsa wood. It is lightweight, fragile, easily broken, can be shaped easily into many forms, and prone to rotting when wet and kept in the dark.
368
In these dire times I find myself always needing a laugh, and you always provide it. So thanks.
71
Let us not insult trees by comparing the Donald to any one of them. Instead, I propose that the current president be known as "Old Borer," which works in several ways, not least that he is now working so hard to destroy so many roots and branches.
Separately, I highly recommend to anyone interested in U.S. history and presidential history a podcast series called "Presidential," in which one episode was devoted to each of our presidents. Check it out!
Separately, I highly recommend to anyone interested in U.S. history and presidential history a podcast series called "Presidential," in which one episode was devoted to each of our presidents. Check it out!
60
Gail please do not insult the trees by using one as a nickname for Trump. Trees are beautiful and help keep our planet healthy.
Trump is obscene.
Trump is obscene.
279
Yes, let's leave our beautiful trees out of it. With Trump's proposed cuts to the EPA there won't be many trees around, anyway.
How about "Old American Carnage"?
How about "Old American Carnage"?
2
Trump is a Weeping Willow. Anyone watching his subversion of Democracy and denigration of all that makes US great is weeping- BELIEVE ME. BIG TIME. #SO VERY SAD.
2
I agree, the comparison is utterly inappropriate and will continue to be so until Dear Leader does something useful for society, such as breathing in carbon dioxide and exhaling oxygen.
1
"What kind of tree nickname should Donald Trump have?"
I'd go with Bitternut Hickory. Nomenclature aside, it's described as "inferior to that of the other hickories but is used for practically the same purposes," according to Cornell University's Guide to New York State's Forest Trees.
Old Bitternut has a nice ring to it.
I'd go with Bitternut Hickory. Nomenclature aside, it's described as "inferior to that of the other hickories but is used for practically the same purposes," according to Cornell University's Guide to New York State's Forest Trees.
Old Bitternut has a nice ring to it.
40
You might think he's Slippery Elm; I think he's Poison Sumac which thrives in swamps and gives you a rash; but Trump definitely believes he's Poplar.
For surrounding himself with corrupt cronies, I like Warren G. Harding. He also reportedly liked the ladies. My Mom firmly believes that Mrs. Harding helped her husband shuffle off his mortal coil. And Harding ushered in Coolidge as his following act - a man noted for rarely speaking. Think about not hearing from the White House. No Tweets! No conspiracies! Trump would be improved a hundred times over if we never heard from him.
But truly, I will compare him to whomever he wants, if he can just assure us
that he doesn't become the President who let North Korea start the third world war, or the President who undid all the work of his predecessor and allowed the global economy slip into depression. Or the one who undid democracy, and left us with either oligarchy or chaos.
Heck I;d even call him Poplar.
For surrounding himself with corrupt cronies, I like Warren G. Harding. He also reportedly liked the ladies. My Mom firmly believes that Mrs. Harding helped her husband shuffle off his mortal coil. And Harding ushered in Coolidge as his following act - a man noted for rarely speaking. Think about not hearing from the White House. No Tweets! No conspiracies! Trump would be improved a hundred times over if we never heard from him.
But truly, I will compare him to whomever he wants, if he can just assure us
that he doesn't become the President who let North Korea start the third world war, or the President who undid all the work of his predecessor and allowed the global economy slip into depression. Or the one who undid democracy, and left us with either oligarchy or chaos.
Heck I;d even call him Poplar.
8
Trump is not my president. He is a squatter in the White House. He is like no president of the USA; it is an insult to ALL past presidents (no mater how poorly they governed) to compare them to the White House squatter. I am no presidential historian, so I don't know if any presidents were mentally ill, but if there were any, their illness was not on full-blown display as in the White House squatter.
Rather than draw false comparisons of the White House squatter to US presidents, let us ask, "With whom do the White House squatter's cult of supporters have something/most in common?"
A) The 17th Century zealots of Salem, Massachusetts standing strong against witchcraft.
B) The 2020 first graders across America practicing civics? (Sorry, that's an insult to a future class of first graders.)
C) The McCarthyites drawing up black lists of their neighbors?
As to a tree nickname for Trump supporters, how about 'deadwood'.
Rather than draw false comparisons of the White House squatter to US presidents, let us ask, "With whom do the White House squatter's cult of supporters have something/most in common?"
A) The 17th Century zealots of Salem, Massachusetts standing strong against witchcraft.
B) The 2020 first graders across America practicing civics? (Sorry, that's an insult to a future class of first graders.)
C) The McCarthyites drawing up black lists of their neighbors?
As to a tree nickname for Trump supporters, how about 'deadwood'.
26
The Trump tree is Balsa - extremely lightweight, too flimsy for building anything but model planes. As for comparisons to prior presidents, Trump is looking more and more like Nixon. Though Nixon actually did have a few notable accomplishments, his choice of VP was fatally flawed, and yes, he was a crook.
14
It was only fitting for Donald Trump to pay his respects to Andrew Jackson at The Hermitage in Tennessee.
Some of us wish President Trump would follow his heart into exile at The Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia. Or, to use the abandoned temporary name of the city, favored by Stephen K. Bannon, “Leningrad.”
Trump and Jackson have much in common. Jackson styled himself as a populist, although he had amassed a fortune in real estate – mostly at the expense of local Indian tribes.
Jackson waved the populist flag to get elected and then proclaimed his populism in Washington mostly to poke the big banks in the eye, because they had no use for him.
Trump, of course, also had trouble getting credit until he found Deutsche Bank and Russia’s Alfa Bank.
As far as acquiring a nickname, President Trump ought to do so, since the nicknames he currently has are too graphic and off-color for public use. They tend to focus on body parts.
Following Jackson by choosing a tree is all right, and the first on Gail Collins’s list – Old Slippery Elm – is fitting.
Given the Trump winter home in Florida, Old Coconut Palm might work, but the name also conjures up thoughts of the Middle East, and that’s already banned by executive order. Or not.
Some of us wish President Trump would follow his heart into exile at The Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia. Or, to use the abandoned temporary name of the city, favored by Stephen K. Bannon, “Leningrad.”
Trump and Jackson have much in common. Jackson styled himself as a populist, although he had amassed a fortune in real estate – mostly at the expense of local Indian tribes.
Jackson waved the populist flag to get elected and then proclaimed his populism in Washington mostly to poke the big banks in the eye, because they had no use for him.
Trump, of course, also had trouble getting credit until he found Deutsche Bank and Russia’s Alfa Bank.
As far as acquiring a nickname, President Trump ought to do so, since the nicknames he currently has are too graphic and off-color for public use. They tend to focus on body parts.
Following Jackson by choosing a tree is all right, and the first on Gail Collins’s list – Old Slippery Elm – is fitting.
Given the Trump winter home in Florida, Old Coconut Palm might work, but the name also conjures up thoughts of the Middle East, and that’s already banned by executive order. Or not.
6
I do encourage people to do a little research about Jackson if it has been a few years since high school. He was a truly terrible man, a slaveholder with a lust for blood and the terrorism that slaveholding must use to control fellow humans as though they were animals.
If I were boss all public buildings would be forbidden from being named after slaveholders. It was a horrible time and the crime of slavery is every bit as bad as child sexual abuse, and we wouldn't honor "founders" if we discovered that they belonged to a cult that abused children. Then why do we honor even a little bit historical figures who enslaved fellow humans?
Trump is stupid and a lover of power over others. That is why he forces his employees to stand any time one of his gilded family enter a room.
I have no doubt Trump would have been a great slaveholder, a posturer who personally attended the flogging punishments. He would have liked to break humans, like he has shown he cherishes taking health care and housing from the poorest Americans.
Hugh Massengill, Eugene Oregon
If I were boss all public buildings would be forbidden from being named after slaveholders. It was a horrible time and the crime of slavery is every bit as bad as child sexual abuse, and we wouldn't honor "founders" if we discovered that they belonged to a cult that abused children. Then why do we honor even a little bit historical figures who enslaved fellow humans?
