# "Leave Donald Alone!" Pleads His Press Secretary **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 2, 2017, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125 "2017-01-02T04:23:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 18
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2017, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/341 "2017-01-18T22:06:55Z")
> [@BigAppleBucky](#): > > [New Yorker Cover](http://www.newyorker.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/cover_170123_1200.gif) 9 bucks for the new yorker? ! Nice cover. Donnie doesn’t know what he’s in for. Let’s make it big and good. He needs to have his breakdown. So let’s make it happen. He’s obviously got problems. The point of the next 4 years is to make them itch and hurt so much he loses his mind. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2017, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/342 "2017-01-18T23:29:20Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > 9 bucks for the new yorker? ! > > Nice cover. Donnie doesn’t know what he’s in for. Let’s make it big and good. He needs to have his breakdown. So let’s make it happen. He’s obviously got problems. The point of the next 4 years is to make them itch and hurt so much he loses his mind. Apparently his two biggest hot buttons are 1) public embarrassment, and 2) being called a loser. So cartoonists should keep those two things in mind. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/343 "2017-01-19T01:14:53Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > …he loses his mind. Too late. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/344 "2017-01-19T01:17:54Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Apparently his two biggest hot buttons are 1) public embarrassment, and 2) being called a loser. So cartoonists should keep those two things in mind. Don’t forget the money thing, he goes bonkers if you question how rich he pretends to be. > **['He doesn't have the cash': Mark Cuban questions whether Trump is 'as rich'...](https://www.businessinsider.com/mark-cuban-donald-trump-wealth-fec-report-2016-6)** > > "If @realDonaldTrump were fractionally as rich as he says he is, he would write a $200mm check to propel his campaign." ‘He doesn’t have the cash’: Mark Cuban questions whether Trump is ‘as rich’ as he claims after FEC report Cuban, who has flirted with the idea of serving as either Trump’s or presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s running mate, has trolled Trump over his perceived wealth recently. The billionaire business mogul, star of ABC’s “Shark Tank,” and owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks said earlier this month that “it’s not even close” as to who has more in liquid assets between the two. He also questioned whether Trump was a billionaire. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/345 "2017-01-19T04:01:22Z")
[https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170119/96d930cfdb8d0da555052bd35b0a0d1e.png](https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170119/96d930cfdb8d0da555052bd35b0a0d1e.png) ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/346 "2017-01-19T04:43:30Z")
Trump probably will end up as rich as he claims to be after all the corruption we’re in for. ---
**Author:** ![Battle\_Pope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@Battle\_Pope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Battle_Pope)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/347 "2017-01-19T05:05:25Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Apparently his two biggest hot buttons are 1) public embarrassment, and 2) being called a loser. So cartoonists should keep those two things in mind. Twitter reaction incoming? > **[Blonde-Haired Moth With Small Genitals Named After Donald Trump](https://www.iflscience.com/blondehaired-moth-with-small-genitals-named-after-donald-trump-39915)** > > Blonde-Haired Moth With Small Genitals Named After Donald Trump > [@](#): > > With just a few days until the White House gets rebranded with a big fat gold-plated “TRUMP” logo, “the Donald” has received the honor of having a new species of moth officially named after him: _Neopalpa donaldtrumpi._\* > \* > \*Totally \*unrelated to the moths’ namesake, the new species has a strange blonde thing on its head and small genitals. ---
**Author:** ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/348 "2017-01-19T05:24:28Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > Trump probably will end up as rich as he claims to be after all the corruption we’re in for. Amen. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/349 "2017-01-19T05:43:09Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Apparently his two biggest hot buttons are 1) public embarrassment, and 2) being called a loser. So cartoonists should keep those two things in mind. Trump marches to his own drum and believe me couldn’t care less about people’s opinion of him other than as it impacts on his goals (or on his image, which also serves to further his goals). As for calling him a loser, I suspect that after coming into the race as a complete political outsider and vanquishing not only every Republican candidate in the primaries but running a very shrewd campaign to defeat Hillary Clinton, you’re going to have your work cut out for you trying to get Trump to buy into and respond to accusations that he’s a loser. To whatever extent he may do so it would only be to protect and maintain his successful, alpha male image, and therefore his ability to function most effectively as ‘Donald Trump’. > [@SteveG1](#): > > Cuban, who has flirted with the idea of serving as either Trump’s or presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s running mate, has trolled Trump over his perceived wealth recently. > > The billionaire business mogul, star of ABC’s “Shark Tank,” and owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks said earlier this month that “it’s not even close” as to who has more in liquid assets between the two. Utterly meaningless. Many wealthy people keep their money invested and often have little in the way of ready (i.e., liquid) cash. I’ve known millionaires who would occasionally run short of cash and take out short term loans in order to meet their obligations. Absolutely nothing can be determined about the state of Trump’s wealth by comparing the amount he keeps in liquid cash vs. that of Cuban. > [@SteveG1](#): > > He also questioned whether Trump was a billionaire. Cuban is highly partisan, and like many of those here who share the same proclivity, he’s loathe to give Trump credit for anything. _Forbes_ magazine, who has been tracking Trump’s wealth for 35 years, recently assessed Trump’s real worth at $3.7 billion dollars, down from $4.5 billion a year ago due to softening in the New York City real estate market. [Cite](http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferwang/2016/09/28/the-definitive-look-at-donald-trumps-wealth-new/#e2c8b787e2d5) ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/350 "2017-01-19T05:45:30Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Trump marches to his own drum and believe me couldn’t care less about people’s opinion of him other than as it impacts on his goals (or on his image, which also serves to further his goals). > > As for calling him a loser, I suspect that after coming into the race as a complete political outsider and vanquishing not only every Republican candidate in the primaries but running a very shrewd campaign to defeat Hillary Clinton, you’re going to have your work cut out for you trying to get Trump to buy into and respond to accusations that he’s a loser. _Look. At. His. Twitter. Feed._ 99% of it is him whinily slagging off people who said something mean about him. You’re still working from the utterly bizarre assumption that he’s not as thin-skinned as he lets on, when he makes it clear every day that he is _exactly_ as thin-skinned as he lets on. