‘President for Life’? Trump’s Remarks About Xi Find Fans in China

Is this a joke or is he in a safe zone floating an idea and gauging reaction?

6.1 percent of Chinese belong to the communist party. There's a reason the Pooh bear is banished.

This "joke" is why we should be working to improve our democracy not limit it. Some ideas: - Eliminate the Electoral College. If we were a pure popular vote democracy we would not be dealing with this dictator wanna be. - Eliminate gerrymandering. We need independent commissions to draw neutral electoral maps based on complete census data. - Eliminate private money in politics. This amounts to nothing less than legal bribery. - Move elections to Sunday's. More people off work equals greater opportunity to vote. - Implement automatic voter registration for every citizen over 18 who has a valid social security number. - Encourage voting with a public service announcement campaign leading up to election days. I'm sure we could do more but this would be a great start, don't you think?

“The failure of Western leaders to speak out against Mr. Xi’s plans for limitless power was in step with a growing acceptance among democracies of one-man rule in many countries, said François Godement, director of the Asia and China program at the European Council on Foreign Relations.” My life has been lived in the shadow of the men and women who survived WWII and paid the price for the indifference to xenophobic nationalism and affection for ‘strongmen’ that the larger portion of the population of the Western democracies ignored in the 1920’s and 30’s. For the most part they didn’t speak of it much, but mention the names Mussolini, Stalin, Tojo, or Hitler and their response was uniform revulsion. The cost of the lesson they learned came at a great price that haunted the darker nights of their lives. They are mostly dead now and I fear that for many of us the lesson they learned has been buried with them. They didn’t necessarily admire democracy as it played out in their lifetimes, but they knew that democracies ugly cousin, authoritarianism, was an infinitely worse solution to the continuing problem of governance. I fear that our failure to learn that lesson will bequeath, at unimaginable cost, the re-learning of that lesson to our children’s children.

Mitch McConnell led our Senate to abdicate some of its function when he refused to follow Constitutional rule regarding the prior president's Supreme Court nomination. Such abdication of check and balance in our form of government means Trump's strong-man dreams could be realized.

Dictators don't often allow themselves to be voted out of office. I've always wondered if Trump would leave office in four years -- or attempt to stay on after a "rigged" election. Or the "election" might in fact be rigged enough for him to say he had won, whatever people had tried to express.

When a person has to be told a statement is a joke, the statement is not funny.

I heard the recording, and when taken in context it sounds if he was joking, and probably saying it intentionally just to get a rise out of the critics. So I am not too worried. But... But you know people like that. People who test waters with a "joke" with an off-color or controversial remark just to see how people react. If it's not good it can be said the remark was just a joke If it passed than it wasn't a joke, finding acceptance of the idea. Oh, and: where Trump said Xi “a great gentleman” and “the most powerful president in 100 years,” who treated the American leader “tremendously well” during his state visit there in November. I watched the Apprentice too. Nothing irritated Trump more than if the "project manager" wasn't there to greet him when he and his entourage came to the "project site". It wasn't hard for Xi to determine how to flatter Trump.

The best thing about Virginia is its one-term governorship.

Trump is not joking, and we better really work to stop him. This can be the end of our democracy.

While Trump's comment was ostensibly in jest, the wish can be father to the thought. He is so caught up in fantastical thinking that jesting wishes can capture their own momentum.

Supporting foreign dictators is one thing. We can debate the pros and cons of that ad nauseam. On the other hand, joking or not, implying that authoritarianism is a good idea in this country is a non starter. Americans are a fiercely independent bunch. A segment on the right right now, the bulk of Trump's base, is drawn to personality and group think. But everyone else, the vast majority, from libertarians to centrists to social democrats loathe the idea of authoritarianism. It’s in our social DNA. We did not "throw off the yoke" of British dictates and rise to defeat every dictator who dared to challenge us since just to let Donald Trump declare himself president for life. Joking or not, should he try I am convinced America will rise to the challenge and prevail once again.

I hope he doesn't say this in 2020.

That's exactly what this president wants to be here in the US, president for life. His remark may be taken as humorous but the truth is often spoken in jest. He already has Congress to do his bidding, one third of the country's support and Fox News to sing his praises. He won't let the nuisance of a Constitution stand in his way of obtaining absolute power. If Putin can pull it off, why can't the 45th?

I honestly never thought that I would live to see the day when a president of the United States, even in jest, would remark affirmatively on a policy change that is so contrary to democratic ideals. This is no longer about being democrat or republican, that time has long past. When will everyone see it! Party alliances do not matter anymore, we have handed over the steering wheel of this great American ship to reckless fool and now we are just bracing for impact every day. Someone once said that Donald Trump is the stress test for America's democracy, that he will wake people up and politically galvanize, that people will now realize just how fragile democracy really is. I just hope that when his term is over, if it will be, that we will still have something to fight for.

America is following the same tack the Brits took in the last century as the sun finally did set on their empire. It stands to reason that Trump's asinine comment would strike an accord with the Chinese who, in a generation or so, will rule the world with the largest economy, largest population and largest military force. World citizens like Trump see such an outcome as mere market expansion.

