Donald Trump says ‘no thanks’ to possible Time magazine honour

DONALD Trump didn’t want no “probably” from Time magazine. And he sure let them know about it.

President Donald Trump has told Time magazine ‘no thanks’.

IMAGINE if you learned you were in line to be the Time person of the year. What would your reaction be?

Pride? Humility? Modesty? For most of us that would likely be the response.

Not President Donald Trump, though — he responded to the news in his usual manner, effectively telling the prestigious magazine to shove it.

Time Magazine called to say that I was PROBABLY going to be named “Man (Person) of the Year,” like last year, but I would have to agree to an interview and a major photo shoot. I said probably is no good and took a pass. Thanks anyway!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 24, 2017

Yep, the leader of the free world — who was last year’s Person of the Year — wasn’t happy he was merely being considered for the honour. He wanted to know straight up if it was him or not.

Time responded to Mr Trump with a tweet of its own.

The President is incorrect about how we choose Person of the Year. TIME does not comment on our choice until publication, which is December 6.

— TIME (@TIME) November 25, 2017

Other Twitter users were quick to have their say.

Donald Trump literally made a fake Time cover for himself and then hung it up in several of his golf clubs. https://t.co/V4oZmrYhD0

— Esquire, Esq. (@cowgirl_bebop) November 25, 2017

The reactions included some hilarious parodies.

Bbc just called to say I was PROBABLY going to be named sports personality of the year but I would have to agree to an interview and a major photo shoot. I said probably is no good and took a pass. Thanks anyway!

— Andy Murray (@andy_murray) November 24, 2017

I worked at Time mag for 15 years. Doesn’t work this way.
1. Time tries to interview/shoot several possibilities
2. Agreeing to shoot/interview not a condition of being picked
DJT probably angling to set up “I didn’t want it” when he doesn’t get picked (2x/row would be unusual) https://t.co/3Vh43BdKD5

— James Poniewozik (@poniewozik) November 24, 2017

Mr Trump’s reaction to last year’s honour was more dignified.

“It’s a great honour. It means a lot,” Trump said at the time. “To be on the cover of Time magazine as the person of the year is a tremendous honour.”

Time managing editor Nancy Gibbs explained the decision to make Mr Trump their Person of the Year in 2016 was because everyone had an opinion on the then-president-elect.

“For those who believe this is all for the better, Trump’s victory represents a long-overdue rebuke to an entrenched and arrogant governing class,” she said at the time.

During the race for the White House, Trump kept a close eye on how the magazine was reporting his campaign.

The fake Time cover.

The real Time cover from 2016.

“I think I was on the cover of Time magazine twice in my life and like six times in the last number of months,” he said in July 2016, according to The Hill.

“So you tell me which is more important, real estate or politics, OK? I have six for politics and I have two for real estate or whatever they put me on for.”

Mr Trump’s rejection of the Time honour comes months after the magazine had to ask the Trump organisation to remove copies of a fake cover of President Trump that were on display at the company’s golf clubs.

A spokesman from Time Inc confirmed that it had requested the Trump organisation remove any further copies of the cover — which is erroneously dated March 1, 2009 — from the company’s golf clubs.

The real cover of Time magazine published on March 2, 2009, featured an image of actress Kate Winslet.

President Trump also granted Time one of his more astonishing interviews. In an article published in March, the new leader defended many of his controversial claims including that Barack Obama “wire-tapped” his phone.

This was also the interview that he made the following observation to the interviewer: “Hey look, in the meantime, I guess, I can’t be doing so badly, because I’m president, and you’re not. You know.”