Donald Trump’s stolen ‘body-slamming CNN’ video is still causing big problems

It was another pleasant, sleepy morning where I hoped that we could go one day without Donald Trump and his unhinged, complicit minions. Trump is leaving for his second international trip as #NotMyPresident and I’m already sorry, Europe. I’m sorry you have to deal with our fascist dumbass again. He’s heading to Poland and then to Germany, and he’ll possibly be stopping by London and/or his Scottish golf place at some point in the next two weeks. Plus, he’s due to go to Paris for Bastille Day (the 14th). Trump just tweeted this morning that he’ll be back in America this weekend, so he apparently doesn’t want to stay in Europe any longer than he has to. Still, get your signs and your p-ssy hats ready, European protesters. And I’m sorry in advance. Word to the wise: if you let him touch a glowing orb and give him something shiny to play with, he will be putty in your hands.

Meanwhile, we’re still dealing with the Emperor’s unhinged tweets. On Sunday, Trump tweeted out a short video clip from his old C-list celebrity days, when he appeared on WWE. Someone had superimposed the CNN logo on the guy Trump was “body-slamming.” The message was pretty clear: Trump assaults the media. Trump encourages violence against journalists. Trump is so self-obsessed that he finds Reddit-user-made videos and posts them to his Twitter. The video did not go over well, and once people realized that Trump had stolen it from a Reddit user, media outlets tried to track down the user. The guy had a history of posting racist, anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim sh-t, and he had a long history of posting positive sh-t about Trump. Well, CNN tracked the guy down but they didn’t name him in their reporting, choosing to just call him by his Reddit handle, HanA–holeSolo. After CNN contacted him (and he refused to speak to them), he deleted all of his Reddit stuff and posted a lengthy apology post. Here’s part of it:

“First of all, I would like to apologize to the members of the reddit community for getting this site and this sub embroiled in a controversy that should never have happened. I would also like to apologize for the posts made that were racist, bigoted, and anti-semitic. I am in no way this kind of person, I love and accept people of all walks of life and have done so for my entire life. I am not the person that the media portrays me to be in real life, I was trolling and posting things to get a reaction from the subs on reddit and never meant any of the hateful things I said in those posts. I would never support any kind of violence or actions against others simply for what they believe in, their religion, or the lifestyle they choose to have. Nor would I carry out any violence against anyone based upon that or support anyone who did.”

“The meme was created purely as satire, it was not meant to be a call to violence against CNN or any other news affiliation. I had no idea anyone would take it and put sound to it and then have it put up on the President’s Twitter feed. It was a prank, nothing more. What the President’s feed showed was not the original post that was posted here, but loaded up somewhere else and sound added to it then sent out on Twitter. I thought it was the original post that was made and that is why I took credit for it. I have the highest respect for the journalist community and they put their lives on the line every day with the jobs that they do in reporting the news.”

[From Reddit via CNN]

The apology was taken down by moderators of /The_Donald subreddit, and the guy ended up calling CNN and confirming his identity but he asked that they not name him (which they didn’t). He told CNN that the White House had not asked to use his video/GIF and he probably would have said no if he had been asked.

So, obviously, the #MAGA crowd and the Reddit community have now come together for the #1 trend on Twitter this morning, #CNNBlackmail. Apparently, the Deplorables are convinced that CNN blackmailed a child – ??? – to dox a Reddit user. I can understand the argument of “this Reddit guy is a private citizen posting to an anonymous message board, he shouldn’t be publicly identified if he doesn’t want that.” But does no one understand that it wasn’t like CNN went looking for this guy out of nowhere? They went looking for him because the president of the United States stole his GIF and posted it. Plus, you know, the Emperor has a history of attacking private citizens online too. Just FYI.

Photos courtesy of Getty.

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155 Responses to “Donald Trump’s stolen ‘body-slamming CNN’ video is still causing big problems”

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  1. third ginger says:

    Like most bullies, that reddit poster turned out to be a coward.

  2. Eric says:

    AssHat Bully uses a 15-year-old’s Gif. How “presidential.”

    What a world we live in.

    • LaBlah says:

      And the 15 year old had enough insight in to his behaviour to realise he’d been an asshole whereas President Ass just doubles down.

      • LaBlah says:

        Something weird happening with comments so I can’t edit the above – seems the 15 year old thing isn’t true.

        On another note, if a President found and waved around something that was later proven to have been dropped at a KKK meeting hall people wouldn’t care much about the specifics of the item found, or be concerned that the media reported where the object was found. They would want to know what the President was doing at a damn Klan hall in the first place.

        Trump was in the online equivalent of a Klan hall.

  3. Jenns says:

    Speaking of Twitter, this was on my feed this morning. You have to watch it. It’s so bizarre. I don’t consider myself a conspiracy theorist, but stuff like this makes me wonder if he does have dementia.

    https://twitter.com/AynRandPaulRyan/status/882356667391725570

    • Beth says:

      There’s definitely something wrong if he has to be shown how and where to get in a car!

    • Esmom says:

      I saw that last night. So bizarre. I’m not sure what other explanations there could be, honestly.

    • Jerusha says:

      I saw that yesterday and I suggest if he does that on his European trip JUST LET HIM GO!! Let him spend the rest of his days just wandering around the countryside. The World will thank you for it.

