December 4, 2019

"Footage appears to show world leaders joking about Trump at Nato summit" — ha ha ha... what a letdown!

I clicked on that Guardian headline and watched the video...



There isn't one audible/subtitled line that can be characterized as a joke. It's just Princess Anne, Boris Johnson, Justin Trudeau, and Emmanuel Macron talking — bellyaching? — about how he was late because he did a press conference.

Anyone running with the story of "world leaders joking" is taking a prompt from Russian government-owned media, Sputnik News, which is where the video was originally posted.  Fake news.

It's interesting that Princess Anne is in that group. In other Princess Anne news, she screws up getting in line with the Queen to meet Donald Trump. Now, this is the funny clip from The Guardian:



Side note: I love the colors Melania is wearing — a brilliant mustard cape-coat with magenta sleeves poking out. The idea seems to be to absolutely sear all eyeballs while being entirely dignified and elegant.

And as long as I've mentioned that, I need to give you this (so that you don't feel you have to show it to me): "Melania Trump’s Christmas decorations are lovely, but that coat looks ridiculous" by Robin Givhan (WaPo). The coat, in this video, is white, and what's "ridiculous"?



Givhan watches that video and sees a woman with "little affinity for the occasion" and "cold, dismissive aloofness."

Like the "jokes" among the world leaders, the "ridiculous"ness is in the mind of the reader.

That's The Washington Post, where the #1 most-read story right now is: "Candid video appears to show Trudeau, Macron and Johnson joking about Trump." No mention of Sputnik news. No quotation of anything that anyone neutral could label a "joke," but you do see these characters laughing, and they had said something that was probably about Trump, so there's circumstantial evidence that somebody said something that made laughing the socially lubricated thing to do.

159 comments:

RMc said...

Sometimes I wonder, "What would it be like to have a president that the press doesn't actively despise?"

Quayle said...

Enmity is in vogue.

tim in vermont said...

They are blind. It’s like this CNN article which actually shows POTUS as large and in charge while complaining that intelligence agencies are having a hard time controlling what he knows and having a hard time with the fact that he is skeptical and asks penetrating questions.

https://twitter.com/CurtMills/status/1202033685765206016

It’s pro Trump, they just don’t know it. Same with the WaPo piece, and the same with the Trudeau thing. They are like a gaggle of girls at the high school table trying to reassure each other that they are really the popular ones.

J. Farmer said...

@RMc:

Sometimes I wonder, "What would it be like to have a president that the press doesn't actively despise?"

Where were you from 1992 to 2000 and 2008 to 2016?

wendybar said...

RMc said...
Sometimes I wonder, "What would it be like to have a president that the press doesn't actively despise?" Did the fawning and idol worshipping of the left during 2008-2016 make you fall asleep???

rehajm said...

They are lost without a deity President.

tim in vermont said...

If the press despised all presidents, regardless of party, I would be first in line to defend them. It’s a good thing, but not when it is so one sided and refuses to even report the other side.

J. Farmer said...

I liked Melania's coat, especially since the footage is of her walking around the public rooms. It gives a nice sense of movement. I wonder if WaPo had a problem with her Louboutin pumps, too. The Daily Beast was even pettier and nastier: "Melania Trump’s Joyless Christmas Decorations Are Back to Haunt Your Nightmares."

That's by the "style writer" Alaina Demopoulos. A couple weeks ago she gave us this headline: "Hey, Pluto! Astrologers on How Trump’s Impeachment Might End."

Finally, someone asking the hard-hitting questions.

whitney said...

I love the close-up shot of the "be best" Scrabble Christmas ornament. Melania Trump seems so much better than all her critics

rehajm said...

I love the decorations. A man with supposed horrible taste...Melania must actually be in charge...

rehajm said...

Melania Trump’s Joyless Christmas Decorations Are Back to Haunt Your Nightmares.

Merry holiday depression, losers! Enjoy your Klonopin...

The Crack Emcee said...

I don't mind the supposed-laughter of those Trump has bested. Theirs are the cackles of losers, licking their wounds.

The Press is merely one more of them, still trying to wear the brave face, fooling no one.

They've fallen and they can't get up.

I wouldn't advise it either.

Michael K said...

They hate us. They really hate us. They hated Bush and the hate was less directly aimed at voters. I keep watching Kurt Schlicter's novels turn into non-fictiomn.

tam said...

Wasn't that Camilla Parker Bowles, Price Charles' wife (paramour?) in the greeting line? I know the video is labeled with Princess Anne, but it doesn't look like her to me.

J. Farmer said...

@tam:

Camilla was in the red dress. Princess Anne was off to the left.

Jersey Fled said...

Robin Givhan apparently has the magical super power of discerning people's thoughts, feelings and attitudes by simply looking at a picture of them.

BTW wasn't she married to Michael Tyson?

MadisonMan said...

I note that CNN is running this story too. It's almost like they all got the same memo.

J. Farmer said...

BTW wasn't she married to Michael Tyson?