Trump is stupid and a lover of power over others. That is why he forces his employees to stand any time one of his gilded family enter a room.
I have no doubt Trump would have been a great slaveholder, a posturer who personally attended the flogging punishments. He would have liked to break humans, like he has shown he cherishes taking health care and housing from the poorest Americans.
Hugh Massengill, Eugene Oregon
27
Although threadbare, if everything you say is true, I'm just thankful for what remains of our checks and balances in the Senate. We'll see if it holds? I don't know my presidents well enough to comment --- I'm pretty good at trees, and have one in mind for Donald's hair, but I don't think he would refer to me as a tulip tree after such. (Not the southern kind - the poplar kind --- I am so fascinated by that tree!) On a tree note, I hope the cherry trees in Washington make it!
4
Old Christmas Tree
Leads a flashy life and loves to be admired, but is really dead inside.
Once cast to the side of the road its leaves and his hair share a certain hue.
Plus, it just has a nice ring to it. Imagine the songs!
Leads a flashy life and loves to be admired, but is really dead inside.
Once cast to the side of the road its leaves and his hair share a certain hue.
Plus, it just has a nice ring to it. Imagine the songs!
16
The one tree I can think of that would be a good choice for Trump is the Catalpa tree (Indian Bean Tree) because it is basically a garbage type of tree that grows very quickly, does no useful job except cast a shadow, and is not worth anything to carpenters when it is cut down and is lousy even for firewood.
14
Definitely not "Old Slippery Elm." Slippery Elm bark tea is quite good for sore throats; Trump's record on health care is far worse.
10
The only connection I can see is the weird hairstyles.
5
Actually I like Black Walnut, as described by a previous commentator.
But as much as the president admires Ole Hickory, he seems to have not taken into account that of Jackson's involvement in the now infamous "Trail of Tears". So sad, another obvious half baked bit of research from our black hearted president and his like minded team.
Meanwhile Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau takes Ivanka to the theatre; he should have taken her father. Just maybe Ole Black Wallnut might have learned something.
But as much as the president admires Ole Hickory, he seems to have not taken into account that of Jackson's involvement in the now infamous "Trail of Tears". So sad, another obvious half baked bit of research from our black hearted president and his like minded team.
Meanwhile Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau takes Ivanka to the theatre; he should have taken her father. Just maybe Ole Black Wallnut might have learned something.
13
Gail, love your comments.
However, please don't insult the trees. We need the oxygen they give off to breathe. trump gives off nothing healthy and it trying to shut off the oxygen of many of us who breathe.
However, please don't insult the trees. We need the oxygen they give off to breathe. trump gives off nothing healthy and it trying to shut off the oxygen of many of us who breathe.
35
Trump has no love of the environment or the beautiful country he now leads. He will be aptly remembered as Baron Wasteland.
34
Comparing to former presidents is pretty difficult. Trump is the end game of the paradigm shift that began with the first televised presidential election. He's really more of a "reality" TV program of what a rolling dumpster fire actually looks like than any kind of presidential leadership or governance. Some people have already been sideswiped or burned; many more will be by the time this show's over. And to those who wanted to flip the Monopoly board by electing The Hair - so sorry, the card stack has sent you to jail, you can't roll the dice for four more years, and the bankers have captured Boardwalk and Park Place and are jacking up the rents.
20
Trump and Jackson share none of the characteristics Ms. Collins discusses, but both men did exhibit a fascination with facades. Although Jackson began life dirt poor, he acquired a fortune in land and slaves by exploiting the opportunities offered by life on a frontier devoid of an established elite. His new station in society required the trappings of gentility, so the future president slapped an elaborate front on a large farm house that convinced visitors they were approaching a magnificent Greek revival mansion.
Trump, in like manner, covers everything in his penthouse in New York with a patina of gold leaf, to convince his guests that they have entered the domain of King Midas. Although wealthy, Trump lost a lawsuit he filed against a writer who claimed he merely posed as a billionaire. In other respects, too, Trump conceals a less glamorous interior through emphasis on a glossy facade. He presents himself as a shrewd, tough-minded businessman who achieved success by outmaneuvering other giants of the corporate world. Trump's performance as president, however, has exposed the bumbling incompetent behind the mask.
For this reason, my comparison of the two presidents probably exaggerates the resemblance between them. Old Hickory may have concealed the humble origins of the Hermitage, but he never hid his own modest beginnings. As president, moreover, he demonstrated a genuine toughness and competence wholly foreign to Donald Trump.
Trump, in like manner, covers everything in his penthouse in New York with a patina of gold leaf, to convince his guests that they have entered the domain of King Midas. Although wealthy, Trump lost a lawsuit he filed against a writer who claimed he merely posed as a billionaire. In other respects, too, Trump conceals a less glamorous interior through emphasis on a glossy facade. He presents himself as a shrewd, tough-minded businessman who achieved success by outmaneuvering other giants of the corporate world. Trump's performance as president, however, has exposed the bumbling incompetent behind the mask.
For this reason, my comparison of the two presidents probably exaggerates the resemblance between them. Old Hickory may have concealed the humble origins of the Hermitage, but he never hid his own modest beginnings. As president, moreover, he demonstrated a genuine toughness and competence wholly foreign to Donald Trump.
19
The image of Donald Trump saluting at the tomb of Andrew Jackson may be the most surreal image yet in the ongoing Trump freak show. We would have to check with Pulitzer Prize winning Jackson biographer, John Meacham, but Andrew Jackson being BFF's with Donald Trump is absolutely absurd. Trump would personify everything Jackson hated. The "bone spurs deferment", would not have gone over well with "Old Hickory", and if Trump had ever shown a picture denigrating Jackson's corncob pipe smoking, beloved wife Rachel, in comparison to Melania, Trump's life would have been measured in nano seconds. In fact, even omitting the wife comparison, the irascible Jackson, an experienced dueler, would have been much more likely to challenge Trump to a duel, than support him for the presidency.
360
Like Jackson, the business of America is Trump's business, monkey business. Destroy the elderly after promising them health care, impoverish the poor even further by destroying their unions, depress the value of their homes by raising interest rates and generally play the role of backstabber while pretending to be Dudley DoRight.
161
Agree with you generally, but presidents don't change interest rates.
2
I posit that anyone, dead or alive, would be embarrassed to stand beside, or be compared to, Trump.
And, I just heard, cutting heating assistance funds for the poor (including elderly poor).
2
We Dems no longer find use for old hickory, so it is fitting that the republicans pick him as a model. This follows the tradition started by Mr. Nixon and epitomized by Mr. Reagan,
When we Dems decided to recognize that other races beside white should have the protection of the constitution, the Republicans gladly traded us this for the solid south.
When we Dems decided to recognize that other races beside white should have the protection of the constitution, the Republicans gladly traded us this for the solid south.
11
The south:
America's very own Middle East filled with religious zealots who hate America and treat women like incubators with legs.
They also violently lash out at anyone who's even a little different.
Makes me wonder why we ever let those un-American embarrassments back into our nation after we won The War of Southern Treason and Laziness.
America's very own Middle East filled with religious zealots who hate America and treat women like incubators with legs.
They also violently lash out at anyone who's even a little different.
Makes me wonder why we ever let those un-American embarrassments back into our nation after we won The War of Southern Treason and Laziness.
2
Here is a bit of information on Jackson that might show affinity:
“He jailed resident aliens based on only weak suspicions and ordered the arrest of a prominent state legislator who had openly criticized his repressing methods. Then he arrested the federal judge who challenged that action, banishing him for “exciting mutiny”.
“He jailed resident aliens based on only weak suspicions and ordered the arrest of a prominent state legislator who had openly criticized his repressing methods. Then he arrested the federal judge who challenged that action, banishing him for “exciting mutiny”.
28
Old Trumpery doesn't need Old Hickory for inspiration; he's just trying to fake being Presidential and trying to fake being interested in history.
The word 'trumpery' has its own age-old definition in every English dictionary in the world that perfectly matches the wretched character of Old Trumpery.