      • Esmom says:

        Ha. I was wondering how far he would have wandered yesterday if that guy hadn’t stepped up when he did.

      • Jenns says:

        I have a vision of him sitting on a park bench somewhere, surrounded by pigeons and holding an ice cream cone with two scoops while it drips down his tiny baby hands.

      • Zip says:

        No, don’t let this moron stay in Europe. We have enough idiots to deal with already!

      • kacy says:

        Not defending him, but do you think he was expecting them to open the door for him if it was his car?

      • LaBlah says:

        Kacy – the door was already open so that can’t be it.

    • Olenna says:

      This reinforces my belief that Baby Fish Mouth is not in charge. His staff and Jared are running the country while he’s allowed to play with his favorite toy, the cell phone.

      • Megan says:

        I agree. He is clearly not operating at full capacity. Jared and staff are so incompetent it only adds to my anxiety that they are in charge.

      • AnnaKist says:

        Olenna and Megan: God, I’m not even American and find the thought of that really scary.

      • still_sarah says:

        @ AnnaKist : I’m not American either and he scares me all the time!

    • swak says:

      What is truly bizarre is that the car is right in front of him when he gets off the plane. It’s not like he has to walk any type of distance to get into it. Which makes me wonder if he is trolling us.

      • Jenns says:

        He is far too stupid and simple to troll.

        I want to know if there was another car there. Because if not, where the heck was he going? Like you said, his car is right in front of him.

    • Disco Dancer says:

      Maybe he saw a woman who looks like his daughter wife Ivanka?

    • Scal says:

      My guess is that he wanted to get from behind the car to pose and preen for the camera (see that annoying “i’m the man” pose that he does ALL THE TIME right before he turns around)-and then tried to play it off like, oh yea I got lost.

      I think I’m giving the idiot to much credit-but wandering off was so random.

    • Radley says:

      How could he have missed the big car with the presidential seal on it that was right in front of him??

      I do think he’s in a state of decline. Many old folks become increasingly child-like as they decline into senility/dementia. That may explain his tantrums. He’s reverting to the behavior of his youth.

      But Repubs are just paralyzed by this guy. They aren’t going to do anything until there’s a major incident.

      • Fiorucci says:

        ITs almost like GOP doesn’t care that NK is a threat. I have no respect for them anymore

    • NotSoSocialButterfly says:

      Welp, his sartorial and dining preferences appear to be from the early-mid eighties… maybe he was looking for a Town Car or a Caddy!

    • Cintra.C says:

      The only vehicle he recognizes is his golf cart.

  4. Sam says:

    I get the president does it, and it’s wrong, just as CNN doing it is wrong. It was a stupid trollish gif, and it wasn’t even that good. What CNN did in response was scary. “Post something we don’t like? We’ll announce who you are.” It leads to a pitchfork mob mentality. It’s dangerous, just like it’s dangerous when Trump threatens people in the same way. It shouldn’t have been a big deal. So I guess the question is do people on the internet really deserve anonymity? Should we all be tracked? Should punk kids who troll presidents or media conglomerates be exposed? Even when there is no harm? Trump is bogus but what CNN did was no better and I am ashamed that they would stoop to his level over a silly gif.

    • Sayrah says:

      They didn’t give out his name did they?

      Conversely, why should people be able to say horrible, bigoted things to troll others and have no accountability?

      • cr says:

        I’m not really taking this as ‘CNN intimidates Reddit user’ more as CNN trying to figure out who the guy (or gal) was/is and what’s the background. I’m not going to dismiss threatening the media because anonymous troll on the internet needs protection from the fallout of their ‘satire’.

      • Rapunzel says:

        Sayrah- I agree in theory, but CNN messed up by basically saying they were willing to reveal the name. By now, CNN should know better than to give the Trumpsters ammunition.

        But I suspect the #CNNblackmail is mostly bot driven.

      • cr says:

        @Rapunzel, if they don’t do anything they give the Trumpsters ammunition. They’re screwed either way.

      • Rapunzel says:

        CR- sad but true. They really can’t. Especially with Twitter bots spewing hate.

      • Ramona says:

        CNNs error was including that “we wont tell if you change” line. Now “free speech advocates” aka your white teenage sons who want to be able to take out their adolescent anger on whoever isnt fit, able bodied, mentally able, cis, hetero, white or male.

        This person is newsworthy. He is newsworthy because something he created is now part of the formal presidential record for generations to see. It is right that the public get to know this influencer of presidents. Name him.

      • Erinn says:

        @Ramona
        ” It is right that the public get to know this influencer of presidents. Name him.”

        That’s problematic, though. Minors who commit legit crimes are often unnamed in media reports. If that’s the case, I really don’t think he should be named for making a stupid gif. If a kid who holds up a liquor store with a gun doesn’t have their name released, then he should also be anonymous.

      • molly8047 says:

        Has everyone lost their minds– you have a major news organization blackmailing a private citizen–no matter how much of an asshat Trump is this is in no way ok and I can’t imagine legal….

      • Aiobhan Targaryen says:

        @molly8047

        Stop with the hyperbole. No one is blackmailing him. That man can come out and say that he is the reddit poster at any time. That is if he believes that he did not do anything wrong.

      • Esmom says:

        molly8047. Please. As Aiobhan Targaryen said no one is blackmailing him. This constant push to discredit and demonize the media is horrifying.

