By David Futrelle
You may have been a bit startled, as I was, to learn of Melania Trump’s strange choice of outerwear for her trip to Texas today to comfort, I guess, the immigrant children her husband has kidnapped for their parents’ misdemeanor crime of crossing the border, some of whom may never be returned to their parents because, oops, the Trump administration doesn’t seem to have even bothered to keep track of whose kids are whose.
Anyway, that sentence got away from me but, hey, it’s been a weird day, not least because Melania’s choice of outerwear for the trip was a jacket with the words “I REALLY DON’T CARE DO U?” written across the back in giant letters. WTF. After pondering for a few moments the possibility that we have all been living in a weird simulation since November 8 2016, and concluding sadly that we probably haven’t been, the best reaction I could muster was this:
Apparently the "Let them eat cake" jackets were sold out https://t.co/YPRU7kW7gc
— David Futrelle (@DavidFutrelle) June 21, 2018
Melania’s spokesperson quickly assured the media that it was just “a jacket” with “no hidden meaning” intended by the words on the back. Then The Donald himself weighed in with a completely contradictory explanation:
“I REALLY DON’T CARE, DO U?” written on the back of Melania’s jacket, refers to the Fake News Media. Melania has learned how dishonest they are, and she truly no longer cares!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 21, 2018
To Trump’s biggest fans, it really didn’t matter what the explanation was. Because they had already decided that Melania’s jacket was totally kickass and also very classy because it was OWNING THE LIBS so hard, and maybe the #FAKEMEDIA too. Because evidently, that’s all any of this is about to them — almost as if we live in some sort of Troll Nation.
Naturally some of these terrible people took to Twitter to express their joy, and I’ve collected together some of their tweets for you all and for the benefit of any future historians (assuming we have a future) who are stuck with the unenviable task of making sense of this shithole of an era.
I’m not quite sure I understand this one, though:
“THANK YOU cry now?”
On Gab, the Twitter alternative for Nazis and people who don’t mind hanging out with, like, a huge number of Nazis, the responses were a little more blunt.
Yes, that’s our old pal Heartiste in the replies there, because of course.
We are through the looking glass, people. And it’s one of those carnival mirrors that makes everything weird and wiggly. If Joe McCarthy were alive today, and he were confronted, as the real McCarthy was, with the question “Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?” he would have simply replied “LOL, are you triggered yet, snowflake, I identify as an attack helicopter #TrumpTrain #MAGA #ListOf57Communists” and his idiot fans on Twitter would have cheered.
Y’know, I move in some pretty damn bleeding heart lefty circles, but I have yet to see anyone “losing their shit” in response to her jacket. Mostly the tone has been one of bemusement: “Is she trying to send a specific message or just being tone-deaf? Either way, seriously bad taste.”
Maybe to the MAGAites, this counts as losing one’s shit, I don’t know. They certainly have no firm grasp on the concept of proportionate response, so it wouldn’t surprise me.
At least, Melania is being honest about not caring during her publicity visit to the children separated from their parents. I have to give her points for honesty.
I did kind of wonder if the jacket was aimed at her disgusting husband, but quickly concluded that was giving her waaaay too much credit.
Somebody tell me this is just an awful joke…
Imagine if Barack Obama’s wife had been an Eastern European immigrant. These same people would have spent 8 years screaming “Deport her!” at the slightest excuse.
As with everything in this administration, my first guess is that this is a way to make money by having lots of tr*mp supporters buy a tacky jacket that she’ll somehow profit from.
I bet that POS jacket cost a lot more than $40.
“These same people would have spent 8 years screaming “Deport her!” at the slightest excuse.”
They would have screamed a lot worse than that too.
If the jacket isn’t on purpose and sending a message, it’s astonishing that at no point did anyone tell her what terrible PR this would be.
It’s also astonishing, but not in the least surprising that MAGAs think it’s funny that the government is systematically stealing people’s children. Which I’ll reiterate, is under the UN charter, genocide. People tried to claim they’re just trolls and aren’t really pro-genocide. I mean, not people here, just in general. Yet, here we are. Genocide is starting to happen and they’re cheering it on.