Unfortunately, no one in Trump Nation had any access to a dictionary when they pulled the lever for that fine pile of Trumpery on November 8.
trump-er-y (noun)
1. Showy but worthless trinket; trash
2. Nonsense; rubbish; twaddle
3. Deception; trickery; fraud.
4. foolish talk or actions
5. a useless or worthless article
From the late Middle English word 'trompery', meaning deceit (Middle French tromperie=tromp(er) to deceive or cheat
And from the Urban Dictionary's hipster definition of trumpery:
1. The opposite of diplomacy.
2. Delusions of adequacy.
Synonyms of trumpery are baloney, blather, claptrap, codswallop, drivel, foolishness, garbage, hogwash and stupidity.
http://www.finedictionary.com/trumpery.html
The fake American heartland and fraudulent Bible Belt demanded a Twaddle-Twitterer-In-Chief that perfectly reflected their own intellectual, moral and economic bankruptcy, and someone who could Make Stupid Great Again.
Trumpery Nation has achieved its great H.L. Menckian dream:
"On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron."
Old Trumpery to the rescue.
The word 'trumpery' has its own age-old definition in every English dictionary in the world that perfectly matches the wretched character of Old Trumpery.
Unfortunately, no one in Trump Nation had any access to a dictionary when they pulled the lever for that fine pile of Trumpery on November 8.
trump-er-y (noun)
1. Showy but worthless trinket; trash
2. Nonsense; rubbish; twaddle
3. Deception; trickery; fraud.
4. foolish talk or actions
5. a useless or worthless article
From the late Middle English word 'trompery', meaning deceit (Middle French tromperie=tromp(er) to deceive or cheat
And from the Urban Dictionary's hipster definition of trumpery:
1. The opposite of diplomacy.
2. Delusions of adequacy.
Synonyms of trumpery are baloney, blather, claptrap, codswallop, drivel, foolishness, garbage, hogwash and stupidity.
http://www.finedictionary.com/trumpery.html
The fake American heartland and fraudulent Bible Belt demanded a Twaddle-Twitterer-In-Chief that perfectly reflected their own intellectual, moral and economic bankruptcy, and someone who could Make Stupid Great Again.
Trumpery Nation has achieved its great H.L. Menckian dream:
"On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron."
Old Trumpery to the rescue.
620
Oh, Socrates. This is one of your best. Thank you for providing a much needed laugh.
6
@Socrates
Outstanding, and so apt. I can't imagine why no one thought of this before.
Outstanding, and so apt. I can't imagine why no one thought of this before.
4
I do like codswallop. Has a certain ring to it.
4
Oh, I'm still laughing--do I get to pick? I'll take "Old slippery Elm: for $100.
Gail, you clearly did your history homework. The Jeopardy! my cast of characters we studied in high school, glazing our eyes, jump out of your column, resurrected from the dustbin of my old history books: Hayes, Pierce, Taylor, Buchanan, Van Buren. I know I cojldn't assign them their proper decade without checking google.
But I think I like VP Richard Johnson the best: the humble bartender. "Like Jackson, Johnson presented himself as a man of humble origins. But in reality, he had a dad who owned a ton of real estate. And like Trump, he became a politician with a lot of money who complained about the moneyed class."
Johnson makes the best example in your political "comparatorium." But I'd add a twist.
Instead of Applebees, just imagine Trump serving soda at San Quentin or tweeting from a cell. Or cleaning toilets for bad behavior.
Gail, you clearly did your history homework. The Jeopardy! my cast of characters we studied in high school, glazing our eyes, jump out of your column, resurrected from the dustbin of my old history books: Hayes, Pierce, Taylor, Buchanan, Van Buren. I know I cojldn't assign them their proper decade without checking google.
But I think I like VP Richard Johnson the best: the humble bartender. "Like Jackson, Johnson presented himself as a man of humble origins. But in reality, he had a dad who owned a ton of real estate. And like Trump, he became a politician with a lot of money who complained about the moneyed class."
Johnson makes the best example in your political "comparatorium." But I'd add a twist.
Instead of Applebees, just imagine Trump serving soda at San Quentin or tweeting from a cell. Or cleaning toilets for bad behavior.
156
Gail, to answer your multiple choice question, is there a tree that represents international money-laundering, consorting with those friendly to the Iranian Revolutionary which blatantly violates our Foreign Corrupt Practices Act:
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/03/13/donald-trumps-worst-deal
as well as settling swindling/fraud charges out-of-court ?
What tree, except one from a Dr. Seuss story book, looks enough like the ferret perched on DJT's noggin ?
We're at an utter loss.
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/03/13/donald-trumps-worst-deal
as well as settling swindling/fraud charges out-of-court ?
What tree, except one from a Dr. Seuss story book, looks enough like the ferret perched on DJT's noggin ?
We're at an utter loss.
28
A money tree - thin and papery, rattles in breeze, and is almost as worthless as a promise from Trump.
1
I'm no fan of Jackson; however, Jackson did not shirk military service because of bone spurs.
Jackson would not have thought kindly on a man who insulted the parents of a dead American soldier and who also insulted a POW.
Jackson would have despised someone like Trump.
Jackson would not have thought kindly on a man who insulted the parents of a dead American soldier and who also insulted a POW.
Jackson would have despised someone like Trump.
153
Your kidding with this article right?
I guess gone are the days when a news writer can publish an article without injecting their own opinions. Please this story is no more than a blurb in the presidents busy day and does not even deserve a place in the paper. Has anyone been following up on chinas island building? What about going to japan and south korea and finding out how those people feel about an idiot mad man having nuclear tipped balistic missiles? Orrrrrr..... how is the fight agaist ISIS going. I think the one thing that scares liberal medea the most is that Trump might actually be right in his assesments of how things are. America needs a creditable honest press with a good pulse on the mood of the whole country. We the ordinary people do not have the rescources to watchdog the folks on the hill. We need you to keep us informed. But you have entagled yourself in the fight by mixing it up with the ideas an debates you are opposed to. Do your job, report information and stop spinning things. Signed, ordinary American
I guess gone are the days when a news writer can publish an article without injecting their own opinions. Please this story is no more than a blurb in the presidents busy day and does not even deserve a place in the paper. Has anyone been following up on chinas island building? What about going to japan and south korea and finding out how those people feel about an idiot mad man having nuclear tipped balistic missiles? Orrrrrr..... how is the fight agaist ISIS going. I think the one thing that scares liberal medea the most is that Trump might actually be right in his assesments of how things are. America needs a creditable honest press with a good pulse on the mood of the whole country. We the ordinary people do not have the rescources to watchdog the folks on the hill. We need you to keep us informed. But you have entagled yourself in the fight by mixing it up with the ideas an debates you are opposed to. Do your job, report information and stop spinning things. Signed, ordinary American
Gail's article is in the opinion section. She wrote an opinion piece. Can you read, or you just want to flap you lips in support of your cretin president?
3
This column is not a "news" column. It is an "opinion" piece, and Gail's is a very popular "opinion" writer. The ordinary Americans posting here get it.
3
How fitting that Trump so admires Jackson, the author of the Indian removal Act which displaced thousands of Native Americans and resulted in many deaths. Not so different from our great leader's hatred of Muslims
209
Jackson had his Indian Removal Act. Trump will have his America Health Care Act. Both have consequences and no one wins.
7
Jackson continually proposed a Constitutional amendment to have Presidents elected by a direct popular vote, eliminating the electoral college.
Warren Harding is a great example of a president who was patently unqualified. He was, however, a very nice man (one of his first acts was pardoning Eugene Debs, who had been tossed into federal prison during World War I on a highly dubious charge of violating the Espionage Act), and did appoint some highly competent officials: William Howard Taft, Charles Evans Hughes, Herbert Hoover, and Andrew Mellon (with Hughes, Hoover, and Mellon in his cabinet, the collective IQ was real high).
