# When Trump dies -- responses? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 1, 2018, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407 "2018-12-01T19:37:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![pianodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e79b87/32.png) [@pianodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pianodave)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/1 "2018-12-01T19:37:11Z")
Hi SD, I was reading responses by other Presidents to George HW Bush’s passing, and they seem very respectful on the whole. I wonder what specifically past Presidents will say when Donald Trump dies? I could be wrong, but I don’t think many former presidents care for him. Can you offer ideas on what form their public comments would take? Politics aside, he is a polarizing figure, so I wonder if those who truly HATE him would be at a loss to describe him in a respectful way? I don’t think there’s a middle of the road assessment for him. You either like who he is and what he’s done, or you loathe him! Thanks, Dave ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/2 "2018-12-01T19:43:03Z")
> [@pianodave](#): > > I wonder if those who truly HATE him would be at a loss to describe him in a respectful way? There is an art to completely destroying a person using words of the utmost respect. But I’d be happy if someone started singing ♫ _Rejoice! Rejoice! The Mutant is dead!_ ♫ ---
**Author:** ![Razncain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9d8465/32.png) [@Razncain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Razncain)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/3 "2018-12-01T19:44:52Z")
Good riddance. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/4 "2018-12-01T19:51:04Z")
Politicians lie all the time. So they would automatically give a short, standard respectful response on his death because that is what is expected and something else could create negative effects. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/5 "2018-12-01T19:53:56Z")
Thoughts and prayers. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/6 "2018-12-01T19:56:52Z")
> [@](#): > > “You should never say bad things about the dead, you should only say good… [Donald Trump] is dead. Good!” Bette Davis on Joan Crawford’s passing. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/7 "2018-12-01T20:00:59Z")
They will be classy enough to keep quite. Except Bill. He’ll mack on Melania at the funeral. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/8 "2018-12-01T20:02:46Z")
Not. Soon. Enough. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/9 "2018-12-01T20:14:43Z")
Probably something short and concise, calculated to sound neither negative nor positive (but, by implication, is therefore negative.) Something maybe like, _“The Obama family notes that Donald J. Trump, the 45th President of the United States, passed away last night from natural causes. Our condolences to Melania, Barron, Tiffany, and his other relatives.”_ ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/10 "2018-12-01T20:16:57Z")
I’ve added Trump to the list of people whose deaths will make me do my Happy Dance. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/11 "2018-12-01T20:30:14Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > I’ve added Trump to the list of people whose deaths will make me do my Happy Dance. The OP is asking about how presidents and politicians would react to Trump’s passing, not how Dopers would react. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/12 "2018-12-01T20:40:16Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > The OP is asking about how presidents and politicians would react to Trump’s passing, not how Dopers would react. You’re right. I withdraw my prior comment. I suspect there will be kind of a pointed silence. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/13 "2018-12-01T20:46:12Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > Politicians lie all the time. So they would automatically give a short, standard respectful response on his death because that is what is expected and something else could create negative effects. > [@Velocity](#): > > Probably something short and concise, calculated to sound neither negative nor positive (but, by implication, is therefore negative.) > > Something maybe like, _“The Obama family notes that Donald J. Trump, the 45th President of the United States, passed away last night from natural causes. Our condolences to Melania, Barron, Tiffany, and his other relatives.”_ Agreed. Something very formal. Maybe a note about how _“he brought a different, unique approach to the office, and raised passions on both sides of the aisle, leading many to reconsider positions and expectations of the parties and the process”_ for the sake of completeness. RW politicians will point to the judiciary appointment legacy and tax cuts (of course). Given his age it is likely that it will not be that long after leaving office so a lot of his effect will be still fresh and much of the reaction will depend on whether many active politicians at the time will be eager to present themselves as Trumpist. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/14 "2018-12-01T20:50:47Z")
> [@pianodave](#): > > I wonder what specifically past Presidents will say when Donald Trump dies? I could be wrong, but I don’t think many former presidents care for him. I don’t think any of them do/did, or had much of anything nice to say about him. You might be able to get a good eulogy from Boris Yeltsin or Kim Jong-un, though. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/15 "2018-12-01T20:53:58Z")
There will be state-ordered memorial parades in North Korea, Russia, and Saudi Arabia. Here, there will be bland statements of meaningless acknowledgement. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/16 "2018-12-01T20:59:39Z")
When Trump dies, there will be [one former President](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump) who would have lots of nice things to say about him—but he won’t be able to. ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/17 "2018-12-01T21:14:35Z")
The perfect response would be no response at all. No acknowledgement of his existence whatsoever. As someone who suffers from Narcissistic personality disorder what he craves for most is attention, even after he is gone. “NPD is found more commonly in men. The cause is unknown but likely involves a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Symptoms include an excessive need for admiration, disregard for others’ feelings, an inability to handle any criticism, and a sense of entitlement.” ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/18 "2018-12-01T21:45:40Z")
They will offer condolences to the family and otherwise not say very much, if anything. Me, I will just say it is another instance showing that John Donne was wrong. Not every death diminishes me. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/19 "2018-12-01T23:10:00Z")
Trump will get what he deserves. I hope no one laughs out-loud at the funeral. That’s just bad taste. ETA Melania could wear ‘that’ jacket. ---
**Author:** ![DrForrester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8edcca/32.png) [@DrForrester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrForrester)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/20 "2018-12-01T23:27:02Z")
I think it’s reasonably likely that Putin will want to attend the funeral and will say nice things about the man… even if the whole reason is just to remind the American public who is really in charge. Possibly many of the speakers from the 2016 RNC convention will be called upon to say nice things. Ted Cruz will probably show up & kiss up one last time. Flags will be at half-staff, probably out of tradition if nothing else. I can’t imagine the Trump Presidential Library. Will its walls be covered with incriminating tweets? Will the whole place be gold plated? Will they have copies of the Christopher Steele Dossier available in the gift shop? Depending upon what is _really_ going on with Melania, she might very well divorce him as soon as he is out of the WH. If so, she might not go to the funeral. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407.md?page=2)