“Numb to Trump” op-eds have become their own micro-genre in the past few years, but every so often a day will come along in which a string of jaw-dropping comments will slap the desensitized awake. Wednesday, was one of those days, with Trump declaring himself the “chosen one,” reiterating that he’s intent on ending birthright citizenship, and joking (maybe) about giving himself the Medal of Honor. Here are all of the unhinged Trump musings you may have missed.
1) Trump embraces “King of Israel” comparison
Trump began spewing bizarre remarks before dawn, with a 4:34 a.m. tweet in which he quoted a conspiracy theorist comparing his popularity in Israel to the “second coming of God” and saying that “Jewish people in Israel love him like he’s the King of Israel” in an effort to defend himself after insulting millions of American Jews.
2) Trump lobs more insults at the Danes because they won’t sell Greenland
From that measured start, Trump moved on to his other high-profile spat of the week, as he sparred with the entire country of Denmark. After reports emerged that the president in 2019 wanted to buy the autonomous island of Greenland from the Danes, the country’s politicians called the president “rude,” “a spoiled child,” and “smug and disrespectful.” Denmark’s prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, said the idea was “absurd.” In response, Trump lobbed his usual smear at women in power, calling Frederiksen “nasty.” In a characteristically unaware statement, he told reporters before heading to Kentucky, “I thought it was a very not nice way of saying something.”
3) Trump says he still wants to end birthright citizenship
In that same press scrum on the White House lawn, Trump said he is looking “very seriously” into an executive order to end birthright citizenship, which was established by the 14th Amendment and passed in 1868 in order to secure citizenship for former slaves.
4) Trump declares himself “the chosen one”
And adding to his delusion of grandeur in Israel, Trump called himself “the chosen one” when it came to balancing the China trade relationship by thrusting the U.S. into a trade war without an endgame. “Somebody had to do it,” he told reporters.
5) Trump threatens to unleash ISIS fighters on Europe
As if his reputation in the European Union needed any further damage, Trump threatened to “release” captured ISIS fighters from the continent in their respective countries if “Europe doesn’t take them.” It was the second time this month Trump had proposed that ultimatum: On August 2, he told reporters, “We have 2,500 ISIS fighters that we want Europe to take,” and, if they were not received, “we’ll probably have to release them to Europe.”
6) Trump promises pills that will reduce veteran suicides
And just to ensure a dystopian tinge to the day, Trump said he has instructed the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to “go out and buy a lot of” a “stimulant” that he believes will help reduce the startling rate of vet suicides. The drug is essentially nasal-spray ketamine, which was recently approved by the FDA as an antidepressant.
7) Trump says he’d like to give himself Medal of Honor
Following his extended rant on the White House lawn, Trump flew to Kentucky, where he quipped to a group of veterans that he wanted to give himself the Medal of Honor.
This post has been updated throughout.