Warren Harding is a great example of a president who was patently unqualified. He was, however, a very nice man (one of his first acts was pardoning Eugene Debs, who had been tossed into federal prison during World War I on a highly dubious charge of violating the Espionage Act), and did appoint some highly competent officials: William Howard Taft, Charles Evans Hughes, Herbert Hoover, and Andrew Mellon (with Hughes, Hoover, and Mellon in his cabinet, the collective IQ was real high).
11
"Don’t compare Trump to Ronald Reagan."
Sadly it's a perfect fit. RR was also a fraud, but he knew how to smile as he stole your wallet.
Reagan destroyed the middle class, and now Trump wants to destroy everything else.
Thanks Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania. Thanks nihilistic 3rd party fools. Thanks apathetic non-voters.
And a hearty thanks to Trump's enablers, whose rage is only exceeded by their vast ignorance.
Sadly it's a perfect fit. RR was also a fraud, but he knew how to smile as he stole your wallet.
Reagan destroyed the middle class, and now Trump wants to destroy everything else.
Thanks Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania. Thanks nihilistic 3rd party fools. Thanks apathetic non-voters.
And a hearty thanks to Trump's enablers, whose rage is only exceeded by their vast ignorance.
484
Right on, David. Indeed Reagan led a horrible philosophy, which has resulted in 45 and republicans who hate all but the upper "class".
1
For all his failings, Reagan possessed charm and at the very least the appearance of character.
Trump has neither.
Trump has neither.
1
Both puppet presidents, controlled by others. Only difference is that, as an actor, Ronnie could speak like an adult and stay on-script without a prompter like the actor he was, while trump speaks in mindless phrases unless he reads each word carefully.
2
Jackson had been a judge, general, and a Senator before becoming President. Just another area where the comparison fails.
31
Andrew Jackson was an ardent opponent of John C. Calhoun whose "nullification" beliefs and state's rights were opposite of what Andrew Jackson thought. Andrew Jackson insisted that the federal government's laws should be obeyed by each and every state in the union. Trump has the advantage of today's South being all too much like Calhoun, not "old Hickory."
Jackson's defiance of the Supreme Court in the Indian case encouraged SC's bid for nullification. When AJ realized what he had done he threatened force. Until then Calhoun was fine with Jackson.
Let's watch Trump screw himself if he defies the Supreme Court, which will probably come up sooner or later.
Let's watch Trump screw himself if he defies the Supreme Court, which will probably come up sooner or later.
1
I really thought the bottom of the barrel had been found with G.W. - who has now become a kind of simpering national Palooka with his horrid and tasteless paintings of those he send to his phony wars.
USA! You outdid yourself. Well done.
USA! You outdid yourself. Well done.
122
Plennie--
Unfortunately, Americans do not vote for anyone---they vote against the previous administration. When we do that, the door is open to anyone who was not governing previously. Yes, it is both risky and frightening.
The next president will be a polar opposite. What remains to be seen is if he/she will be a career public servant, or someone else that lives far off of the reservation?
Unfortunately, Americans do not vote for anyone---they vote against the previous administration. When we do that, the door is open to anyone who was not governing previously. Yes, it is both risky and frightening.
The next president will be a polar opposite. What remains to be seen is if he/she will be a career public servant, or someone else that lives far off of the reservation?
2
Alas, those wars were real; as have been their consequences.
2
Billy, it will take many presidents to undue the damage from 45.
3
A fun column. Wonder whether any prior presidents were involved with walks? Guess Reagan saw the Berlin Wall come down. That seems opposite to Trump's plans. Nixon visited the Great Wall of China, which probably is an unfortunate example as it cost a fortune and didn't work too well.
Whether Trump ever builds his Wall, he will succeed in having an impenetrable barrier built around the White House. That'll keep us out. Too bad it won't keep tweets in.
Whether Trump ever builds his Wall, he will succeed in having an impenetrable barrier built around the White House. That'll keep us out. Too bad it won't keep tweets in.
35
Well, a hickory is a type of nut tree, so maybe "Old Nut Tree" would be appropriate for Trump.
Speaking of Rutherford Hayes, I believe he should be spoken of more often. The dirty deal Republicans made to get southern Democrats to sign on to abandoning their man Tilden and giving the presidency to Hayes included having the north pull their troops out of the south. The main function of the troops was to protect the constitutional rights of freed slaves.
As soon as troops were gone, white southerners built their apartheid state that continued for almost a century, until LBJ ended it. Southern white Democrats then switched to the Republican party, taking their bitter resentments towards federal government with them. They then joined forces with religious extremists and gun nuts and took over the country- all culminating with the election of "Old Nut Tree". Americans need to know their history.
Speaking of Rutherford Hayes, I believe he should be spoken of more often. The dirty deal Republicans made to get southern Democrats to sign on to abandoning their man Tilden and giving the presidency to Hayes included having the north pull their troops out of the south. The main function of the troops was to protect the constitutional rights of freed slaves.
As soon as troops were gone, white southerners built their apartheid state that continued for almost a century, until LBJ ended it. Southern white Democrats then switched to the Republican party, taking their bitter resentments towards federal government with them. They then joined forces with religious extremists and gun nuts and took over the country- all culminating with the election of "Old Nut Tree". Americans need to know their history.
68
Actually, all but three southern states had already been "redeemed" by the 1876 election. The process was merely completed because of the Compromise of 1877.
2
Yes, thanks for the clarification, it does seem to reduce the impact of the compromise. However, the rest of the history is spot-on and most American's don't even know how this continues to pervert our politics to this day. We are a long ways from resolving the trauma of the slavery and the Civil War as a nation, and we all pay a terrible price for this. The sins of the South eat at all of us to this day, most other sins of our nation are more or less resolved.
2
Hey, Old Hickory wasn't JUST the guy who wanted to get rid of all the Indian tribes.
He also developed the spoils system by which political and personal loyalty was rewarded above all else in handing out jobs. That sounds like our current President, don't you think?
He was, you might say, the Man on the White Horse that the President aspires to be, except Jackson knew how to ride.
He also developed the spoils system by which political and personal loyalty was rewarded above all else in handing out jobs. That sounds like our current President, don't you think?
He was, you might say, the Man on the White Horse that the President aspires to be, except Jackson knew how to ride.
47
Behold the white horse, upon him rides death.
--Revelations
--Revelations
14
Trump probably never heard of Andrew Jackson as anyone other than the man on the $20 bill until Bannon educated him. To hang Jackson's portrait on the wall in the oval office is a white nationalist statement, an assertion in support of genocide.
242
Give em time, they'll hang ole Adolph's pic up there as soon as they think nobody cares.
1
Ornamental dogwoods are actually rather tough. They are also beautiful with lovely flowers in the spring and spectacular foliage in the fall. They are the opposite of our thin-skinned president with his ugly policies.
26
How about Bozo the Clown. Wait...Bozo wasn't a president. Right.
16
Or a tree.
2
Dear Gail,
If one MUST pick a tree to describe tRump, then it should be
(E). Old bigotry.
If one MUST pick a tree to describe tRump, then it should be
(E). Old bigotry.
90
I think WALNUT! the wall is obvious as well as the nut.
the sapwood is beige and the heart(if he has one) is black.
husk a black walnut and your hands are stained (just as he is a stain on the US) and black walnuts are bitter just like him.
concerning his progeny.....the nut does not fall far from the tree.
the sapwood is beige and the heart(if he has one) is black.
husk a black walnut and your hands are stained (just as he is a stain on the US) and black walnuts are bitter just like him.
concerning his progeny.....the nut does not fall far from the tree.
113
And nothing can be planted near a black walnut because the roots emit a toxin that kills other plants.
19
No, not the Black Walnut. When the fruit of the black walnut dries out, the nuts are delicious. Lots of them in NM.
1
The only tree that I think Trump should be related to is "old Caucasian Wingnut" (Pterocarya fraxinifolia) There are some people who insist that the Caucasian Wingnut is the official tree of Fox News, and Mr. Trump certainly watches a lot of Fox News, so I think it fits.
