Donald Trump’s favourite lie is actually quite baffling
DONALD Trump has plenty to brag about. He’s rich, a TV star, and the most powerful person on Earth. That’s why his latest controversy is so baffling.
AS YOU may have noticed, Donald Trump loves to brag.
He certainly has plenty to brag about. He’s rich, a TV star, and defied all political logic to become President of the United States.
That is what makes Mr Trump’s latest controversy so baffling.
Mr Trump was caught in a lie this past week. Not a big one, or an important one, but a lie that was remarkable only for its brazen pointlessness.
“I got a call from the head of the Boy Scouts saying it was the greatest speech that was ever made to them,” Mr Trump told the Wall Street Journal, referring to his speech at the Boy Scout Jamboree last month.
The only problem? That call never happened. Mr Trump made it up.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee-Sanders admitted as much late last week, but claimed Mr Trump had not been dishonest.
“I wouldn’t say it was a lie — that’s a pretty bold accusation,” she said.
“The conversations took place, they just simply didn’t take place over a phone call, they happened in person.”
No senior member of the Boy Scouts has admitted to telling Mr Trump his speech was “the greatest ever made”, and the organisation actually publicly apologised for the President’s behaviour after his appearance at the Jamboree.
But it wouldn’t be the first time Mr Trump has stretched the truth.
As Senior Editor for the National Review Jay Nordlinger points out, Mr Trump has used that same “greatest speech” line on at least two other occasions.
During his speech at the G20 in Poland last month, Mr Trump talked about family, freedom, country and God.
As noted by @jaynordlinger, Donald Trump has told the same lie about three different speeches: pic.twitter.com/n9sFlexkjs
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) August 2, 2017
“So I go to Poland and make a speech. Enemies of mine in the media, enemies of mine are saying it was the greatest speech ever made on foreign soil by a president,” Mr Trump said.
However, CNN said many commentators slammed the speech and the broadcaster itself described it as being a love letter to white nationalists.
Sarah Wildman at Vox also wrote “often resorted to rhetorical conceits typically used by the European and American alt-right”.
But Nordlinger raises a fair point in his article where he asks: “Is that true? Have enemies said that?”
In February, Mr Trump once again said his address to a joint session of Congress was equally as amazing.
“A lot of people have said that, some people said it was the single best speech ever made in that chamber.”
The Washington Post pointed out this claim not only demoted Winston Churchill but also several others.
However, Mr Trump’s speeches aren’t the only thing he’s embellished about.
Last week, Mr Trump claimed Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto called him to praise his immigration policies.
“As you know, the border was a tremendous problem and they’re close to 80 per cent stoppage. Even the president of Mexico called me,” he said.
“They said their southern border, very few people are coming because they know they’re not going to get through our border, which is the ultimate compliment,” Mr Trump said on Monday.
Ms Huckabee-Sanders said he had been “referencing a conversation that they had at the G20 summit where they specifically talked about the issues that he referenced.”
It was the latest episode in Trump’s rocky relationship with facts, raising questions about his credibility six tumultuous months into his presidency, the Associated Press reported.
Back in January, Mr Trump tweeted how successful his visit had been to the CIA and noted he got a standing ovation.
Had a great meeting at CIA Headquarters yesterday, packed house, paid great respect to Wall, long standing ovations, amazing people. WIN!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 22, 2017
But Nada Bakos, who spent a decade with the CIA, pointed out all was not what it seemed.
“You can’t sweet talk a good spy,” she said in a video uploaded to Twitter. “Falsehoods and ‘alternative facts’ are no way to win over a workforce whose job it is to discern the truth.”
As a former CIA analyst and targeting officer, here's what I think about Trump's speech at the #CIA on Saturday: pic.twitter.com/6JddSmAJhW
— Nada Bakos (@nadabakos) January 25, 2017
She also said she hoped Mr Trump would reach out with an olive branch to the organisation with relations strained in recent times.
Then there’s the time Mr Trump reportedly masqueraded as a spokesman for himself.
The Washington Post last year uncovered an old recording of someone who sounds like Mr Trump but who identified himself as John Miller.
Recorded from a 1991 conversation between Mr Miller and a People magazine journalist, the call related to Mr Trump ending his relationship with Marla Maples.
According to the Post, the voice and inflection sounded very much like the businessman and Ms Maples later identified the voice as Mr Trump’s.
But Mr Trump told US talk show Today it wasn’t him and he had several people trying to imitate his voice.
“It was not me on the phone. And it doesn’t sound like me on the phone, I will tell you that. It was not me on the phone,” he said.
— with Sam Clench
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