Haha. That was Robin Givens.

MayBee said...

Are we laughing with the world leaders who think a 40 minute press conference is absurd?

iowan2 said...

It is hard to convey how the media has devolved into pure propaganda. At night I read alot of the reporting surrounding impeachment, and POTUS in general. Then in the morning listen to MSNBC and CNN on SIRUS radio, while traveling to the first appointment. Each story is littered with inaccuracies, innuendo, opinion, and outright lies. When it comes to President Trump, the media is our own America version of PRAVDA. The lies are bad enough, but the lengthy monologues devoid of any CONTENT, are just jaw dropping crazy. I've timed them, they can go for 8 minutes and not deliver a single fact.

tim in vermont said...

I like that Crack has a cameo from Hunter Biden in his song. “Rocks and lumps as big as marbles."

tim maguire said...

We've seen this a number of times recently--the TDS is so bad in the press corps that now they are faulting Trump for talking to them. Obama was so much better because he was too important to talk to the press.

Temujin said...

Two fine examples of why we hate the media. And by 'we', I mean everyone who is not living in Manhattan, DC, Seattle, or San Francisco. And frankly, a lot of those people are tired of them as well.

I saw the 'world leaders laughing at Trump' thing and the first thing that went into my head was that it looked like a group of high school girls making fun of one of the other girls who is not like them.

Not far from the truth.

As for Robin Givhans. She never changes her script. If you could have photoshopped the head of Michelle Obama on top of Melania's shoulders and sent that in to Robin, she would have cooed, cried, and wept with joy at the stunning First Lady and her fine grasp of style. Robin is another of the high school clique making fun of those not in her circle.

gspencer said...

MSM headline,

"Trump's CDC finds cure for cancer; research on other diseases put on back burner or ignored altogether"

tim in vermont said...

I also like the “Get Smart” bit in the background.

MD Greene said...

It has been clear for several years that one way American wannabes catapult themselves into "elite" status is by adopting the sneering attitudes of the major press organizations.

Robin Givhan was a thoughtful WaPo fashion writer until she became the unofficial publicist for the (admittedly stylish) Michelle Obama; after serving in that role, it was inevitable that Givhan never could view Melania Trump with anything but disdain.

Now the wiser, classier Europeans (and Canadian dim bulb Trudeau Jr.!) are looking down their lorgnettes at us too.

If the really cool NATO leaders want to sneer at Trump and, by extension, the country that voted for him, they could pay their full share of defense for a change.


Darrell said...

I remind you that Robin Givhan never once told you that Michelle Obama was always wearing a wig and that her head is the same length as Barack's. Why would anyone ever trust her to tell the truth? What bravery! Michelle cut her bangs!!!!11!! Will she let grow out?

Jamie said...

Witnesses say they were told that world leaders were joking about Pres. Trump, who, they said, they believed was furious at the affront...

I wish one of these years Melania would precisely duplicate the Christmas decorations of, oh, let's say Jackie K - and wait for the press to sneer.


Chuck said...

So Althouse is parsing the word "joke"? Is that the main takeaway? Ian Bremmer of the Eurasia Group tweeted the video as well, and he had a much more direct take on the event:
ian bremmer‏Verified account @ianbremmer · 11h11 hours ago
This happens at every NATO summit with Trump. Every G7. Every G20. The US President is mocked by US allies behind his back.


Okay; so no real jokes. Just open mocking. As is now standard. The U.S. is of course still a serious power, and anyone who is the occupant of the Oval Office has that going for them automatically. But personally, Trump is a joke.

And this is as good of an example of any, of Althouse parsing the word-deployment by a major newspaper on a level that she would never do with Trump. Or even Doug Collins.

Jeff Brokaw said...

Imagine going through life believing “I can’t get through the day without the WaPo instructing me what to think”.

There are actual people who believe this. They seem smart and capable too.

Mike Sylwester said...

Democracy Dies in Darkness!

Big Mike said...

They've fallen and they can't get up.

I wouldn't advise it either.


Crack has a point. I remember watching a fight where the winner said “If you get up I’m just gonna knock you down again.” He meant it, too.

What I like about Melania is the way she just lets the decorations and her choice of attire speak for themselves. I assume the idiots at the Post have finally, after two Christmases, realized that that snarking on Melania’s elegant Christmas decorations is a loser for them. But you’d think by now they’d know not to challenge the way she dresses herself. The people looking at a sophisticated woman who looks good, and makes America look good to the world.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

The left are the Stalinist. The Puntinists.

Hillary was fine to take his money.

tim in vermont said...

I wonder why Trump doesn’t trust the intelligence agencies who have been out making partisan points since the election, rather than, you know, working behind the scenes to earn Trump’s trust....


But Chuck will tell you, “never doubt content from the CIA” Ha h ha ha! Chuck, you make sure to sign up or send your kids off to the next war they cook up!