As is usually the case a well written article that brought a smile to my heart. Certainly more than Trump has ever done.
As is usually the case a well written article that brought a smile to my heart. Certainly more than Trump has ever done.
37
May I respectfully make a few more suggestions for DJT tree nicknames?
Swamp Maple aka Red Maple (Acer rubrum)
Swamp Hickory aka Bitternut Hickory (Carya cordiformis)
Swamp White Oak (Quercus bicolor)
Pignut Hickory (Carya glabra)
Swamp Maple aka Red Maple (Acer rubrum)
Swamp Hickory aka Bitternut Hickory (Carya cordiformis)
Swamp White Oak (Quercus bicolor)
Pignut Hickory (Carya glabra)
7
A few others are well known invasive species/noxious weeds including:
Russian Olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia)
Russian Knapweed (Rhaponticum repens)
Glossy Buckthorn (Frangula alnus)
Russian Olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia)
Russian Knapweed (Rhaponticum repens)
Glossy Buckthorn (Frangula alnus)
1
Heh! He got you again, Gail.
Another opinion column from one of the few non-white men writing about politics at the NYT and who does she choose to write about?
President Trump and his legacy as a white man, in our modern collection of white male presidents!
Keep up the good work, Gail.
With this kind of hysterical historical material to buttress you, I don't see retirement any time soon in your future, sister!
Another opinion column from one of the few non-white men writing about politics at the NYT and who does she choose to write about?
President Trump and his legacy as a white man, in our modern collection of white male presidents!
Keep up the good work, Gail.
With this kind of hysterical historical material to buttress you, I don't see retirement any time soon in your future, sister!
3
Seems to be getting the 'wild vanity' part of his dictatorial cocktail right. And he tried on a semi-uniform last week. Bomber jacket - very military-lite.
What he needs now is a personal tragedy, followed a mall shooting to divert attention from his foundering cup of nuts and he'll be on his way. Not sure which sibling I have in the pool. I just started throwing darts at the wall.
He'd love himself as a tragic, noble figure, enough to tip over into the deeply murderous and unwell. Still, cheaper than a movie ticket.
What he needs now is a personal tragedy, followed a mall shooting to divert attention from his foundering cup of nuts and he'll be on his way. Not sure which sibling I have in the pool. I just started throwing darts at the wall.
He'd love himself as a tragic, noble figure, enough to tip over into the deeply murderous and unwell. Still, cheaper than a movie ticket.
2
They're opposites. Jackson hated the natives and loved the newcomers.
20
In the photo President Trump is snapping a smart military salute. I think Ronald Reagan was the president to do that. I’m pretty sure Dwight Eisenhower never did it as president, or ever would have done it. Nor would any of our previous presidents, regardless of the extent of their past military experience. In a small symbolic way it rubs against the American principle of civilian, not military, rule. At the top of our whole, uniformed, chain of command there has always been a man in civilian clothes who salutes by placing his right hand over his heart.
24
I noticed that too. Trump really likes the military trappings. Perhaps he'd have been happier if he'd joined up. We certainly would be.
9
PL – yes, I believe you're correct in stating that Reagan started that salute. Now, however, it would be very hard to stop. Who will be brave enough to call out this phony gesture? Who will be brave enough to NOT wear a flag pin?
3
He learned that salute at his private military boarding school. You know, the one he attended before those vicious bone spurs prevented him from embarking on a dazzling military career.
3
Last night we saw and heard a president in rapid decline.
I would love to see and hear Trump speak at an "OPEN DOOR" event, where no one picked who got to enter and who did not.
Very strange event; same old news; he has forgotten that Hilary lost; ignorant of the constitution, etc, but...
I think the audience is beginning to understand what they have bought; and I think I see remorse, even in those people who were standing behind him while he spoke. A lot sat on their hands, were distracted by events off stage, held lengthly conversations with one another, and, in general, looked distracted.
If you paid attention to some of the pan shots, the room wasn't full, and some of the lines fell flat.
We need to start calling him "desperate don trump; loser."
I would love to see and hear Trump speak at an "OPEN DOOR" event, where no one picked who got to enter and who did not.
Very strange event; same old news; he has forgotten that Hilary lost; ignorant of the constitution, etc, but...
I think the audience is beginning to understand what they have bought; and I think I see remorse, even in those people who were standing behind him while he spoke. A lot sat on their hands, were distracted by events off stage, held lengthly conversations with one another, and, in general, looked distracted.
If you paid attention to some of the pan shots, the room wasn't full, and some of the lines fell flat.
We need to start calling him "desperate don trump; loser."
39
Wishful thinking, Wildcycle. I watched the same Trump rally, which was solely scheduled to repair Trump's ego. The rubes are still out there cheering and waiting for the return of coal mining jobs, but what they'll get is the loss of their healthcare.
7
The fact that tRump has bonded with Andrew Jackson gives us a terrifying insight into who tRump categorically views himself. One would hope that since the President knows nothing about government and still is pursuing a scorched earth policy pertaining to major funding cuts in the arts, the EPA, research, Medicare or anything that helps poor and middle class, he would avail himself the opportunity to choose a more positive role model. Number 44 perhaps? All that this President seems to care about is the upper .01 percent. Sad.
13
Old Walnut?
7
I like that, but let's just shorten it to "Old Nut."
Old peanut?
Why didn't you mention Jackson's innauguration party? I saw on Fox and Friends that party got a little out of hand. There's gotta be some connection to Trump. Jackson and his friends got drunk and trashed the Whitehouse. Trump and his friends are now trashing the presidency. Let the mayhem continue.
20
Y'all know our dear President Andrew Jackson, Old HIckory (Bless his heart), was a racist? Yes, tough, hail fellow. He did not personally discriminate and he grew up around blacks (and "owed" them!), but i, the true spirit of racism-the-system, he signed the Indian Removal Act (first cousin to Old Yella's Executive Ban on Muslims--no, Muslim countries; no, terrorists sponsors; no, refugees--well, battle savaged, vetted refugees and potential security threats for 120 days).
The Indian Removal Act proffered the exchange of federal lands with Indian nations. The exchanged lands were all east of the Mississippi, and Jackson remarked these exchanges would eliminate the discrimination and hardships Indian groups faced in the Southeast. Their removal after the swaps would be at government expense!
The Seminoles and Cherokees resisted and 7,000 Army troops were assigned to send them packing. They didn't have time to secure their belongings! (Which the soldiers promptly stole!)
So began "The Trial of Tears." The military-driven relocation of 16,000 Indians, 4,000 of whom died along the way. (Must have been the lousy cooking; hunger was a main cause of death. And the cold and disease. The government didn't provide footwear or cover healthcare.)
Trump joins Reagan in saluting an architecture of American domestic violence. The culture of greatness IA's Steve King celebrates when he says "we can restore greatness with somebody else's babies." (Others are rarely so cruel.)
The Indian Removal Act proffered the exchange of federal lands with Indian nations. The exchanged lands were all east of the Mississippi, and Jackson remarked these exchanges would eliminate the discrimination and hardships Indian groups faced in the Southeast. Their removal after the swaps would be at government expense!
The Seminoles and Cherokees resisted and 7,000 Army troops were assigned to send them packing. They didn't have time to secure their belongings! (Which the soldiers promptly stole!)
So began "The Trial of Tears." The military-driven relocation of 16,000 Indians, 4,000 of whom died along the way. (Must have been the lousy cooking; hunger was a main cause of death. And the cold and disease. The government didn't provide footwear or cover healthcare.)
Trump joins Reagan in saluting an architecture of American domestic violence. The culture of greatness IA's Steve King celebrates when he says "we can restore greatness with somebody else's babies." (Others are rarely so cruel.)
48
Errata: "i" should read "in."
Native Americans were removed from their lands at bayonet-point, and held in stockades, but mothers were not separated from their children (as Trump is exploring in his resettlement/removal of undocumented immigrants).
At what point do national leaders grow weary of celebrating racists and racist policies by ignoring their obvious presence? It is applause by denial!