      • tback says:

        Question: Does one have a right to expect anonymity when posting in an online, public forum? I’m not sure…it’s not like the media/CNN is publicizing his private journal or something. If he is a minor that complicates things. As someone unthread commented, the law does not allow the names of minors who commit crimes to be publicized, but I’m guessing the law hasn’t caught up to the complexities of the internet.

      • Bootsie says:

        Also – he’s NOT a minor. There’s a rumour doing the rounds (spread of course by the right) that he’s a 15 year old LGBT kid and he’s not. He’s a 37 year old who should know better.

    • Torontoe says:

      Maybe I misunderstood but I thought CNN did NOT publish his name or identifying details. If your comment was posted and news sites identified you as “Sam” only, how could a pitchfork mob find you? And while the gif may have been silly when it was on the bowels of reddit, it becomes real news when the president tweets it in a pretty explicit attack on a news organization that is reporting on him in a way he doesn’t like. I don’t see how CNN could have not responded in some way and by not naming the guy, have balanced the public interest with his right to privacy.

      • Beth says:

        +200 @torontoe, I see it exactly the same as you. I thought maybe I was a little confused why someone would think CNN was wrong for doing this. They didn’t give his real name, but he threatened them. Why should they just sit around and forget it

      • Isabelle says:

        They did not but they had to know when they released he was user on Reddit, someone would figure it out.

      • Lilly says:

        Yep.

    • Esmom says:

      Again with the false equivalency. “CNN is no better than Trump” — nope, nope, nope. As Sayrah says, why shouldn’t trolls be accountable for the sh^t they post, even if it was “a joke.” And lastly, you say there was no harm. We have no way of knowing that yet.

      • Rapunzel says:

        Esmon- ITA. Even if CNN messed up, they’re nowhere near as bad as Trump. Or ISIS, as that hastag says.

    • Honey says:

      There was nothing wrong with CNN saying who it was. They didn’t say his actual name, just his posting name. He’s been placing sickening, cruel comments and this video for quite a while. It was time for him to apologize, but he probably just did because he didn’t want the world to know his real name

    • Aiobhan Targaryen says:

      They did not release his real name, just his Reddit username. He even called them to confirm that it was him and they honoured his request to not publish his name if he issued an apology and not do something like what he did again.

      The mentality that both sides are just as terrible needs to stop. CNN did nothing wrong tracking down the guy for a comment on his tweet. You cannot just throw a stone and then hide your hands. If he can post it online then he should be able to stand by it when someone confronts him about it. If the “kid” is old enough to make the video and post it online and then brag about it when he sees that it was posted, he is old enough to take responsibility for the negative consequences.

      Yes, if you create memes that depict violence against someone then you should be investigated. How does anyone know when someone is being serious or being facetious? You don’t know anything until someone gets shot or ends up dead. Then you would have wished someone took something seriously earlier.

      Also, no one is guaranteed anonymity on the internet or in real life. If you want to stay anonymous in the digital age, stay off the internet and go live in a cave. Everyone needs to be held responisible for their actions. “Kids”, just like everyone else, have to be held responsible for the things they do wrong.

      • Esmom says:

        All very well said, AT, thank you.

        At the very least, maybe someone will think twice now before posting inflammatory crap for kicks or more nefarious reasons.

      • Who ARE These People? says:

        Thanks, well said. People should realize there is no true anonymity on the Internet – not even here!

      • Esmom says:

        Also I just read that he’s actually not a kid but a middle aged man. More misinformation by the alt right.

      • doofus says:

        “You cannot just throw a stone and then hide your hands. If he can post it online then he should be able to stand by it when someone confronts him about it. If the “kid” is old enough to make the video and post it online and then brag about it when he sees that it was posted, he is old enough to take responsibility for the negative consequences.”

        a-FREAKIN’-men! I am so tired of the “oh, but he’s just a kid!!!…” BS. kids these days have grown up with the internet and should know the consequences.

        ETA: jeez, Esmom, a middle aged man? who “doesn’t really feel that way” and “doesn’t hate anybody” but “just wanted attention” from the subs on that site? what an a-hole, and about as mature as drumpf.

      • Radley says:

        Agreed. I don’t think people understand Reddit Boy is not in danger of being outed by the media. He’s in danger of being doxxed by other Redditors. This is absolutely nothing new, which is why Reddit Boy knew he needed to do damage control. I’ve seen people post horrible inflammatory stuff on the internet and end up doxxed within hours. Jobs have been lost. People have been kicked out of school. So it’s honestly time for trolls to consider the consequences of advocating genocide, making rape jokes and all the other hideous things they post in an effort to intimidate people from behind a screen.

        No sympathy for hateful people that get tripped up by their own hate.

      • AnneC says:

        It’s been reported that the Reddit guy is middle aged, so this isn’t some crazy teenager who doesn’t know better. The guy had also posted pictures of all CNN employees that are Jewish with star of David’s next to their name. The guy deserves to be outed. Creeps filled with hatred don’t deserve privacy. I want a light shown on everyone one of them.

      • LaBlah says:

        Radley ITA.

