How Trump has once again 'exposed' himself as a 'small minded bully': analysis

11 March 2024

Former President Donald Trump has often attacked President Joe Biden as "Sleepy Joe," but after Biden's passionate and aggressive State of the Union address, Trump used a different line of attack in response — and mocked Biden's speech impediment instead of trying to paint him as senile, feeble, or unenergetic.

In an article published by The Atlantic on March 10, The Atlantic's John Hendrickson laments that Trump has crossed yet another line — one that speaks volumes about Trump's character, or lack thereof.

"Former President Donald Trump, perhaps threatened by President Joe Biden's well-received State of the Union address, mocked his opponent's lifelong stutter at a rally in Georgia (on March 9)," Hendrickson argues. 'Wasn't it — didn't it bring us together?' Trump asked sarcastically. He kept the bit going, slipping into a Biden caricature. 'I'm gonna bring the country tuh-tuh-tuh-together,' Trump said, straining and narrowing his mouth for comedic effect."

The Atlantic staff writer adds, "Trump has made a new habit of this. 'He's a threat to d-d-democracy,' Trump said in his vaudeville Biden character at a January rally in Iowa…. More than Trump's ugly taunt, one thing stands out to me about these moments: the sound of Trump's supporters laughing right along with him. This is a building block of Trumpism: the man at the top gives his followers permission to be the worst version of themselves."

Hendrickson, who has had a stuttering problem himself, notes that when he interviewed Biden five years ago, he asked him if he thought Trump would label him "Stuttering Joe." And Biden responded that if he did, "it'll just expose him for what he is."

"Trump has now definitively gone there," Hendrickson laments. "What has that exposed? Only what we already knew: Trump may be among the most famous and powerful people in modern history, but he remains a small-minded bully."

Hendrickson continues, "He mocks Biden’s disability because he believes the voters will reward him for it — that there is more to be gained than lost by dehumanizing his rival and the millions of other Americans who stutter, or who go through life managing other disorders and disabilities. I would like to believe that more people are repulsed than entertained, and that Trump has made a grave miscalculation. We have eight more months of this until we find out."

Read John Hendrickson's full article for The Atlantic at this link (subscription required).

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