Oh, and in case anyone still thinks family separation is over, it’s not.
https://twitter.com/RepAdamSchiff/status/1009906186752331776
I’m old enough to remember when Sec. Nielsen was claiming there was no family separation policy. Remember those days?
Melania’s coat accessorizes well with her sketchy immigration history.
“The mother of all bombs of trolls”
Heartiste is an unending Bulwer-Lytton contest.
@Tim Gueguen:
These same people were screaming “Deport him!” at Obama himself, of course.
Is Stephen Miller giving her fashion advice now?
Do you suppose she’s specifically responding to Laura Bush’s article in the WaPo about family separation? One first lady to another?
It’s high time you boys learned that simply provoking a response is not the same as being clever. It doesn’t take any measure of wit or courage. Any dumbass can push people’s buttons until they get a reaction. It’s not clever, because being outraged at the torture and abuse of children is exactly how you should expect normal people to react. It’s not brave, because you’re mocking abused children with the air of their oppressors. It’s just cruel, obnoxious, and most of all, STUPID.
And before you say it…no, you are not making a stand for free speech. The First Amendment does not shield you from criticism, and criticism is not the same as censorship. You are not George Carlin. You are not Lenny Bruce. You are not Richard Pryor. You are part of the same oppressive status quo that they spoke out against. If you don’t want to be, stop focusing on just offending the lefties and start looking into WHY the lefties are so offended about this sort of thing.
Hmm, as I understand it, Marie Antoinette was an immigrant to France…(and held to be a bit of a ‘Mrs Trump,’ as David’s meme indicates.)
I can hear Madame La Guillotine’s joints creaking as she starts to wake up.
I call this fake news. No way would Melania Trump wear any article of clothing that only cost $39. Gotta be fake news.
Is “gaber” a name for gab user ? I have seen a lot of “gaber” tag in my city.
First point, of course, is that Marie Antoinette never said that. The story was already going around about Madame Du Barry in the previous reign. And, for that matter, one version of the story went that she said “Then why don’t they eat cake?” Which is less awfully crash than astoundingly ignorant.
Second point is that this strikes me as one of the most brilliant bits of propaganda the Trumpt team has done to date. Horrible propaganda, of course, but brilliant nevertheless. On the one hand, they’re sending the more or less human face of the Trump family to show they care. At the same time, she’s wearing a jacket that gets the deplorables excited. (Bear in mind that Donald was busy reclaiming that term just the other day.) Best of both worlds.
The kicker is the fact that it’s an unusually cheap jacket for her to wear, so all the deplorables can buy one. Honestly, the only thing missing is evidence that Ivanka owns the company that makes that jacket.
Awful, tacky, heartless look.
I’m pretty sure that the first two bother her.
For her next public appearance, she’ll have a swastika hand-embroidered on the back of a silk cape.
Nothing but the best for Eva Braun!
Rabid Rabbit:
Yep, expect this jacket to show up in the audience at Trump rallies. I wonder whether Zara make a men’s version?
Hmm, remember when Zara were embroiled in controversy over T-shirts which appeared to mimic Nazi concentration camp prisoner gear? Maybe they should bring that back?
Marie Antoinette never did say that but she was a pretty good symbol for royal excess while the common people struggled, she wasn’t exactly frugal even by royal standards. Also, yes, an Austrian (who France was in an extremely unpopular alliance with, then went to war with).
Last words: “Pardon me sir, I meant not to do it.”
After stepping on the executioners foot.
@TB Tabby – Seriously. “HA ha, look at the caring people with functioning morals!” isn’t the stinging putdown they imagine it to be.
When they remake The Last Jedi, Luke should totally wear this jacket.
I may need to buy this T-shirt:
https://store.democrats.org/products/we-care-we-vote
I doubt that The Stupid who wallow in Trumpdump actually know any liberals or progressives; the “libtards” who are losing their shit are all the imaginary ones in their own minds.
Which is entirely in keeping with their denial of all other aspects of reality.