        If you post antisemitic, Islamophobic and other bigoted trash online then yeah that’s your free speech at work, but if you don’t hide your tracks then other people can find out who you are and your neighbours and boss may not be that keen on being associated with you anymore. That’s THEIR rights in action. No sympathy for trolls, not even when they’re 15 which it appears this dude isn’t anyway.

    • Myla says:

      Thank you for being the voice of reason here. What CNN said is so, so, scary. The Unhinged here on Celebitchy will not see it that way, I’m afraid.

      • Honey says:

        How are we unhinged? CNN was not scary. The guy who made the video and the president who used it on Twitter are scary and unhinged. You’re afraid of us on CB? Why? We’re not holding you hostage. Leave

      • cr says:

        “The Unhinged”?
        Bless your heart.

      • Beth says:

        @Myla, it seems like you might not really know what “scary” or “unhinged ” actually means

      • third ginger says:

        If “unhinged” means calling out hateful trolls and a dangerous leader, I plead guilty!!

      • Sarah says:

        The scary thing is the lack of critical thinking of Trump and his cult members. If he told them to drink cyanide, they would gladly do so. If he told them to put Muslims, immigrants and liberals on cattle cars, they would do so. Same with killing us.
        I used to wonder how the concentration camps could happen? Not anymore.

      • Who ARE These People? says:

        Unhinged, applied to women, is the new hysterical.

      • MC2 says:

        It’s weird how a person would spend their time picking different names every day to troll a blog & it’s followers. Kind of like the guy above…..what an odd way to spend your time?! I don’t think this kind of behavior makes “us” the unhinged ones. Take care of yourself.

      • Isabelle says:

        “unhinged’ you do realize you are using exaggerated bloated “the boy cries wolf” language? No one can take serious a post when its uses exaggerated language

      • Annetommy says:

        I’m getting older but I’m still hinged, thanks.

      • Nat says:

        What Sarah said. I recently found out that my seemingly-sane & loving brother-in-law voted for & continues to support Trump’s actions. Chills ran down my spine.
        Though not nearly as terrifying as the recent commenter w/ the close friend who casually mentioned she supports Emperor Baby Fists & was on her way home to polish her semi-automatic gun collection, just standing there staring into the eyes of a man who sees & quietly supports this level of violence, a member of my own family . . . these are the people who will look away when they start loading the cattle cars.

    • LMAO says:

      If CNN is willing to use anonymous sources in news stories, then yes respecting requests of anonymity from Reddit posters who did not commit crimes seems to be in order. Threatening otherwise is problematic.

      • mary s. says:

        I’m not sure CNN threatened the Reddit troll. Can you link your info? Also, I was under the impression that conservative media outlets were also trying to find out the man’s identity…? Maybe all major outlets?

      • LMAO says:

        I posted the link last night to CNNs website. The mods didn’t let it go through. You can find it on CNN Politics page yourself.

        Basically CNN said they “reserved the right” to release the real name in the future if he posted other items they found offensive, Many of the (non CNN) media reporting on it considered it a “not so veiled threat” and that is why #CNNBlackmail has been trending on Twitter. So yeah…..they did threaten and yeah …they are taking some heat for that.

    • lightpurple says:

      You do realize that CNN reported news, right? Who does something is actual news. And they didn’t post his name. No, what CNN did was not scary. It is called “reporting” and CNN has a First Amendment duty to do just that.

      • Honey says:

        Of course most of us know that CNN reported news,but remember there are people who believe Trump when he calls it “fake news.” Some refuse to see the truth when they don’t like what it is

    • Who ARE These People? says:

      A “stupid, trollish GIF” that “wasn’t even that good” — these kinds of evaluations are immaterial to the message, which was one of violence against a news organisation, and violence by the president at that. How sophisticated do hateful propagandistic images have to be before we are allowed to take them seriously or find them newsworthy? Would direction by Leni Riefenstahl help?

      If someone wrote “Kill reporters” on an Etch-a-Sketch we should still take it seriously.

      And in fact, there has already been violence against reporters in the United States, and overseas many have been killed – to silence them. Tell us how the people who killed them were inspired by highbrow works of art.

    • nona says:

      Sam: I’m a former reporter. CNN didn’t report on this issue because someone was trolling them. They reported on it because the president of the United States retweeted the gif, and then the White House tried to deny that he obtained the gif from a racist, sexist, homophobic site. That made it news. That made it something to follow up on. CNN’s actions don’t set a dangerous precedent. They don’t mean that any person out there who criticizes CNN or other media outlets is in danger of being hunted down. Again, that was never the story, and efforts to make it the story simply take the heat off the president’s abhorrent actions.

    • Natalie S says:

      Reddit is a public forum. This guy put this information out there. It’s a news story. That’s what it boils down to for me.

    • JackieJormpJomp says:

      I’m following this as a Canadian;

      The White House issued a denial that the President obtained the gif from violence-supporting racist sources. CNN followed up as per that press release, and then still kept the privacy of the individual intact.

      You are reaching in an attempt to feel victimised, here.

    • bleu_moon says:

      Did you see the meme the same person posted on Reddit before the CNN wrestling gif? It listed CNN personnel with a Star of David on the Jewish employees. He posted it with the message “Something strange about CNN…can’t quite put my finger on it.” Then he posted the wrestling gif. In that context it’s a bit more sinister. I’m fine with CNN tracking him down.

