Trump out-of-bounds
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Illustration: Lazaro Gamio / Axios
Donald Trump is now well-recognized as the president who hasn't been bound by the same niceties as his predecessors — whether on Twitter or in public remarks. He sparked controversy again this week, when he impugned past presidents for not calling families of service members killed in combat — the latest incident where his inclination to speak off the cuff went beyond the normal remarks of prior presidents.
Bottom line: It was assumed that after taking office Trump's rhetoric would become more mild, but he's proven that he will continue to say what he wants. As Axios wrote in March, Trump is Trump, "the one guy who's NOT CHANGING is a 70-year-old billionaire with his name on the building."
- Trump accused Obama of "wiretapping" him without providing any evidence, and suggested Obama had broken the law in a crime of Watergate proportions— March 4
- He attacked London Mayor Sadiq Khan in the hours after a terror attack struck the city, calling him "pathetic" for telling residents there is "no reason to be alarmed." Note: Trump's claim was highly misleading. Khan actually said Londoners shouldn't be alarmed by the increased security. — June 4 and 5
- After learning of negative media reports from "Morning Joe's" Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, Trump tweeted: [H]ow come low I.Q. Crazy Mika, along with Psycho Joe, came... to Mar-a-Lago 3 nights in a row around New Year's Eve... She was bleeding badly from a face-lift" — June 29
- He suggested that "many sides" were responsible for the racist carnage at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., drawing intense backlash, including from members of his own administration — Aug 12
- He retweeted a a meme of a train crashing into a human embodiment of CNN, with the words "FAKE NEWS CAN'T STOP THE TRUMP TRAIN" above it — Aug 16
- Trump blamed the damned dishonest reporters for racial tension in America by accusing them of fanning the flames of racist protest, being anti-American, and trying to erase the country's heritage — Aug 23
- In private, Trump physically mocked Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's posture (slumped shoulders; lethargic body language) and Sen. John McCain, who was recently diagnosed with malignant brain cancer, by imitating the thumbs-down of his historic health-care vote — Sept 27
- In the days after Hurricane Maria ravaged Puerto Rico and left its residents without food, power, water, Trump attacked the Mayor of San Juan, Carmen Yulín Cruz, who had begged for more help. "Such poor leadership ability... They [Puerto Ricans] want everything to be done for them" — Sept. 30
- He suggested to associates that health problems would cause Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor to retire (or die) soon. Trump on Ginsburg: "What does she weigh? 60 pounds?" and on Sotomayor: "Her health. No good. Diabetes." — Oct. 15
- Trump falsely claimed that Barack Obama and other presidents didn't make calls to the families of fallen soldiers. They did. — Oct. 16
Go deeper with Axios' Mike Allen on Trump's actions:
