What’s Trump Rambling About This Week? Let’s Check In.

Donald Trump held his first post-Barr report rally last night in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and it was as strange and blithering as you’d expect. He touted his “total vindication,” declaring “the Russia hoax is finally dead” and “the collusion delusion is finally over.”

Of course, we know that’s not true. Trump knows that’s not true. Democrats have given Attorney General Barr a deadline for releasing Mueller’s full report to them, which he’s already said he won’t meet. Democrats are likely to move ahead with subpoenas and possibly even begin impeachment proceedings. The grand jury that investigated Russian interference and collusion is not done, but is reportedly “continuing robustly.”

Trump knows all of this. And in looking for a way to deflect attention, he appears to be trying the spaghetti tactic of throwing a whole bunch of subjects at the wall to see what sticks. It’s pretty much the entire purpose of these rallies. He gets to mock his perceived “enemies,” tell everyone how smart and powerful he is, yell some racist remarks and straight-up lies, and have his base cheer him on and boost his ego.

So what did he ramble about this time? Let’s dive in.

First up: Wind. Trump wants us to know that he “know[s] a lot about wind,” despite definitely not knowing how wind-based renewable energy works. At all. He told the crowd that wind power doesn’t work when the wind isn’t actively blowing, which is not true. (He has a similar misunderstanding of solar power.)

In the last week or so, he’s said similar things about wind energy at a factory in Ohio and during an interview with Sean Hannity.

He also–nearly 29 months after the 2016 election–still has to bring Hillary Clinton into it.

Trump also praised the Great Lakes and their “record deepness.”

He said he was going to get “full funding of $300 million for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which you have been trying to get for over 30 years.”

That’s a lie.

During his first year in office, Trump proposed cutting the program entirely. Over the last two years, he’s proposed 90% cuts and was overridden by Congress.

Trump is fundamentally unqualified to be president and to tackle actual problems. Which is why he continues to treat President Obama and Hillary Clinton as if they’re his main obstacles to success.

Maybe that’s why he’s been back on his Obamacare attacks recently. Trump is determined to repeal Obamacare, despite the hit his party took in November for pushing that idea, and despite an apparent total lack of support now. GOP officials are reportedly horrified and confused to see Trump back on this BS. Even Mitch McConnell–eternal toadie Mitch McConnell!–is distancing himself from Trump’s approach to healthcare reform.

Because Trump doesn’t care about health care. He cares about stripping Obama’s name and legacy from the idea of healthcare.

But back to the rally. Trump flung out some personal insults about the size of Adam Schiff’s neck (???), he pushed lies about later abortions and said Democrats want to allow children to be “executed” “after birth,” and he said that asylum seekers are faking their status and are coached by lawyers to say they’re in danger. You can tell they’re not, he says, because they look like “heavyweight champion[s].”

Trump also went after the Green New Deal. He incorrectly said the plan would mean “no more airplanes, no more cows,” and limit cars to one per family.

Before Trump took the stage, Don Jr was brought on as his warm-up act, and he spent a good portion of his time attacking Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The crowd, in response, chanted “AOC sucks!”

For Trump the elder, they returned to their usual refrain of “Lock her up.” That “her” is referring to the media, which Trump said has be “accountable.”

When Trump begins lying with even more frequency than usual, it’s hard to know if it’s because he’s feeling panicked or emboldened. It’s pointless to try to figure out Trump’s motives, I suppose. But between the rally last night and his tweets today, he’s definitely feeling some sort of way.

(image: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

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Vivian Kane

Vivian Kane (she/her) is the Senior News Editor at The Mary Sue, where she's been writing about politics and entertainment (and all the ways in which the two overlap) since the dark days of late 2016. Born in San Francisco and radicalized in Los Angeles, she now lives in Kansas City, Missouri, where she gets to put her MFA to use covering the local theatre scene. She is the co-owner of The Pitch, Kansas City’s alt news and culture magazine, alongside her husband, Brock Wilbur, with whom she also shares many cats.

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