This is also funny from the Washington Examiner:

President Trump called his wife to give her a heads-up about an alleged tape showing him with prostitutes urinating on a bed in a Russian hotel room. A former West Wing staffer said that when the allegations leaked, Trump “called Melania to tell her, incredulous to the point of laughter,” according to Free, Melania, a new book on the first lady. “You won’t believe this,” the former staffer said Trump told his wife. “She thought it was funny, too, and the two of them, together, remarked how ridiculous it was.”

I always thought the pee pee tape thing was hilarious, even more so if it were true. The pearl clutching from people like Chuck that Obama’s regal image might be, dare we say it... mocked! OMG Lesé Majesté!

Jersey Fled said...

Whenever they mock Melania's attire I am reminded of the moment on Inauuration Day the Obamas greeted the Trumps at the entrance to the White House.

Melania is stunning,as always, and Michelle looks like she's wearing a housedress.

tim in vermont said...

"I remind you that Robin Givhan never once told you that Michelle Obama was always wearing a wig and that her head is the same length as Barack’s”

That describes lots of black ladies. Leave it alone.

Jeff Brokaw said...

Am I supposed to be concerned if foreign leaders laugh at Trump?

That’s assuming a lot, because I don’t.

Why on earth should we give a shit what a lightweight like Macron thinks? Trump has substantial leverage over him and every other foreign leader — and he knows how to use it.

Nothing else matters, but idiot reporters for useless rags like WaPo report on this Mean Girls shit because they care what Macron thinks.

What-EVAR.

daskol said...

Melania is a bold dresser, not only in her choice of colors. She dresses full high: none of this fashionable high/low stuff for her, pairing an expensive coat with a Zara or Uniqlo dress. It's all high fashion, and she wears it very well. But it's not the trend.

MayBee said...

Remember when the leaders of China and India told Obama they were leaving the climate summit, then met in a private room just so they could avoid him?

Ray - SoCal said...

Beautiful Xmas decorations and video.

The TDS / smarminess / snark just demeans the so called fashion critics.

rehajm said...

When you're a deadbeat you tend not to like the people calling attention to your deadbeatness.

Hagar said...

Melania and Ivanka are so perfect they are funny.
I am growing quite fond of both of them.

stevew said...

If only Trump were a Democrat Melania would be treated as America's queen.

The same people that are concerned about other foreign leaders laughing at Trump's expense are the ones saying we need to be friends with other countries. They are consistent in their wrongness.

Jeff said...

Melania is a lovely woman, no doubt, and the decorations are really beautiful. But I wonder, who paid for them? And why?

Curious George said...

Robin Givhan doesn't have a forehead. It's like a sixhead. Maybe 6-1/2.

Tank said...

MadisonMan said...

I note that CNN is running this story too. It's almost like they all got the same memo.


One of the best things on Tucker's show is the many times he shows the news readers, commentators and Democrats saying the same exact things in the same exact words. Where do these talking points come from?

=======================================

The press hates everything about Trump, so they feel they must hate everything about Melania even though, aside from marrying Trump, it's hard to think of anything substantive to complain about; and, on the other hand, she's the best looking, most stylish, most elegant first lady ever (or at least during my lifetime). It kills them that he has her.

Birches said...

Our media is so petty.

Amadeus 48 said...

Hagar--If I ran into you in a bar, I'd buy you a drink, and we'd toast Melania and Ivanka.

Melania, mon amour.

Ivanka--the ultimate yummy mummy.

tim in vermont said...

"But I wonder, who paid for them? And why?”

Ha ha ha ha! We have Glenn Simpson posting here!

MacMacConnell said...

Trump has broken Robin Givhan and Anna Wintour. Melania wears clothing that made Robin and Anna panties sopping wet when it came down the fashion show runway. If Trump was a democrat in the White House the two would dry hump Melania and she would be on the cover of every fashion magazine. Robin and Anna have no credibility.

Amadeus 48 said...

I noticed that Insty picked out my comment yesterday:

“There is a point where the honorific ‘knowledge worker’ becomes completely ironic. I think most members of the MSM elite have reached that point.”

Robin Givhan, come on down!

Curious George said...

"One of the best things on Tucker's show is the many times he shows the news readers, commentators and Democrats saying the same exact things in the same exact words. Where do these talking points come from?"

That's been a Rush Limbaugh staple for years and years....long before Tucker.

Birches said...

Wow Skylark, that Twitter link does condemn the press. Have they already forgotten about WMDs in Iraq.

J. Farmer said...

@Jeff:

Melania is a lovely woman, no doubt, and the decorations are really beautiful. But I wonder, who paid for them? And why?

The same people who pay for everything the government does. The taxpayers. This is part of the head of state/ceremonial aspect of the presidency. And the White House is open to the public.

J. Farmer said...

@Hagar:

I am growing quite fond of both of them.

May I ask what it is you are fond of about Ivanka?

J. Farmer said...

"One of the best things on Tucker's show is the many times he shows the news readers, commentators and Democrats saying the same exact things in the same exact words. Where do these talking points come from?"

I think it is a general rule of thumb that progressives are more organized and coordinated than conservatives. It makes since when you consider that progressives are actively trying to change things while conservatives often just want to be left alone.

tim in vermont said...

"Have they already forgotten about WMDs in Iraq.”

And have they forgotten that CIA leaks, and now it would seem apparently FBI leaks to the New York Times was a big part of it?

Swede said...

This is plastered all over twitter.

So many people crowing over it. LOOK! They're mocking Trump! Hahahahaha!

I opened it, expecting to find something that matched all the headlines.

It's Prime Minister Blackface saying something, not sure exactly what, to President Riots about Trump. Doing a press conference?

Boris looks like he'd rather be someplace else than next to the 2 frogs.

Don't know who the tall guy is.

Amadeus 48 said...

J. Farmer--

Progressives also think top-down. Most progressive attempts at grass-roots organization turn out to be fake grass--astroturf. When you are getting your signs pre-printed and your talking points via text and email, authenticity leaves the building. The right does it, too, but as you say Progs are more organized (usually by some billionaire with an angle to play or an ax to grind).

Richard Carlson:It’s worse than horrible because a zombie has no will of his own. You see them sometimes walking around blindly with dead eyes, following orders, not knowing what they do, not caring.

Bob Hope: You mean like Democrats?

AllenS said...

Yes, a lot of black ladies wear wigs, and so do some white ladies. The point is, that if Melania or Ivanka were discovered to be wearing wigs, we'd never hear the end of it.

mockturtle said...

Trump is a very personable person who seems at ease in any situation. It becomes more obvious when those around him look awkward [e.g., Angela Merkel at the presser]. And Melania continues to shine with beauty and grace. We are blessed.

MayBee said...

I believe Robin Givhan is telling Melania to smile.

hombre said...

The leftmediaswine can’t think/talk about anything but Trump. It must therefore be true of everyone.

mockturtle said...

Crack observes: They've fallen and they can't get up.

Excellent!

Jim in St Louis said...

Sooooo....what was the emotion the vid was supposed to create in me?

Options:
A: That as an american I will feel ashamed world leaders mock the american president.

Maybe; But I actually feel relieved that they confirm the american president is not acting in their interest. If Trudeau and Macron were ungaurdedly praising DJT then I'd be worried the president had done something to help Canada and France.

B: Ooooh Boy! That Trump is going to be so pissed when he finds out, so I'm meant to feel happy that Trump will feel bad.

Maybe; But DJT loves the mockery and disdain of the elite. It energizes him.

C: That brave journalists will eavesdrop and uncover any single tiny thing that can possibly be spun to make Trump look bad.

Maybe; But this is the worst they can go with? You can't even tell they are actually mocking him- they could be in amazement and admiration for a leader who talks to the press for 40 min. None of them- including HRH Princess Royal could ever survive facing a hostile media for that long.


I thought the WH decorations were beautiful, but maybe too perfect. I feel Christmas and Hanukkah(sp?) should be more home made and crafty. The store-bought is wonderful, but I also like paper chains and slanted gingerbread houses that are obviously the work of a ten year old. Oh and food- there should be plates of snacks and nuts and bowls of those weird pears wrapped in foil. Food counts as decoration right?

Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...

I'm sure these "world leaders" were much happier when the US was leading from behind.

Andrew said...

I wish Melania, just once, would make a Christmas greeting video in each one of the several languages that she knows.

Of course, since they are Eastern European languages, she would probably be accused of racism.

I'm not sure journalists can comprehend that even Melania is smarter than they are.

gilbar said...

the many times he shows the news readers, commentators and Democrats saying the same exact things in the same exact words. Where do these talking points come from?

the thing that gets me; is that they don't think it affects their effectiveness to all repeat
THE EXACT SAME PHRASE. You'd think (well, I'D think,) that their talking points memos would tell them general themes; NOT explicit phrases

It's like they WANT to make sure people know that they're all reading off the same script.
And that confuses me... WHY would they they that is a good strategy?

Seeing Red said...

They’re standing with Prime Minstral Trudeau-Castro and Trump’s the joke?

Seeing Red said...


Blogger Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...
I'm sure these "world leaders" were much happier when the US was leading from behind.

Just so long as we still pick up the bill.

narciso said...

Journolist rizotto tray echo chsmber
Amber.

Bob Boyd said...

In the first video the world leaders could just as easily be laughing at the expense of the media and admiring Trump's audacity in his handling of them.

It says more about the Guardian than about Trump that they put this spin on it. They assume the leaders are so smug and superior that they stand around sneering at Trump? Why? Because that's what they do at the Guardian.

Big Mike said...

Of course, since they are Eastern European languages, she would probably be accused of racism.

@Andrew, French and German are Eastern European languages? She worked in Milan; I'm sure she also has at least a smattering of Italian to go with French, German, (American-style) English, Serbo-Croatian, and her native Slovenian.

Anonymous said...