      • Who ARE These People? says:

        I’m fine with the Anti-Defamation League tracking him down too. And an outside group would have to, because the White House shut down the government organization that tracks anti-Semitism & took white supremacy groups off the terrorism watch list.

    • Elaine says:

      Agree. CNN threatening a private citizen on Independence Day (!) scary stuff. A corporation ‘reserving their right’ to dox you if they don’t like your behavior? Um…

      • bleu_moon says:

        Elaine- Did you see the CNN Jewish meme he created as threatening to CNN employees? Many of them are not on-air personalities. I assume CNN reserved the right to out him if he further threatens their employees.

      • Lady D says:

        Gee, I wonder where they learned that behaviour? Do you by any chance have a president that leads by example?

      • Elaine says:

        Two wrongs don’t make a right.

        Two people can -simultaneously- be doing something wrong. To each other.

        Let’s listen to my Nana on this:
        ‘If he walked off a bridge, would you go to?’

        ‘He started it!’
        ‘Well you finish it.’

        Go. High.

        Or be sued for harassment, coercion and blackmail.

      • Isabelle says:

        Bleu__moon as disgusting as this racist Reddit user is, hate speech is protected. The supreme court as of last week even furthered that protection. He is a gross racist but its still protected according to our current laws. Reddit is the one that the real responsibility of banning the user which they are allowed to do as their right. CNN as a journalistic entity shouldn’t be in the business of exposing PIVATE citizens due to their rhetoric or speech.

      • Aiobhan Targaryen says:

        @Isabelle Again, no one has exposed this man. He outed himself by first carelessly giving out personal information on himself on the internet and then giving so much information about himself that they could easily find his personal PUBLIC Facebook page.

        If CNN wanted to out him, they easily could have. What you are still failing to acknowledge is that his real identity is STILL being kept secret.

        Also, he can say whatever he wants BUT he is not free from consequences. Anonymity is not protected by the constitution. Maybe we should get an admendment for the future, but that is different subject for a different day. Like I said before, no one, that includes you,me and everyone on the internet are not anonymous. If I tried hard enough, I could probably find information on everyone on this site. CNN could have gotten that information from reddit, the users isp, the library of congress, or even the user himself.

        “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

        Last time I checked CNN is not the government, so the 1st admendment arguement is out the window. CNN,as a part of the press, is included in the 1st amendment. No one is stopping jackasses like that man from saying what he wants, he just will no longer be able to say disgusting things without it having a negative impact on his life. That grown man needs to take personal responsiblity for being a racist and opportunistic attention seeker.

      • bleu_moon says:

        Isabelle- He posted pics of ordinary, non-celebrity people with the Star of David & stated the problem with CNN is the Jewish employees on an overtly racist subreddit. That endangers those people and their families. I see a huge difference between hate speech aimed at a large population & veiled threats directed toward specific people.

  5. HadToChangeMyName says:

    Unrelated, but I’m fascinated that conservatives were clutching their pearls at Michelle baring her ARMS, but Melania exposes so much more and that’s okay by them? Not policing what she’s wearing (I couldn’t care less), just commenting on the hypocrisy of it all.

    • Snowflake says:

      Yes, they are such hypocrites!

    • HK9 says:

      She’s white, she could be naked and it would be ok…wait-she’s done that already.

    • Who ARE These People? says:

      Oh, I thought it was just me noticing that for a FLOTUS her skirts were just a little too slitted or tight and her tops just a little too tight or bare. Just that little bit. Of course it’s just who she is. But with slight modifications, everything would be nicely appropriate.

      Feeling this way makes me feel prissy and old-fashioned and I shouldn’t really care.

  6. lightpurple says:

    Can we talk about the horrible video he posted yesterday? On a day other leaders post the Declaration of Independence, inspiring quotes from founders or songs like America the Beautiful or God Bless America or This Land is My Land or even the national anthem, this Orange Voldemort posted a video of a large group of white people performing a horrible “song” that was nothing more than his insulting campaign slogan and tribute to HIM and how they’re going to all make America white again. It was disgraceful.

    And then Princess Nagini posted video of her kids eating ice cream to distract.

    • Rapunzel says:

      LP- the MAGA song was straight up propaganda more suited for North Korea. I had to stop and make sure I wasn’t watching a Wag the Dog remake. It reminded me of the songs in that film.

    • Esmom says:

      I couldn’t believe it. I don’t know why I continue to be surprised by Bigly’s ignorance but every day I’m newly aghast. He can’t even make a show of appearing to care about anything but himself.

    • lightpurple says:

      I immediately emailed the White House that it was grossly inappropriate and I let my congressional delegation know my views on it as well. Granted, in the grand scheme of all he does wrong, it is minor but it was a straight up insult to this nation, tearing it down, and then building himself and white people who follow him up like he is some sort of messiah.

    • Who ARE These People? says:

      It was astoundingly shallow and inappropriate (and a tier lower than most elementary-school anthems in musical inventiveness). It was also introduced at an event that was basically a church tent revival. If the clip went on any longer, that caffeinated, pancake-makeup televangelist was likely about to ask for money for the cause.

      Someone on Twitter posted a remake inserting clips of Trump’s worst moments, Nazi rallies and A-bomb explosions.

  7. Emma33 says:

    “I would also like to apologize for the posts made that were racist, bigoted, and anti-semitic. I am in no way this kind of person.”

