# 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:** 3
**Author:** ![whitetho](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whitetho/32/1059_2.png) [@whitetho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whitetho)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/41 "2018-12-02T15:22:38Z")
Cecil addressed this issue years ago, in a question about presidential mourning traditions, with regard to the then-still-alive Richard Nixon. This column does not appear to be available at this site, but was reprinted on pages 150-151 of the original 1984 _The Straight Dope_ compilation. At that time Mr. Adams noted that would be up to the sitting president, and suggested that “Conceivably, whoever’s in charge could declare a national 30-day period of embarrassed throat clearing, or choose to ignore the whole thing.” ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/42 "2018-12-02T15:24:43Z")
When Trump dies I will blow a fart in his general direction. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/43 "2018-12-02T15:34:52Z")
I’m imagining a funeral with the coffin accompanied by a sousaphone, with it being lowered into the grave to the sound of a sad trombone. ---
**Author:** ![TSBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@TSBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TSBG)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/44 "2018-12-02T16:06:36Z")
> [@whitetho](#): > > Cecil addressed this issue years ago, in a question about presidential mourning traditions, with regard to the then-still-alive Richard Nixon. This column does not appear to be available at this site, but was reprinted on pages 150-151 of the original 1984 _The Straight Dope_ compilation. > > At that time Mr. Adams noted that would be up to the sitting president, and suggested that “Conceivably, whoever’s in charge could declare a national 30-day period of embarrassed throat clearing, or choose to ignore the whole thing.” As noted above, everyone (in the media and the political establishment) pretended Nixon was a hero when he died and the same will be true of Trump. Expect hushed descriptions of Ivanka, “tears on her cheeks, glistening like jewels, as she mourns the passing of a complicated man, but one she simply called daddy.” ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/45 "2018-12-02T16:11:20Z")
“I’ve never wished a man dead, but I have read some obituaries with great pleasure.” - \*supposedly \*Mark Twain, but probably not. ---
**Author:** ![Tatterdemalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/43a26b/32.png) [@Tatterdemalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tatterdemalion)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/46 "2018-12-02T16:14:10Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > 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. While it is true that no man is an island, some have distinct peninsular characteristics. ---
**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 2, 2018, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/47 "2018-12-02T16:16:34Z")
> [@Lightnin](#): > > “I’ve never wished a man dead, but I have read some obituaries with great pleasure.” - \*supposedly \*Mark Twain, but probably not. Clarence Darrow, _The Story of My Life_, 1932: > [@Clarence Darrow](#): > > I have never killed any one, but I have read some obituary notices with great satisfaction. ---
**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 2, 2018, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/48 "2018-12-02T17:12:31Z")
> [@TSBG](#): > > everyone (in the media and the political establishment) pretended Nixon was a hero when he died Is this true? Surely there was plenty of acknowledgement of his… dark side. Although IMHO Nixon comes a lot closer than Trump to fitting the mold of the **tragic hero** , with some heroic qualities but with a fatal flaw that caused his downfall. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/49 "2018-12-02T17:14:22Z")
Probably the same way politicians reacted when Jefferson Davis died. The south will mourn, the north will say ‘good’. ---
**Author:** ![TSBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@TSBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TSBG)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/50 "2018-12-02T17:17:01Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Is this true? Surely there was plenty of acknowledgement of his… dark side. > > Although IMHO Nixon comes a lot closer than Trump to fitting the mold of the **tragic hero** , with some heroic qualities but with a fatal flaw that caused his downfall. Perhaps I exaggerate a little, but there were literally hours of ballwashing on CNN. I watched it all. When Trump dies, there will be loads of horseshit about how his “unvarnished style spoke to people who felt neglected by the elites.” And other lies. ---
**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 2, 2018, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/51 "2018-12-02T17:25:49Z")
> [@Filbert](#): > > I’m imagining a funeral with the coffin accompanied by a sousaphone, with it being lowered into the grave to the sound of a sad trombone. Womp, womp. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/52 "2018-12-02T19:17:38Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > I don’t want him to commit suicide either but I suspect that may well happen should he realize that the noose is about to tighten, figuratively if not finally literally. I don’t want Trump committing suicide. At least not while he has control of nuclear weapons. Because I worry that he would choose to take the rest of the world down with him. ---