Just remember Cucky, YOU WILL NEVER HAVE POWER IN THE GOP AGAIN. NEVER. No more Bushes or McCains or Wills. Go find your place with the Democrats, you’ve been one for years. They won’t be able to stand you either but they might be under the impression that you’re a “conservative” and you can convince “conservatives” to support Warren due to your deeply held principles (Democrat victories being absolutely #1).

Anonymous said...

Don’t know or care about Melania Trump but she speaks very good Italian.

J. Farmer said...

No more Bushes or McCains or Wills.

I'm hoping my governor, Ron De Santis, will turn out to be a potential heir to Trumpism.

Giovan Pietro Bellori said...

JF—
What is certain is that populism won’t go away and the last thing it needs is a parasite like Cuck who thinks the purpose of politics is to pay for law school tuition and bow ties for managerial state frauds.

narciso said...

Canada's welcoming a Huawei plant, fox in the henhouse,

pacwest said...

Trump is not in with the in crowd evidently.

The Crack Emcee said...

Donald Trump calls Justin Trudeau 'two-faced' over video of world leaders 'mocking' US President

Telling it like it is - I like it.

Mockturtle will be here any minute now, declaring their betrayal is all Trump's fault - because of his winning personality.

mockturtle said...

The pack makes fun of the alpha male but only behind his back.

J. Farmer said...

I never understood the "two-faced" accusation. In the south, being polite to someone's face and talking shit about them behind their back is just considered good manners.

mockturtle said...

Crack, if you knew ANYTHING AT ALL about me, which you obviously do not, you would know that I have been an ardent Trump supporter since day one.

And my compliment on your remark upthread was sincere. Take it for what it's worth, it was both elegant and pithy.

Howard said...

Melania is a proxy for Trump's gold toilet that can travel with him. I know, the poor girl, but she is well paid.

Anonymous said...

Howard are you under the impression that Michelle Obama is worldly and sophisticated and Melania Trump isn’t?

narciso said...

well michelle hung out with Russian oligarchs and Saudi princes in Marbella, and the press marveled,

Howard said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Howard said...

Jesus Christ. They were all having a big laugh over Donald. Macaroni not so much he seems serious. Justin Trudeau however seemed to be expressing lots of mirth and joy over the Donald's behavior.

Churchy LaFemme: said...

Sometimes I wonder, "What would it be like to have a president that the press doesn't actively despise?"

I remember an interesting post on Powerline years back. Bush was in India, and one of the Powerline guys was reading the articles in the online Indian english-language press. He felt there was something he just couldn't quite put his finger on, above & beyond the surprises of Indian English usage.

Finally he realized: Hey, these guys don't hate his guts!

Howard said...

Well mr. Giovanni petroleum blovangi, if you consider a vacuous supermodel playing the role of arm candy for an impotent buffoon what travels around the world as being worldly than yes you are absolutely right she is much more worldly than mrs. Oh Bambi

William said...

You don't see much of Princess Anne. The years have been kind to her. Her face has softened and she looks at ease. She used to be the royal that everyone liked to hate. As a youth, she looked awkward and not just aloof but arrogant. So far as I remember, she wasn't involved in any scandals but people just didn't take to her.....The BBC series, The Crown, made her look spunky and irreverent. As if. For reasons I don't understand, the BBC paints the royals in soft, flattering colors.

Maillard Reactionary said...

"...but that coat looks ridiculous."

Meeeowww!

That writer knows that Melania would look better in a $12 bathrobe from Walmart than she would in anything at all. (I'm assuming that "Robin Givhan" is female, but if she is not, she probably still has strong feelings about womens' clothing. If you know what I mean.)

Where was the mockery when Hillary was wearing those tents that looked like a tablecloth from Bed Bath and Beyond?

Anonymous said...

Howard, so you really don't know one way or the other. That's fine. I don't really either (except for Michelle's Princeton thesis). You'll note though that one is treated as a Serious Intellectual or even Potential President and the other isn't.

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

Tighty Whiteys cavilling about Trump? I can't imagine why he's resonating with minorities...

mockturtle said...

Where was the mockery when Hillary was wearing those tents that looked like a tablecloth from Bed Bath and Beyond?

And the oven mitt! Who can forget the oven mitt?

stan said...

Expressing hatred of Trump and his wife is how they boost their self-esteem. Lefties are psychologically retarded. Liberals hate. Deeply and comprehensively. Hatred defines them. For it is their hatred that makes them feel good about themselves.

The worse a Democrat feels, the more his political heroes embarrass, the lower his self-esteem -- the more critically important it is that he project his hatred onto his political opponents. The more the revelations about the corruption and incompetence of liberal leaders, the more we hear about deplorables and bitter clingers and their supposed racism, sexism, white supremacy, fascism, and all the other vile slanders of the standard leftist litany.

J. Farmer said...

@William:

You don't see much of Princess Anne. The years have been kind to her. Her face has softened and she looks at ease. She used to be the royal that everyone liked to hate. As a youth, she looked awkward and not just aloof but arrogant. So far as I remember, she wasn't involved in any scandals but people just didn't take to her.....