Native Americans were removed from their lands at bayonet-point, and held in stockades, but mothers were not separated from their children (as Trump is exploring in his resettlement/removal of undocumented immigrants).
At what point do national leaders grow weary of celebrating racists and racist policies by ignoring their obvious presence? It is applause by denial!
24
If Trump really wanted to celebrate Jackson, he would remove his shoes and walk barefooted for the last mile to the grave; knowing for once what's its like to stand in someone else's suffering shoes, and getting a real feel for the meaning of policy beyond the realm of hate-filled fantasies of cruelty and power. As a real estate mogul, he is celebrating the hand behind the largest land grab in America's history through force and legal manipulation, using military troops. Leaving it unmentioned says Native Americans don't count and their pain and place is nothing. Does he have a moral memory? Has he shown any regret or shame?
24
"If Taylor had been required to put together a health care plan, it would probably have looked like the one that’s currently staggering around Washington."
Ryan put that together, not Trump.
Mr. Asterisk is a very different problem from Trump. Don't conflate the two. They are so different they have often been enemies, as in the election. Ryan is bad in a different way than Trump.
Our problem with the health plan is Ryan. We need to focus on the problem, not the distraction.
Ryan put that together, not Trump.
Mr. Asterisk is a very different problem from Trump. Don't conflate the two. They are so different they have often been enemies, as in the election. Ryan is bad in a different way than Trump.
Our problem with the health plan is Ryan. We need to focus on the problem, not the distraction.
21
No, Ryan and Trump are tied at the hip on this one.
The president was elected with a promiss to improve upon greatly the ACA and instead has "led from behind" (as others have commented) by acquiescing to this bold Republican plan to kick eventually 24 million off of health care.
The president was elected with a promiss to improve upon greatly the ACA and instead has "led from behind" (as others have commented) by acquiescing to this bold Republican plan to kick eventually 24 million off of health care.
41
Our problem is that Trump is a phony who had no plan. Just promises. Wild, obscenely ridiculous promises. It was the gilded version of "Repeal and Replace." But it was just as rotten underneath.
Ryan and the Tea Party and business wings all had fun mouthing their "Repeal and Replace" motto. But they knew replacing the ACA wasn't possible. Even putting forward a plan would hurt the party.
Trump didn't care about a plan. His promises were vast and vacuous. And when the promise to act on "Repeal and Replace" on his first day came due, he turned to alleged "Policy Wonk" Ryan...who had only Ayn Rand market capitalism, supply-side economics and an incomplete sketch of a plan.
Trump's didn't care what the plan was. He only cared about getting something out there. Something he could sell. Something Trump.
The problem with the healthcare plan was almost perfectly diagnosed by Trump: “Nobody knew that health care could be so complicated,”
What Trump got wrong, of course, is that everybody even marginally informed knew how complicated it is.
Republicans knew. But they are not in the business of giving a break to anyone but the rich and well-connected. At heart, it is the empty soul of the GOP which is the problem.
President Trump is the distraction.
Ryan and the Tea Party and business wings all had fun mouthing their "Repeal and Replace" motto. But they knew replacing the ACA wasn't possible. Even putting forward a plan would hurt the party.
Trump didn't care about a plan. His promises were vast and vacuous. And when the promise to act on "Repeal and Replace" on his first day came due, he turned to alleged "Policy Wonk" Ryan...who had only Ayn Rand market capitalism, supply-side economics and an incomplete sketch of a plan.
Trump's didn't care what the plan was. He only cared about getting something out there. Something he could sell. Something Trump.
The problem with the healthcare plan was almost perfectly diagnosed by Trump: “Nobody knew that health care could be so complicated,”
What Trump got wrong, of course, is that everybody even marginally informed knew how complicated it is.
Republicans knew. But they are not in the business of giving a break to anyone but the rich and well-connected. At heart, it is the empty soul of the GOP which is the problem.
President Trump is the distraction.
364
Surely you jest. Trump promised "Better, cheaper, seamless. Day One.". Lies.
Trump is actually more the small pox on the blankets sort, but he owns Trumpcare big time.
Trump is actually more the small pox on the blankets sort, but he owns Trumpcare big time.
38
The saddest thing about all this ridicule and satirization of the POTUS is that it fits. A man so obviously a loser that almost anything derogatory about him is appropriate. That is a dismal state of affairs for us. And there is little hope that this travesty is going to get better.
Ms. Collins, as usual, is spot on.
Ms. Collins, as usual, is spot on.
78
Andrew Jackson served two terms. I sincerely hope Trump does not match Jackson in this respect.
51
You wrote that Jackson battling against the banks set the stage for financial panic and depression. It might be more truthful to say that many years after Jackson kicked them into submission, said banks came back with a vengeance and set in motion financial panic and depression to arm-wrestle Congress into giving them more monetary powers.
6
What you suggest is not accurate in the least? Without the restraining influence of the Second National Bank, Jackson's state "pet" banks engaged in irresponsible lending which fueled a speculative bubble they resulted in the Panic of 1837. Jackson didn't, as you wrote, "kick" the banks into submission. He killed the National Bank which was retraining their irresponsible "wildcat" policies.
22
Nickame? I'm going with Old Ochroma Lagopus, aka Old, Old Balsa.
18
There is no other president to whom Trump should be compared. Not the worst of them, to whom it's an insult. This is a new low, and it's not a close call. And unless there's a tree whose name derives from lying, cheating, infantile degeneracy, we should leave the trees alone too. They've got enough trouble as it is, thanks also to this fake shame of a so-called president.
184
Forget the tree names.....let"s just call him "Old"....he will love that.
43
Gail, among those you mentioned, beside running a tavern, only Richard Johnson had a campaign slogan whose rhyme scheme could be adapted by Donald Trump," Rumpsey Dumpsey, Rumpsey Dumpsey, colonel Johnson killed Tecumseh". Johnson, who was also fond of red ties, was one of more fascinating figures in American History. He lived openly with a slave woman named Julia Chinn as his common law wife, publicly called out Thomas Jefferson and Henry Clay for not acknowledging their relationships with slave women, allegedly killed the great indian chief Tecumseh in the War of 1812, eventually leading to his vice presidential nomination, helped lead the successful movement to abolish imprisonment for debt, was instrumental in getting the government to issue funds to Alexander Hamilton's financially strapped wife Elizabeth, and partly because of his at the time, notorious relationship with Julia Chinn, became the only Vice President to be elected by the Senate.
28
Don, thanks for pointing out Johnson's penchant for red ties. I would like Trump's Red ties to be looked into, bigly.
7
Not just the ties, but their extreme length.
More seriously, most scholars regard Andrew Jackson quite highly (usually in the second tier of greatness, behind the big three of Washington, Lincoln and FDR, most often up around #6). He fought the national bankers of the East and thus helped establish the decentralized banking system we still have today. He also helped develop the American interior with a substantial program of road and canal-building (what we call infrastructure). He (along with Jefferson, another slave-holder to be sure) are considered the fathers of the modern Democratic Party.
I also like that he loved his eccentric wife, Rachel (at times to his political detriment) and his home (the Hermitage, which Trump just visited) has a guitar shaped driveway, which is way cool.
And he is probably spinning in his grave at having his identity appropriated by The Great Pretender.
More seriously, most scholars regard Andrew Jackson quite highly (usually in the second tier of greatness, behind the big three of Washington, Lincoln and FDR, most often up around #6). He fought the national bankers of the East and thus helped establish the decentralized banking system we still have today. He also helped develop the American interior with a substantial program of road and canal-building (what we call infrastructure). He (along with Jefferson, another slave-holder to be sure) are considered the fathers of the modern Democratic Party.
I also like that he loved his eccentric wife, Rachel (at times to his political detriment) and his home (the Hermitage, which Trump just visited) has a guitar shaped driveway, which is way cool.
And he is probably spinning in his grave at having his identity appropriated by The Great Pretender.
3
Jackson's success at blocking authorization for the Second National Bank meant that there was no central source of credit in the nation. Which made Jackson happy, because he hated credit.