    Ummmm…yes you are! Do people not realise that words have meaning and consequences?!

    • Izzy says:

      THIS. Thank you, that’s what I came here to say!

      I troll people all the time on social media (especially the Republithugs in Congress who have no soul). In all my years on earth, no matter how much I wanted to troll someone, I have NEVER used any kind of slur. The fact that this guy could, so easily and repeatedly, is a DIRECT reflection of his true nature. He needs to take several seats and STFU.

      • Disco Dancer says:

        But but but wouldn’t you believe this troll
        If he ever told you that “I’m not racist bexuse I have black and Moslem friends?”

    • KWM says:

      Have you read the whole quote? He also pulled the I can’t be racist because I have a black friend and a homosexual friend and I know Jewish people and a Muslim. He must have read a Dummies guide to apologies for being a racist troll. He hit all the notes he thought he had to say.

      • Who ARE These People? says:

        It’s time for black gay people to embrace Judaism and Islam together so that racist people wouldn’t have to collect so many friends. One-stop shopping.

      • Maria F. says:

        to Who ARE the people – 🙂

      • Emma33 says:

        Hahaha….I can imagine a SNL skit on that.

    • whybother says:

      Didnt he take credit for it at first? Reddit racist douche was so darn happy about it and it elevated him to higher status in that subreddit. Sorry my A$$! He probably back posting in few days.

  8. grabbyhands says:

    Please, the Reddit user didn’t apologize out of any sense of remorse. He’s a little coward like 45 and all of his idiot followers and he didn’t want anybody being mean to him. He didn’t want to be treated to the same xenophobic ugliness he’s been handing out to countless people via the sh*t he’s posted online.

    • Emma33 says:

      Do you think the user wrote that apology themselves? It was very well-written, so I’m thinking either he is well-educated and not a teenager, or daddy got a lawyer to write it for him.

      • Erinn says:

        I wrote like that at 15. I had an English teacher who tried to tell me that I had obviously copied my work, or had someone else write it for me. So thinking she had me, she made me make up something on the spot. And I ended up rattling off something just as descriptive, with just as impressive words. I haven’t written like that in years, though, and am kind of rusty. But I used to write DAILY back then.

        Honestly, he’s 15. Even bright 15 year olds are kind of just naturally idiots. Their brains aren’t going to have that ‘decision making’ portion fully formed for another decade. For the gif- I think it’s plausible that he made it as a complete joke. “haha, Trump constantly is in a fight with MSM – lets take his old shitty wrestling video and change it up”. His other posts – idiotic, and not really excusable. But sadly, there’s a lot of group think that happens, and when other people are ‘joking’ about things that are offensive, if you see it enough and you’re a dumb teen, there’s a decent chance that you’ll jump in on it also. It’s not okay. Maybe this will be a good lesson for this kid – hopefully it’s causing him to wise up to the kind of hate that’s being spewed – and that while HE might be joking around, a lot of other people are completely serious.

      • cr says:

        He’s not 15, per Kaczyinksi twitter this morning:

        Correcting misinformation. HanAssholeSolo is an adult and not 15 which people have spread.
        Need to point out again HanAssholeSolo is a middle aged man. People claiming he’s 15 are wrong. Some are intentionally spreading this.

      • Who ARE These People? says:

        His apology sounds like that of a grown man with an associate or bachelor’s degree. There were gaps in his expression but it was generally fluent. He’s just an a**hole as self-described who thought he could get away with it.

    • hogtowngooner says:

      Yup, like most Trumpflakes, they’ll deflect and blame the media or “libtards” for being so intolerant. That’s their standby excuse for everything. As evidenced by their choice of “leader,” nothing is ever their fault.

  9. Rapunzel says:

    All distraction from Friday’s meeting with Putin. Trump has apparently made it a full bilateral meeting and will most likely give back (without getting anything for America in return) the compounds Russia used for spying, so they can continue to spy unfettered. What a generous President we have.

    At this point, the distraction tactic is clear. Stay focused. Russia. Healthcare. Saving LIHEAP. Not getting nuked. This is what matters.

  10. Ninks says:

    The reddit trump supporters/gamergate crowd love doxxing women and now all of a sudden they have a problem with it?

  11. abby says:

    Sorry but the poster is not sorry. He is sorry he was discovered.

    When Trump first posted it he posted how proud he was that Trump used his GIF.
    Then came the backlash and suddenly he is all apologetic. Yeah, right.

    • jwoolman says:

      If he really is 15, he’s still in the formation stage. His brain and personality are still developing and big changes will be occurring for the next few years. His impulse control is still low. Boys especially take a while to mature and are typically a couple of years behind the girls. Emotionally he’s closer to a 13 year old girl.

      I remember back pre-web in the old UseNet discussions, every September we had to endure the high school boys and college freshmen who would get their grubby little hands on school computers again and proceed to troll through discussions, using every vulgarity their tiny brains could think of until they got busy with school work or somebody in authority cracked down on them for abusing their computer privileges. Now every kid with a cell phone can do it year round with complete anonymity.