This reminded me of when Christopher Hitchens was on c-span shitting all over the Diana love fest following her death, and he compared Diana's media coverage to her former sister-in-law's. You can watch it here.

William said...

Melania is extraordinarily good looking and stylish. All in a day's work for a super model. Models are supposed to be good looking and stylish. She's not particularly charming and doesn't have the kind of good looks that inspire sympathy rather than envy. She's accomplished and smart, but not in a way that we who sweat the bread can relate to. She's our first trophy wife First Lady....On the other hand, she's not off putting either. She says her lines and makes her entrances with decorum and grace. The fervent wish of some in the media to find fault with her is paradoxically her most appealing quality. The media doesn't have to Jackie off on her like they did with Michelle, but they should just play it straight and objective.

Wince said...

Trudeau should have made his joke in blackface, that one always has them rolling in the aisles.

Birches said...

I'm not sure about that AllenS. Most celebrities, white or black, nowadays have weaves or hair pieces. Have you seen Ariana Grande?

Mr Wibble said...

Back when Trump was elected all sorts of designers were declaring that they'd never provide dresses for Melania, and the best response I saw from someone was, "Are you kidding me? She doesn't need you. She's a billionaire and she's sample size!"

William said...

@J Farmer: Thanks for posting the Christopher Hitchens clip. I had known that he had a low opinion of Mother Theresa, but I didn't know that he was openly critical of Princess Diane. That's truly edgy....Princess Diane was more than photogenic. She had the kind of good looks that involved you in the drama. Melania is probably better looking, but the viewer doesn't become involved with her beauty. There's a reason why there are fewer movie stars than models. It's a gift. Ivanka has that kind of appeal. Melania doesn't. On the plus side, she's not someone like Princess Anne or Chelsea who spontaneously engender dislike even when they're holding puppies.

Sydney said...

For reasons I don't understand, the BBC paints the royals in soft, flattering colors.

Don't they depend on them for their broadcasting license?

Howard said...

You answered your own question Giovanni. Melania is a art school dropout retired fashion model, which for you people is the paragon of intelligence. Congratulations, you win.

J. Farmer said...

@William:

Melania is probably better looking, but the viewer doesn't become involved with her beauty. There's a reason why there are fewer movie stars than models. It's a gift.

I completely agree. Melania has a steely aloofness that is not very approachable. And she is a bit dead behind the eyes. But on the other hand, could you blame her? I couldn't imagine how much you would have to dissociate to let Donald Trump climb on top of you.

Andrew said...

@Big Mike,
Point taken. I was focusing on the languages that would be considered more unusual. I think many Americans would be very respectful of her speaking in her native tongue, for example. And it would be one more thing to drive the left crazy. "Where's the diversity?!"

Anonymous said...

And Michelle’s thesis is a fucking joke. Everyone who has attended Ivy League schools on the last few decades knows the type.

Anonymous said...

For you people, Michelle is Socrates.

TJM said...

Howard,

And for you intelligence is an affirmative action law grad like Obama who thinks Austrians speak "Austrian." Melania speaks 5 languages fluently and would never make such a faux pas as Obama the Magnificent

mockturtle said...

That's truly edgy....Princess Diane was more than photogenic. She had the kind of good looks that involved you in the drama. Melania is probably better looking, but the viewer doesn't become involved with her beauty.

Couldn't agree less. Diana was a nothingburger. Out of her element, not especially pretty and not very bright.

TJM said...

Howard,

Trudeau, the black-faced loser, and Macron, the braindead, are your idols? Trump wiped the floor with those 2 little, effete, clowns. More nations are now contributing their share to NATO after Trump threatened to withhold American dollars. Something Obozo could never accomplished. You really need to grow up

Anonymous said...

And who among us promotes Melania as some kind of genius? Are you projecting again?

mccullough said...

Xi and Putin are world leaders along with Trump. The rest of these folks are World Leader Pretend.

Trump’s “two-faced” comment about Trudeau was funny. Trump is an intelligent guy.

Someone ask Princess Anne and The Queen why Andrew fucks teenagers.

England is a bunch of inbred douchebags. Their best died a long time ago.

And Merkel wasn’t with The Boys. The Fuhress knows those countries are subsidiaries of the E.U. and that Germany is Europe.

Anonymous said...

I see she attended a year at the architecture and design school at the Univ of Ljubljana. That means she attended a gymnasium school. Do you know how difficult this kind of school is? Admissions are competitive and cannot easily be gamed (I lived in a country with a gymnasium-style system). Maybe she’s smarter than I thought. Almost no American high school is as intense as an Italian liceo classico, a German gymnasium, or a French lycée.