**Author:** ![TSBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@TSBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TSBG)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/53 "2018-12-02T20:00:48Z")
There is no way Trump is committing suicide, unless you count a heart attack induced by all the McDonald’s he consumes. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/54 "2018-12-02T20:02:06Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > As Hillary said when asked to comment on Strom Thurmond’s passing, “It’s sad when anyone dies.” > > I love that phrase, it’s become my go-to euphemism for “May they rot in Hell.” As I told my brother after Osama bin Laden was killed, “The death of anyone diminishes me, but I just can’t stop smiling.” ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/55 "2018-12-02T20:05:45Z")
> [@TSBG](#): > > Perhaps I exaggerate a little, but there were literally hours of ballwashing on CNN. I watched it all. > > When Trump dies, there will be loads of horseshit about how his “unvarnished style spoke to people who felt neglected by the elites.” And other lies. There will be many people either saying “He made America great again”, or “He would have made America great again if it weren’t for those meddling libs.” Personally I just hope that when he dies, it’s in prison, after his tax returns back to 1987 are printed in the Washington Post. ---
**Author:** ![Bumbazine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbazine/32/362_2.png) [@Bumbazine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbazine)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/56 "2018-12-02T20:14:37Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > As Hillary said when asked to comment on Strom Thurmond’s passing, “It’s sad when anyone dies.” > > I love that phrase, it’s become my go-to euphemism for “May they rot in Hell.” One more thing I disagree with Hillary about. Still, I wish she had won. I, for one, will break out the good whiskey. ---
**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 2, 2018, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/57 "2018-12-02T20:21:13Z")
> [@Bumbazine](#): > > I, for one, will break out the good whiskey. > [@bobot](#): > > When Trump dies I will blow a fart in his general direction. > [@The\_Tooth](#): > > I’m going to hang a disco ball over his grave and sell tickets! > [@NDP](#): > > It depends. If it happens while he’s in office, I would have a moment’s elation and sense of relief that the nightmare’s finally over. Unfortunately, this will be short-lived because I’ll quickly be overcome by the growing horror that Mike Pence is now president and that he’ll not only continue most of Trump’s odious policies but also add a few more to please his bible-thumping supporters. > > If it happens after he leaves office, I will have a moment’s regret that it didn’t happen before 2016. > [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > I’m a firm believer that one shouldn’t dance on a grave, but apparently not as firm as I once believed as I will boogie down on that day. Again - the OP is asking about how \*presidents and politicians \*would react to Trump’s death, not how Dopers would react. ---
**Author:** ![Justy5](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7cd45c/32.png) [@Justy5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justy5)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/58 "2018-12-02T22:02:03Z")
I am going to get one of those ships: the Nina, the Pinta or the Santa Maria and ship his Orange ass back to Europe. I will pay for his transport with my own dinars! Isn’t that a nice gesture? Sent from my XT1609 using Tapatalk ---
**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 2, 2018, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/59 "2018-12-02T22:07:53Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Again - the OP is asking about how \*presidents and politicians \*would react to Trump’s death, not how Dopers would react. Dopers _never_ follow the intentions of the OP! ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2018, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407/60 "2018-12-02T22:17:04Z")
When Nixon died, what I remember most is a lot of bringing up his bad stuff. Maybe there was some attempt to show his good side, too, but it was mostly about how crap he had been. Since Trump has no good stuff, and has attacked the very press who would be eulogizing him, I would expect basically the bad stuff, though I also expect a sort of passive aggressive respect. You know, taking his bad qualities and using more polite words with a knowing wink. A lot of the so-called “good” stuff about Nixon was said in that way. Of course, those who liked him will spin good stuff, and politicians who aren’t worried about being associated with him will praise him. But I do not expect the whole “even though we were opponents, I still respected him” stuff that we see when more respectable people die. And because others will bring it up: I will actually forgo my usual moral trepidation and just celebrate. I’ll try not to step on people who are mourning, but I will celebrate that the bastard is in hell. Sure, even there he’ll never figure out it was his fault, but seeing raw evil suffer makes me happy. Is that nice or good or whatever? I don’t give a fuck. And, from me, that’s a big deal. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-trump-dies-responses/825407.md?page=4)