      A place like Reddit encourages them in such bad behavior because certain forums are full of adults who never grew up or a bunch of unsupervised kids. Even games discussions get taken over by those claiming the only way to win some simple little freemium game is to cheat, publishing addresses of dubious sites for “free” stuff (violating terms of service) and messing things up for the rest of us because the cheaters in server-based games introduce instability from that “free” stuff and cause most of the tech support problems for everybody. I keep pointing out that no, you don’t have to cheat and that as in real life, you have to choose what you can do with the resources you have and can’t have everything you want unless you are prepared to actually pay real space money for them. If you play freemium, don’t expect to get everything because duh, freemium players are allowed in hopes that a big-spender whale shows up who actually makes the game profitable for the developers who have bills to pay. You don’t have a right to destabilize that game, it doesn’t belong to you, and if the game is too hard for you or not fun enough then just find an easier/more fun one. Things that should be obvious, but I know I’m dealing with a lot of clueless adolescents still on the parental dole and somebody has to be the adult in the room.

      My guess is that it was precisely because of his age that CNN worded things the way they did. They were acting like responsible adults, helping a child understand the significance of his actions. Maybe what the kid said was true, maybe not. But it’s worth a shot trying to get him to realize the consequences of his actions. If he were 30, not so worth it, his personality would be pretty well set by then. But at 15, things are still fluid.

      • JackieJormpJomp says:

        HE’S NOT 15

      • doofus says:

        he’s not 15. he’s a middle aged man.

      • jwoolman says:

        If he really is a middle-aged man, the only hope really is to scare him into better behavior in public. Maybe this experience did just that. Now he knows the obvious, namely that there is never any absolute anonymity on the net.

        By coming to the attention of President Tweeter, he became a legitimate news story and it was reasonable for journalists to track him down for a story. Plus there’s that little thing about promoting violence against reporters. He could have played in his Reddit sandbox undisturbed if he hadn’t become included in the Presidential archive.

  12. Pumpkin Pie says:

    Drumpf deciding to use it is what matters the most. He, the “leader” of the nation that set the highest modern standard in terms of the freedom of the press – the media being considered by some the fourth power of a State (in addition to legislative, executive and judiciary), CONTINUES to be a BULLY of the LOWEST class. This kind of behavior is not OK even for children. And in normal circumstances, when children display this kind of behaviour, they face consequences – suspension, psychological counseling, etc.
    What is the POTUS CODE OF CONDUCT ?

    • Esmom says:

      I know. It’s seriously appalling and depressing that we have a POTUS who thinks this crap is acceptable.

  13. Incredulous says:

    What’s that, Lassie? It’s always someone else’s fault? I dunno, Lassie, I wouldn’t let little Timmy away with that kind of thinking and he keeps getting stuck down a well and we can’t afford a trip to the doctor anymore…

  14. Jerusha says:

    This WaPo headline says it perfectly: “The greatest threat facing the United States is its own president”

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/global-opinions/wp/2017/07/04/the-greatest-threat-facing-america-is-our-own-president/

  15. Jerusha says:

    A day late, but HB to Malia, a beautiful young lady from a beautiful family.
    http://twitter.com/iamtaymonet/status/882252578528133120

  16. why? says:

    What about what happened when NPR tweeted the Declaration of Independence? Could it be that many Trump supporters who attacked NPR and didn’t recognize the Declaration of Independence was because many of them are Russian bots?

    • LittlestRoman says:

      I won’t lie, that whole debacle was hilarious. Russian bots or not, they’re clearly not bright. It’s the best possible microcosm of this ridiculous/terrifying administration.

    • Kitten says:

      No I really believe that many Americans are simply that ignorant and uneducated.

      This is getting sad.

      • cr says:

        One of the men tweeting admitted to not having realized what NPR was doing and apologized.
        So maybe now he’ll go read the Declaration.
        It’s been awhile since I’ve read it, but I recognized it as such. Particularly considering the date.

      • Isabelle says:

        Agree Kitten, people be that dumb.

    • doofus says:

      no, agree with Kitten.

      they’re just really that dumb.

    • Jerusha says:

      I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again – if I stopped 100 people in the Mall and gave them the U.S. Citizenship Test, I doubt ten of them could pass it. And that goes for members of Congress, too.

      • HK9 says:

        They stopped teaching civics in school decades ago and we’re living with the results of that now. Many people take others incorrect opinions for fact and don’t want to admit that they don’t know & are too lazy to look it up so they know the difference. They’re also not aware enough to be worried about the fact that others can manipulate them into doing stupid things because of their willful lack of knowledge.

      • Esmom says:

        Jerusha, Agreed. And I’ve said it before too — I don’t think Trump could pass the test!

        HK9, Who says they stopped teaching civics in school? My kids (public schools) had extensive civics and government education both in middle school and high school as required courses, not electives. They have to pass a Constitution test to pass 8th grade and again in high school.

        I know people like to demonize the schools and teachers — and goodness knows education is in crisis in many ways — but the ignorance we’re seeing around Trump can’t be blamed on schools. I think it’s more of a cultural rejection of intellectualism, which is really sad.

      • HK9 says:

        @Esmom, what your kids got unfortunately is not the norm or consistent from state to state, otherwise, knowledge of the correct things would be a little more common. I also didn’t blame the schools for everything-it’s up to you as an individual to do what you need to do, to know what you have to know.

      • Esmom says:

        HK9, all the more reason NOT to let states set their own standards, as Betsy DeVos and her cronies are advocating.