In a country like Slovenia people leave universities for many reasons that people in the US and W Europe didn’t face so often. Maybe she couldn’t cut it. Or maybe she had an opportunity to make a whole lot more money and have a much better opportunity outside the country.

narciso said...

indeed, it was in the early days of the transition from east bloc state,

https://twitter.com/ClimateAudit/status/1202227375918010379?s=20

J. Farmer said...

I find the anti-First Lady stuff kind of bizarre. I haven't really had a problem with any of the last three First Ladies. Laura, Michelle, or Melania. So long as they stick to a ceremonial role and don't get involved in governing, who really cares about them.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
The Crack Emcee said...

mockturtle said...

"Crack, if you knew ANYTHING AT ALL about me, which you obviously do not, you would know that I have been an ardent Trump supporter since day one"

I was refering to your judgement on me and my winning personality, yesterday, which you seemed to think is the basis for my troubles - not being an alpha, myself, surrounded by hyenas as Trump is - but without his resources.

It's just unfair.

Anonymous said...

Howard appears to be an expert on the economy of early-90s Slovenia. I’m not, but then again I’ve only been there about five times and can report that in the second half of the decade prices were 25-30% cheaper across the border in Nova Gorica than they were in the Italian town next to it (all originally one town), Gorizia—at one time I had business in Friuli.

tim in vermont said...

My mother spoke 4 languages, an intelligent lady but not particularly. well educated, but the 4 languages thing is because she was born in a tiny country whose language is not spoken all that much abroad. You can teach a person a lot of languages if you start them young.

It’s just seems like people who speak multiple languages are very intelligent because it’s not easy to pick up a language fluently in U.S. public schools. Only the most determined student will succeed.

NorthOfTheOneOhOne said...

J. Farmer said...

I never understood the "two-faced" accusation. In the south, being polite to someone's face and talking shit about them behind their back is just considered good manners.

While you're basically correct, there's the question of degree. (I'm originally from Dixie.) There's shit talking someone amongst family and friends. That's different from shit talking someone to complete strangers. Family and friends know you're either speaking an unpleasant truth about someone or letting off steam and you don't necessarily mean any harm. Strangers don't have that subtlety. That's where 'two-faced' comes in.

mockturtle said...

It's just unfair.

Well, Crack, honey, my mama always said life isn't fair. Don't you think it's time to get used to it?

Anonymous said...

Skylark, you’re quite right about the languages. Slavs (or at least people from Slavic countries) have amazing facility with languages, because pretty much every language is easier than theirs. Ever study Polish? Amazingly difficult.

traditionalguy said...

The joke is seeing those dufusses, who act out leader roles for the Media while they are totally controlled by their Central Banks and the CIA's Epstein videos of them abusing small children, and they are laughing at the actual leader of the world having an actual job to do.

tim in vermont said...

Trump’s response to Trudeau? “He’s two faced, and he still isn’t paying up to NATO.”

Is Trudeau withholding military support for poor little Ukraine? Sounds like it.

Sebastian said...

"The idea seems to be to absolutely sear all eyeballs while being entirely dignified and elegant."

Correct. And she succeeds spectacularly.

"""Melania Trump’s Christmas decorations are lovely, but that coat looks ridiculous" by Robin Givhan (WaPo). The coat, in this video, is white, and what's "ridiculous"?"

Well, she is Donald's wife, and she is not a Dem, so actually worse than ridiculous. The fact that she is the first immigrant FLOTUS doesn't count, for progs anyway.

Lurker21 said...

Givhan loved Michelle Obama. I think she only criticized Michelle's fashion choices, once early on (shorts) and once after the Obamas left office, and that time she got hell for it from colleagues and the Obama people. Otherwise so far as I know, it was praise, praise, praise, or at least no blame.

And what has it come to that they now give Pulitzer Prizes to fashion writers? And as if that weren't bad enough, not even to actual fashion writers, but to Washington fashion writers who are too close to the political public relations machinery to venture actual insights of their own.

Amadeus 48 said...

I love "two-faced" Trudeau because it works on so many levels, what with the history of blackface and all.

Trudeau made one of the dopiest and most truthful statements of his career when he said during the recent campaign, "Perhaps I have been over-committed to costumes."

The politicians are all pretty third tier in Canada these days. The Tories ran a guy for PM who decided early on to join the other four parties in campaigning against the Tories. That worked about as well as you might expect.

Amadeus 48 said...

J. Farmer at 10:13. I am with you all the way on that sentiment.

Michelle is a monument to an upbringing based on bourgeois values. Although I don't agree with her politics, she and her family should be a model for girls and boys who want to amount to something.

Melania and Laura have obvious virtues and added dignity to their husbands essentially populist political personas.

Let's leave Hillary out of this.

Ralph L said...

The same people who pay for everything the government does. The taxpayers.

At least some of the labor is volunteer and materials, donated. It's a coup to get your stuff in the White House, especially if you can sneak in condom tree ornaments.

Churchy LaFemme: said...

I think Hitchens' thing was to be an obituary contrarian. It did not always serve him well. I remember his Bob Hope obit where his whole take was that Hope was the unfunny lame guy we saw for 40 years on the NBC specials and totally ignored the fresh innovative work that put him in the position to become that lame guy. Yes, too bad it happened, but that's like judging Elvis on his Vegas era.

