As Joyce was to the novel, Trump is to the tweet. The Donald hasn’t merely mastered the 140-character form — he has redefined it. His short, staccato sentences — punctuated by a single exclamatory phrase — have inspired countless imitators. His oeuvre is so varied and prolific, it’s difficult to find any two people who share a favorite Trump tweet. I count myself among the legions of young tweeters who were inspired to create their own accounts after the mogul dropped this gem in September 2013.
And who could forget this stunner from one year later.
But on Thursday Trump took his art to unprecedented heights.
Here Trump shifts his focus from the textual to the visual, while retaining — and improving upon — his signature, exclamatory kicker. The shadow draped across his orange face, the stubby thumb pointed skyward, the hovering fork of taco meat, all in their own way serving to express the Donald’s final, ecstatic phrase, “I love Hispanics!”
And just when the viewer feels he or she has fully comprehended the meaning of Trump’s work, an Easter egg tucked into the corner of the frame reveals whole new layers of hermeneutical possibility.
The man can tweet.