Con Don stole the election with the help from his buddy Vladimir. Division and fear mongering are the tools used by the narcissist. Now, his ambitions are boundless and he is dreaming of serving President for life. He is a dangerous man.

They all laughed. Yup, that was a good one. “I think it’s great. Maybe we’ll want to give that a shot someday.” He’s a regular stand-up comedian but the joke is on us. Our Electoral College put this unstable king of comedy into the White House and the only consistent message he has been able to elucidate is ‘Power is good. Unrestricted power is great’. There are so many things wrong with this on so many levels that you would think our country would be on high alert for an invasion from within. Instead, our government is being attacked both from within and without with no counter-offensive to be found anywhere. He may be only one man, but with an impotent Congress, he is the man who would be king. Is anyone laughing now?

It already feels as though Trump has been in office for a lifetime.

"Would-be dictator congratulates actual dictator" should be the headline of this story. However joking the tone in this instance, Trump has made clear that he admires repressive strongman governments, from the mass murderer Duterte to his old buddy Putin. And this is not a subject the President of the United States should be joking about to begin with. It is impossible to imagine a President more antithetical to what are supposed to be American values.

The USA use to promote (at least in official pronouncements) democracy and the rule of law set by the people. Now we have a President who abandons our core belief for a laugh or for a possilbe investment opportunity for his family. He is an embarrassment to the nation and should be removed.

Come on guys, after a year we should be used to the sense oh humor of President Trump. And if his remarks are taken seriously in China, we should no by now that the Stalinists have no sense of humor at all.

President for life? No way, not going to happen here until we have a president.

Washington was offered the crown and turned it down. Does anyone think Trump would?

Donald Trump is more popular in Russia and China than he is in the United States. Perfectly understandable.

Well I, for one, wish that Donald Trump could be president for never.

I was going to put together a list that shows Trump isn't "joking" when he talks about consolidating long-term power, but The Atlantic beat me to it. The following headline alone says enough (though, as always, do your own research and read about it yourself): "Nine Notorious Dictators, Nine Shout-Outs From Donald Trump" The president of the United States continues to heap praise on the world's most reviled rulers. KRISHNADEV CALAMUR MAR 4, 2018

Trump attacks Democracy daily. Trump wants to be a dictator; he craves power; money; praise. Trump attacks the news media;spreads lies and attacks our own FBI. GOP is Trump's surrogate; says and does whatever he tells them to do/say. If America does not wake up soon; we may wake up to find we are no longer a Democracy. We need to vote out GOP; then vote out Trump in 2020. If not;kiss Democracy goodbye. Ray

This is not a joke our Presidents tell, because president-for-life isn't something our Presidents dream about. The model is Cincinnatus, not Caesar: our Presidents dream about the day their service is over, and they can go home to their own family and their own work. And as for those braying about how it's just a joke, and why don't you libs have a sense of humor: it's not a joke, it's a fantasy supported by Trump's every statement and action. Particulary his cheerleading for Xi, Putin, Duterte, Erdogan--but every statement and action. Nor is it something he planned: as with so much, it just came flying out. Decent Americans would have booed him, not laughed and cheered.

Just remember Twenty Second Amendment of US Constitution.

Trump was not joking he would like nothing better than to become America’s first dictator. Rise up young and vote this crazy man and all of his cronies out of office .

The Donald didn't deserve to be POTUS for 25 minutes. For life? That might not work out so well. I dare you, dear readers, to imagine that: POTUSFL (For Life) Donald Trump. Nice ring to it, huh? Not enough alcohol in the world for that.

It was disturbing to hear, but only a classic trolling statement - played for laughs. 3 more years will be disturbing enough. #BlueWave2018 can't come soon enough.

The very idea is so utterly revolting that it doesn't even rise to the level of a joke. I look forward to the day that this buffoon is a footnote on the wrong side of history.

What do you expect to from an illegitimate, unelected dictatorship?

If President Obama had made those remarks the entire far right troposphere and stratosphere would be crying for impeachment and the NRA would be mandating bump stocks for all its AR-15 wannabe minutemen.

"When Mr. Trump was out for laughs...." Well he is a clown. Trouble is that he is just not funny.

Throw him a pretty parade and flatter him and Trump will eat out of his hand. Trump based on his performance for the past year will eventually alienate his base and will be the biggest loser ever

Why minimize a disgraceful comment at odds with the United States Constitution as a jest? It's hard to think of a more stark example of "normalization" of the clearly abnormal.

An enormous ego, a faulty education and ignorance of the constitution allowed our dear leader to make a joke about a president for life in the United States. His defenders will say he was just kidding. I would like to hear George Washington’s response to Trump’s infantile joke.

If Obama had even joked about this I think Hannity’s head would have exploded.

When he called on the Russians to look into Hillary's e-mails during the campaign, I thought people were nuts to get upset over what to me seemed obviously a joke. No more. The guy loves dictators, disdains democrats (capital or lower-case D, doesn't matter), and cannot be trusted to protect democratic institutions. I don't *think* he'd be able to pull it off, but I no longer ignore certain outrageous things he says.