After Martin Van Buren succeeded Jackson in 1836 came the major bank panic of 1837, caused by wild speculative lending during Jackson's presidency.
There being no central bank, there was no source of credit to buffer the local bank failures. The resulting depression lasted a decade and was worse than the one in the 1930's.
So, nice work, Hickory.
After Martin Van Buren succeeded Jackson in 1836 came the major bank panic of 1837, caused by wild speculative lending during Jackson's presidency.
There being no central bank, there was no source of credit to buffer the local bank failures. The resulting depression lasted a decade and was worse than the one in the 1930's.
So, nice work, Hickory.
5
I believe that what matters is what Trump does, not what he says. And, so far, my comparison to other Presidents are geared toward those who accomplished little. I admit confusion about the views of others. Times readers tend toward white, upper middle class, along with younger people who will eventually be upper middle class. Few have been adversely affected in concrete ways by Trump. Yet their level of anger is off the charts and they can find no Presidential precedents.
I have considered the possibility that I am morally lacking. But then, I note that few Times readers even know what is going on in South Sudan, Myanmar, ans sub-Saharan Africa, so that their moral world is limited to the good ole' U.S.A..
Simply stated, the folks I don't understand want a country that reflects their values, with limited regard for the rest of the world, which is beyond their reach. Why, I ask, do they bear such palpable hatred toward a President who speaks loudly but carries a small stick. Your average Times reader has little meaningful contact with Muslims, illegals, and the poor, who Trump has threatened. Their anger is addressed to the interests of those they view from afar. I'm sure these folks pride themselves on their superior morality, even if confined to the 50 states. But I think it's equally possible that they are assuaging their guilt for being out of touch with those who are most vulnerable.
I have considered the possibility that I am morally lacking. But then, I note that few Times readers even know what is going on in South Sudan, Myanmar, ans sub-Saharan Africa, so that their moral world is limited to the good ole' U.S.A..
Simply stated, the folks I don't understand want a country that reflects their values, with limited regard for the rest of the world, which is beyond their reach. Why, I ask, do they bear such palpable hatred toward a President who speaks loudly but carries a small stick. Your average Times reader has little meaningful contact with Muslims, illegals, and the poor, who Trump has threatened. Their anger is addressed to the interests of those they view from afar. I'm sure these folks pride themselves on their superior morality, even if confined to the 50 states. But I think it's equally possible that they are assuaging their guilt for being out of touch with those who are most vulnerable.
5
That's a stereotype of a New York Times reader that has very little contact with reality but reads well on Breitbart. To live in NYC is to be part of a giant mixed-income melting pot community. I'm not rich; I'm not poor. But I am educated. I count among my friends, neighbors and colleagues Muslims, people on welfare, undocumented immigrants (we don't use the dehumanizing term, "illegals" here. Does that make us morally superior? No, just decent, compassionate human beings). I get to see everyday the Statue of Liberty -- that glorious symbol of freedom and hope -- that gave your people entrance into this country and mine at one point. Trump and his team now threaten openly to gut all our federal agencies -- the very ones that safeguard air pollution, water safety, food safety, car safety. They are destroying health care so that at least 24 million will lose insurance. They're rigging the tax code so that Trump and his super wealthy friends will pay nothing in taxes -- and a national Party applauds these moves? Where is your outrage? It's your country too. What will trump do for you? Nothing. In the long run, nothing. But hey, you have fun with that false narrative about coastal elites and illegals. Steve Bannon loves people like you.
43
It's called empathy.
Guilt is useful to some extent, but assuming too much on things beyond your control is stifling and unproductive. One can simultaneously empathize with those suffering in other parts of the world while remaining functional in one's own context.
I think that's what makes me a liberal. I care about the people and places you mentioned, but they are beyond my power to fix. And it hurts to know they are suffering. Most of the hard core conservatives I know look at the suffering (if they express awareness at all), express their joy in not being amongst the suffering, and forget about them. They seem to sleep well if they and their families are comfortable and prosperous, the ladder having been pulled up.
Guilt is useful to some extent, but assuming too much on things beyond your control is stifling and unproductive. One can simultaneously empathize with those suffering in other parts of the world while remaining functional in one's own context.
I think that's what makes me a liberal. I care about the people and places you mentioned, but they are beyond my power to fix. And it hurts to know they are suffering. Most of the hard core conservatives I know look at the suffering (if they express awareness at all), express their joy in not being amongst the suffering, and forget about them. They seem to sleep well if they and their families are comfortable and prosperous, the ladder having been pulled up.
14
I. too, have lived in middle class New York, I did not have the extraordinary array of friendships described by DamnYankee nor did anyone else I knew. He might want to try and syndicate a TV show of his life, although I doubt anyone would believe it was true. K2's response is clearly far superior. What I describe as guilt, K2 describes as empathy. I am a cynical pessimist. His is the view of a true optimist, and surely is a valid way to describe the differences in our opinions. I hope k2 is right!
1
Gail, considering all the devastation Trump's hostile environmental policies could wreak on our environment, obviously including our magnificent forests I don't think I would compare him to "Old Sliperry Elm" or any other tree-
"Dutch Elm Disease" seems a lot more apt.
"Dutch Elm Disease" seems a lot more apt.
148
"Asian boring beetle?"
4
Old Hickory was also a mass murderer. He personally led raids into Indian villages and slaughtered men, women and children. He became a militia general and made Kentucky 'Indian Free'. His other nick name was 'Indian Killer'. He ethnically cleansed the Carolinas and send the Cherokee on the trail of tears to Oklahoma, mocking the Supreme Court that it had no power over him and he personally enriched himself on Indian lands. His Indian Removal Act of 1830 would go hand in glove with a Latino Removal Act.
But most of all, Andrew Jackson by being president, made mass murder and genocide acceptable and part of the American DNA. And his curse shows up in American History from the bloody occupation of the Philippines to My Lai to countless other atrocities and injustices.
Andrew Jackson and Donald Trump are of a kind. Ruthless and cunning with no respect to the law.
But most of all, Andrew Jackson by being president, made mass murder and genocide acceptable and part of the American DNA. And his curse shows up in American History from the bloody occupation of the Philippines to My Lai to countless other atrocities and injustices.
Andrew Jackson and Donald Trump are of a kind. Ruthless and cunning with no respect to the law.
532
Comparing Trump to past presidents? Is that a trick question?
Reviewing the history of presidents is like turning over playing cards and hitting the Joker. There has never been a person like this in the White House, because there’s never been anyone so openly contemptuous of the office, or government in general.
Today he proposed a travel ban which can demonstrably provide him with clients and cash in the form of quid-pro-quo with China, and many other countries. It’s a flagrant violation of legal standards which go back centuries. Washington is just his latest Atlantic City. Maybe when he tries to take out a mortgage on the White House, his party will wake up. But we who are already awake have a job to do, and it will come to a head in November 2018. We must end this charade, before the Joker goes wild.
Reviewing the history of presidents is like turning over playing cards and hitting the Joker. There has never been a person like this in the White House, because there’s never been anyone so openly contemptuous of the office, or government in general.
Today he proposed a travel ban which can demonstrably provide him with clients and cash in the form of quid-pro-quo with China, and many other countries. It’s a flagrant violation of legal standards which go back centuries. Washington is just his latest Atlantic City. Maybe when he tries to take out a mortgage on the White House, his party will wake up. But we who are already awake have a job to do, and it will come to a head in November 2018. We must end this charade, before the Joker goes wild.
66
Let's just call him Stump.
288
Preferably a Removed Stump.
20
Obviously Trump was in Tennessee because...it's on the way to Miralargo.
Is anyone going to investigate the cost to taxpayers for these weekly sojourns?
Is anyone going to investigate the cost to taxpayers for these weekly sojourns?
44
The emperor discovered he needed new clothes so he wrapped himself in the flag. What's a scoundrel to do?
78
Yes, Jackson was a product of his time. Which does nothing to explain why Trump, in the 21st century, is no more than a product of Jackson's time.