Martin said...

All those kinds of pieces, and there have been dozens if not hundreds, say nothing about Trump and volumes about the poor, nasty, withered soul of the author.

Ken B said...

Posts like this are why Althouse is still one of the best blogs on the internet.

Ken B said...

Imagine thinking a press conference more important than cocktails with Princess Anne.

Professional lady said...

I remember when Althouse blogged about Givhan's rant about people who wear Lily Pulitzer clothes. I don't particularly care for Lillian Pulitzer myself, but if people like it and feel comfortable wearing it, it's ok with me. You really have to wonder why Givhan hasn't figured out something better to do with her life.

Jim at said...

Robin Givhan see you next Tuesday.

William said...

Princess Anne never looked like a Disney princess. When you're that much in the public eye, people expect you to be better looking. Kate Middleton and and Meghan fill the bill. So did Queen Elizabeth when she was younger. It's very important to be good looking when you're a Princess. Princess Diana was exemplary. I understand she had some deficits as a person, but when it came to looking pretty and delicate and caring for all small creatures of the forest, she was in Audrey Hepburn territory.....If Chelsea looked as good as Ivanka, the gushes would never stop. Ivanka should be America's princess, but she's the spawn of an evil man, so nothing good can be said about her.

Jim at said...

When Trump 'insults' people, it's to their faces.
When other people 'insult' Trump, it's behind his back.

That's all you need to know about the left.

The Crack Emcee said...

Skylark said...

"It’s just seems like people who speak multiple languages are very intelligent because it’s not easy to pick up a language fluently in U.S. public schools. Only the most determined student will succeed."

Agreed. My wife spoke four languages and is still dumb as a rock.

The Crack Emcee said...

mockturtle said...

"Well, Crack, honey, my mama always said life isn't fair. Don't you think it's time to get used to it?"

You're not "life" - you're just a bitch - don't you think it's time you saw the difference?

mockturtle said...

You're not "life" - you're just a bitch - don't you think it's time you saw the difference?

Yo mama.

Ingachuck'stoothlessARM said...

pending a medical report, we will be able to give a first-hand report on these "joyless, dismissive, aloof" decorations this coming Friday afternoon

JaimeRoberto said...

Photographic evidence suggests that Trudeau has more than just two faces.

mockturtle said...

pending a medical report, we will be able to give a first-hand report on these "joyless, dismissive, aloof" decorations this coming Friday afternoon

Looking forward to it, ICTA.

Maillard Reactionary said...

"Photographic evidence suggests that Trudeau has more than just two faces."

There is also photographic evidence that he has at least four eyebrows, not all of them in the right places.

Maillard Reactionary said...

"My wife spoke four languages and is still dumb as a rock."

Easy to believe. She married you, right?

AllenS said...

I have no idea who Ariana Grande is.

pacwest said...

"I couldn't imagine how much you would have to dissociate to let Donald Trump climb on top of you."

I saw this earlier today, but had to come back to comment on it. Euwwww.

Known Unknown said...

"I love the close-up shot of the "be best" Scrabble Christmas ornament."

It's a low-scorer though for sure. I think a better ornament/slogan would be "Go Gherkins"

Known Unknown said...

"So did Queen Elizabeth when she was younger."

Never got the allure with her at all.

Known Unknown said...

" As a youth, she looked awkward and not just aloof but arrogant."

This is as good a picture of her as I have ever seen. Quite attractive here.

Maillard Reactionary said...

AllenS: "I have no idea who Ariana Grande is."

You and me, brother, you and me.

Should we, though? I await my belated education in this matter.

mockturtle said...

AllenS: "I have no idea who Ariana Grande is."

Me either. And I'm probably better off for it.

bagoh20 said...

I don't remember, but I imagine Jimmy Carter had a little Charley Brown tree with a string of stale popcorn for decorations. I do remember a sweater.

bagoh20 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
bagoh20 said...

Think back to how sad those 70's were. Like many people, I felt America's best was behind us. I was just starting out in the adult world and it was depressing: no jobs, no gas, terrible cars, bad music, and a pervasive feeling of national weakness and impotence. How many back then would imagine us today as the world's premier energy producer, and the only strong economy, and with a leader the entire world must watch just to know what's really happening beyond the bullshit of the globalism circle jerk?

mockturtle said...

The early 70's were great for me--great job, great husband and much to look forward to. Can't answer for the music, as we listened only to classical music during our 40-year marriage [with an occasional bluegrass festival thrown in]. Yes, the gas rationing was a pain and Carter was a flop but I figured we could only go up from there and we got Reagan! :-)

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

People don't like Trump.
News at 11.

J. Farmer said...

I have no idea who Ariana Grande is.

You and me, brother, you and me.

Me either. And I'm probably better off for it.

You know you're getting old when not knowing Top 40 is a badge of honor. Hell, Bob Seger got a Top 40 hit off the same sentiment. And he was only 33 when he recorded Old Time Rock and Roll.