      • wolfpup says:

        And yet we have the most petty of persons as our president. I surmise that he is trying to defund planned parenthood because of the women’s march, the day after election. He’s a jerk, his followers are jerks, can’t wait to see him, kissy-kiss Putin – he’s wannabe girlfriend. Putin must be dancing! He got the US to bow to his position. The Donald will the Ukraine to him, free and clear, for a bit of a nose rub.

        If you stopped Drumph in the hall to administer a civics test, let’s go duh – we elected a man who has strong opinions without being informed!

        My daughters visited planned parenthood – so did I, when I was 15, for birth control. Are the Republicans wishing for a population explosion because girls are deciding to provide for themselves?

        He is simply the most petty of men.

    • jwoolman says:

      Americans often don’t recognize the Bill of Rights when asked about the content of the Amendments without identification. I’m not surprised that they don’t recognize the Declaration of Independence either. I hope we never have another Constitutional Convention. I’m convinced we would lose the Bill of Rights entirely. Not worth the risk.

      If they actually studied history, no one would think the Second Amendment had anything to do with rights to carry guns. Personal gun ownership wasn’t even an issue at the time. The only guns back then had to be loaded one shot at a time. They were still going into battle carrying swords!

      But before joining together in a Union, the individual former colonies were very concerned about the central government being the only one able to raise a military force. They very much wanted assurance that each state had the right to raise its own militia. Hence the Second Amendment. So it doesn’t say anything about personal gun control or lack thereof. Other legislation at various levels has always decided those issues as time goes on and situations change. It’s not a Constitutional issue and never has been. Gun ownership is no more a Constitutional issue than car ownership or the right to drive. So no, the Second Amendment doesn’t guarantee your right to open carry a weapon that can spit out 50 rounds in a few minutes. Doesn’t prevent it either.

      • wolfpup says:

        It really pisses me off that those guns are used on our own citizens by police – mostly black people. Why, why, why????

    • Cintra.C says:

      I wish we could blame it on bots, but people are really just that ignorant. A couple of years ago, a Vermont legislator introduced a bill to give the state a latin motto. People screamed that, in America, we speak American, and that illegals from down south were to blame for this “Latin” stuff.

  17. Veronica says:

    “This is not who I am.”

    Mother-ing for real, dude? What do you think racism and sexism are – fancy coats that you can take on and off at home? It isn’t blackmail on the part of CNN if that shit was posted publicly for everyone to see. This is why taking off the hood is so important – because the movement thrives on anonymity, where supremacy comes from an abstract image instead of an individual. Reveal the face, and you see what a bunch of cowards they really are.

    • hogtowngooner says:

      This always gets me, too. Your character is defined by your words and actions. Unless someone had a gun to this guy’s head, he’s responsible for this garbage existing on the interwebz. And he posted other inflammatory stuff so yeah, this is exactly who he is. He just doesn’t like the negative attention its brought him. But I guess if Dear Leader doesn’t have to take responsibility for anything, neither do his lemmings.

  18. SharkBait says:

    How much is your privacy protected when you post anonymously on the internet? Like on a site such as this, on reddit, using disqis to comment? I’m genuinely wondering. People are usually more emboldened when they are anonymous (however I have seen people post awful, racist, hateful things using their real name on fb). I’ve seen cases where the identity of twitter users were discovered after they wrote what some considered hate speech.
    I understand protecting anonymous sources as a news outlet, but is finding the identity of a person who the president found a pretty inflammatory gif from as shady as the alt right doxing people? IDK, this isn’t my wheelhouse. I feel like the anonymity of the internet emboldens people and that shouldn’t necessarily be a protected class.

    • Veronica says:

      It’s actually a very legally grey area because legislature hasn’t caught up to the technology yet. Due to some major public slander/doxxing cases, certain states have started to develop laws on cybercrime, but it’s still pretty up in the air. My current assumption is that everything you post is potentially legally identifiable because the Internet is not a private property, particularly in cases where malicious intent was found. Even most websites run on servers that belong to corporations or a connected network, and that’s not even getting into the logistics of the dark web.

  19. KatyD says:

    CNN is the scapegoat again and certainly not the problem here. It’s so sickening that people spewing all this toxic nastiness, then become THE biggest victims when revealed, or called out for who they are. This attitude is displayed from Trump to many of his followers. No one is responsible for anything that they do anymore. There’s a real crises of maturity in this country, and this will not end well, I fear. Little children are incapable of leading. That’s why we have adults. But all the adults are gone. We’re in deep trouble as a nation.

  20. robyn says:

    Now CNN is being accused of blackmail by Fox, obviously because Trump loves to turn the tables and he recalls blackmail was brought up about his son-in-law recently during the Mila/Enquirer “controversy” created by Trump. Fox is so far up Trump’s azz it will never find its way out. Fox IS fake news. Are they even talking about Health Care or just lauding their king? Sickening! Getting rid of the perverts at Fox News hasn’t helped the viewers at all.

  21. Annetommy says:

    Yep, I’m probably old fashioned and judgemental, but the FLOTUS oh so natural rack seems a bit too much on display here.

  22. Wren says:

    The problem is Trump’s band of deplorables is now using this in their ” fake news” accusations about CNN claiming they blackmailed a kid. So as usual the entire point of the prez of the US posting such a video being horribly inappropriate is lost on them.