134
Like Trump, Andrew Jackson detested Mexicans. When he became President, Jackson insisted on negotiating a deal with Mexico that would transfer Texas to the United States, and when that didn't work he was partly responsible for Americans in Texas agitating for independence and annexation (a deal that eventually went through on the next-to-last day of Jackson's administration).
No wonder Trump admires the man. The big difference, though, is that Jackson was a competent and ruthless man, whereas Trump is merely ruthless.
No wonder Trump admires the man. The big difference, though, is that Jackson was a competent and ruthless man, whereas Trump is merely ruthless.
93
Great article today, Gail. The only problem is, aside from Reagan, I doubt if Trump even knows who most of those presidents you mention are. James Buchanan, Zachary Taylor, Franklin Pierce? He was probably asleep in history class that day. I also seriously doubt he knows all that much about Andrew Jackson either, aside from his "tough" reputation, which Trump would so much like to emulate. Well, let's hope he finds time to read your article, from which he will learn that Jackson was captured by the British. Uh-oh, guess he will have to revise his opinion that he likes people "who weren't captured."
On a more serious note, you are looking for a tree nickname for Trump? No, no, Gail, that is so wrong, trees are wonderful, living things, beautiful to look at and good for the climate too. So, if anything, I'd go with "Old Rotten Stump Trump" (not pleasing to the eyes and serves no beneficial purpose). Or perhaps "Artificial Tree Trump" (tries to look like a real tree, but always fails on closer inspection).
On a more serious note, you are looking for a tree nickname for Trump? No, no, Gail, that is so wrong, trees are wonderful, living things, beautiful to look at and good for the climate too. So, if anything, I'd go with "Old Rotten Stump Trump" (not pleasing to the eyes and serves no beneficial purpose). Or perhaps "Artificial Tree Trump" (tries to look like a real tree, but always fails on closer inspection).
1018
Even old rotten stumps have a purpose. Please don't malign them by associating them with Trump. You must find something that appears useful at first glance, but malignant to everything around it, I'm not sure that you will find such a creature in Nature, since Nature works to improve on everything, while Trump works to improve himself at everyone else's expense.
70
You are mistaken. Trees left to decompose bring life to the world, providing food and shelter to thousand of consequential insects and animals and they enrich the soil of the forest floor as they decompose.
16
Ed and John: You are both right, of course, that's why I think "Artificial Tree Trump" is probably best: it's plastic, fake, at Christmas time you can load it up with tacky gold baubles. Unlike Trump, however, you can pack it back up in a box und put it in the attic once the holidays are over...
17
(E) Dumb Ash.
(F) Flaccid Willow
(G) Truth Less Teak
(H) Saccharin Sweet Gum
(F) Flaccid Willow
(G) Truth Less Teak
(H) Saccharin Sweet Gum
211
Perfect! Can we add:
(I) All of the above
(I) All of the above
10
E! Can't stop laughing!
9
Choice E.
We have a winner. Clever people make me smile. Thank you!
We have a winner. Clever people make me smile. Thank you!
14
"Fans called Jackson “Old Hickory” because he was tough and shared his men’s hardship and deprivation in the Army"
Unlike our dear Donald, Jackson was blessed. He was born with two good feet!!!
I have to go with "Old Ornamental Dogwood". I've never even remotely considered myself OCD, but I can't get a certain strange thought out of my head. I keep imagining our POTUS clamped in a stockade, begging to be set free and yelling at the occasional dog wandering by and lifting it's leg. Thus "Dogwood"
Not a fitting end for a military hero, but like his contractors, he'll just have to get used to the fact that life is not fair!
Unlike our dear Donald, Jackson was blessed. He was born with two good feet!!!
I have to go with "Old Ornamental Dogwood". I've never even remotely considered myself OCD, but I can't get a certain strange thought out of my head. I keep imagining our POTUS clamped in a stockade, begging to be set free and yelling at the occasional dog wandering by and lifting it's leg. Thus "Dogwood"
Not a fitting end for a military hero, but like his contractors, he'll just have to get used to the fact that life is not fair!
203
@ST1138
Trump was born with two good feet. They just spontaneously developed bone spurs due to Trump's aversion to serving in Vietnam. Once that spur was over, his spurs cleared up nicely. Sad!
Trump was born with two good feet. They just spontaneously developed bone spurs due to Trump's aversion to serving in Vietnam. Once that spur was over, his spurs cleared up nicely. Sad!
5
There is a connection, Ms. Collins, between Donald Trump and Andrew Jackson: the will to purge America of all its non-white citizens.
Or was I asleep when the new president, without seeming to take time over his decision, chose Stephen Bannon, the architect of the old/new white nationalism, his own "soul brother," his own bosom buddy of the racism that's always raged just under America's skin these 250-odd years? Just asking.
And similar to "Old Hickory," the author of one of America's dishonorable (not to mention un-Christian) chapters, the genocidal Trail of Tears, an interesting parallel presents itself, at least too this observer: this president's obstinate and determined willingness to proceed with the Keystone Pipeline.
Native Americans have always cherished a mystical union with their land (not really ours, but we'll take up that discussion another time). They prayed to the Earth, to the Father of Waters, now seen as a mere blank check to the oil and gas moguls who reverence not history nor humanity but worship the piles of fool's gold that they can extract from the soil, uncaring of its life-threatening consequences to others.
No; to the new "Old Hickory," the continued degradation of natural resources from America's breast for profit runs true in this thief of the common good whose unfortunate (and deeply undeserved) title is president of the United States.
No previous living bearer of the office can do without a wash. And a very long one. A trail of tears.
Or was I asleep when the new president, without seeming to take time over his decision, chose Stephen Bannon, the architect of the old/new white nationalism, his own "soul brother," his own bosom buddy of the racism that's always raged just under America's skin these 250-odd years? Just asking.
And similar to "Old Hickory," the author of one of America's dishonorable (not to mention un-Christian) chapters, the genocidal Trail of Tears, an interesting parallel presents itself, at least too this observer: this president's obstinate and determined willingness to proceed with the Keystone Pipeline.
Native Americans have always cherished a mystical union with their land (not really ours, but we'll take up that discussion another time). They prayed to the Earth, to the Father of Waters, now seen as a mere blank check to the oil and gas moguls who reverence not history nor humanity but worship the piles of fool's gold that they can extract from the soil, uncaring of its life-threatening consequences to others.
No; to the new "Old Hickory," the continued degradation of natural resources from America's breast for profit runs true in this thief of the common good whose unfortunate (and deeply undeserved) title is president of the United States.
No previous living bearer of the office can do without a wash. And a very long one. A trail of tears.
217
Excellent comment. I have been amazed at how quickly the Native American resistance to the pipeline has faded from the news. Many of us were deeply moved by their commitment and passion. It is sad to have fallen on deaf ears.
1
I believe the general idea with many Native Americans is that the land does not belong to people, rather people belong to the land, with a puppy set of protecting for the generations that follow. Thinking seven generations into the future is the moral, and intelligent path.
2
I think Trump is one of a kind
No other POTUS was so blind,
So boastfully dim
Acting on each whim
With an empty non curious mind.
Admirer of each Robber Baron
Executive orders ill farin'
Complexion and hair
A true bizarre pair
For folks who are poor is not carin'.
No other POTUS was so blind,
So boastfully dim
Acting on each whim
With an empty non curious mind.
Admirer of each Robber Baron
Executive orders ill farin'
Complexion and hair
A true bizarre pair
For folks who are poor is not carin'.
282
Ms. Collins, stop right there. Andrew Jackson, for all of his racism and genocidal traits towards the original inhabitants of America, was a soldier, something this president studiously avoided to be as a young man. "Old Hypocrite" would be a fitting nickname for the 45th.
628
Narcissists, not generally in good spirits, haunted by low self worth, and outward grandiosity, translated in a Freudian manner to aggressive speech and never apologizing to anyone in life, or believing forgiveness would be in order from God.