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/351 "2017-01-19T06:42:14Z")
No, it’s simply that I understand his motives, where those of you who are opposed to virtually every single thing about him are eager to assume the worst and label him accordingly. I’ve long said that Trump is rarely doing what he appears to be doing on the surface. He’s usually operating several levels above it with results in mind that are not readily apparent to outside observers. And in so doing, he is almost (always) successful in achieving what it is he wants to accomplish. Sooner or later I expect that you and other of his opponents will come the realization that you’ve long been underestimating that guy. Harry Reid warned you about that when he said, _“Never, never, ever underestimate Trump!”_ His former wife (and casino executive) Ivana once said of him, _“You can’t win! He will always find a way to outsmart you!”_ Everything he’s been doing has been working in his favor and serving him well. And yet here you and other of his critics sit, laughing at him and belittling him and viewing everything he says and does in the most critical and condemning light, totally oblivious all the while to the fact that everything he does has a payoff that benefits him. I don’t know that it’ll gain you anything to stop underestimating him, but at least you’ll stop looking so reflexively foolish and naive as you do now. ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/352 "2017-01-19T07:48:01Z")
We had this conversation already. _In this thread_. What benefit did Trump gain from spending a week lashing out at and attacking a gold star family? You never answered that question. I wonder why. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 11:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/353 "2017-01-19T11:01:37Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > _Look. At. His. Twitter. Feed._ > > 99% of it is him whinily slagging off people who said something mean about him. You’re still working from the utterly bizarre assumption that he’s not as thin-skinned as he lets on, when he makes it clear every day that he is _exactly_ as thin-skinned as he lets on. The man continues to announce loudly and clearly who he is every single day, and yet some people refuse to see reality when it’s right in front of them. [The 289 People, Places and Things Donald Trump Has Insulted on Twitter: A Complete List](https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/01/28/upshot/donald-trump-twitter-insults.html?_r=0) This is not normal behavior for the chief executive of a country. Hell, if a middle-schooler behaved this way, his parents would probably seek counseling for him. Unfortunately, there’s no one to act as Donald’s parent. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/354 "2017-01-19T13:34:01Z")
**SA’s** assessments of human nature are— to put it much more gently than it deserves— not primarily distinguished by their accuracy. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2017, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/355 "2017-01-19T13:34:33Z")
The “Donald is operating on a plane so far above everyone else that only we brilliant few get it” argument is an amusing one. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/356 "2017-01-20T04:39:05Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > _Look. At. His. Twitter. Feed._ [See the pattern.](http://trumptwitterarchive.com/#/) ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/357 "2017-01-20T05:19:59Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > No, it’s simply that I understand his motives, where those of you who are opposed to virtually every single thing about him are eager to assume the worst and label him accordingly. I’ve long said that Trump is rarely doing what he appears to be doing on the surface. He’s usually operating several levels above it with results in mind that are not readily apparent to outside observers. And in so doing, he is almost (always) successful in achieving what it is he wants to accomplish. Sooner or later I expect that you and other of his opponents will come the realization that you’ve long been underestimating that guy. Harry Reid warned you about that when he said, _“Never, never, ever underestimate Trump!”_ His former wife (and casino executive) Ivana once said of him, _“You can’t win! He will always find a way to outsmart you!”_ > > Everything he’s been doing has been working in his favor and serving him well. And yet here you and other of his critics sit, laughing at him and belittling him and viewing everything he says and does in the most critical and condemning light, totally oblivious all the while to the fact that everything he does has a payoff that benefits him. I don’t know that it’ll gain you anything to stop underestimating him, but at least you’ll stop looking so reflexively foolish and naive as you do now. > [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > We had this conversation already. > > _In this thread_. > > What benefit did Trump gain from spending a week lashing out at and attacking a gold star family? You never answered that question. I wonder why. Why am I not even the slightest bit surprised that the moment a tough question shows up, **Starving Artist** fucks off? ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/358 "2017-01-20T05:34:43Z")
> [@Red\_Wiggler](#): > > The “Donald is operating on a plane so far above everyone else that only we brilliant few get it” argument is an amusing one. At that point one may as well start shitposting 4D chess memes. Trump is playing upside down Connect Four! Underwater Sudoku! 69D Twister! ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/359 "2017-01-20T05:48:35Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Everything he’s been doing has been working in his favor and serving him well. And yet here you and other of his critics sit, laughing at him and belittling him and viewing everything he says and does in the most critical and condemning light, totally oblivious all the while to the fact that everything he does has a payoff that benefits him. The same could be said about Hitler. I say that only half jokingly. I disagree with you, but even if it was correct why do you feel being devious with motives is a good thing? What’s the problem with being honest and straightforward? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2017, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125/360 "2017-01-20T05:49:52Z")
> [@marshmallow](#): > > At that point one may as well start shitposting 4D chess memes. > > Trump is playing upside down Connect Four! Underwater Sudoku! 69D Twister! Trump is playing without a full deck! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125.md?page=17) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/leave-donald-alone-pleads-his-press-secretary/776125.md?page=19)