Step back
Oh god, poor Justin Trudeau.
Welcome to the @WhiteHouse Prime Minister @JustinTrudeau! pic.twitter.com/WKgF8Zo9ri
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 13, 2017
Ew ew ew right up in his face, and the nasty little hands all over him. Ew.
I’m guessing Trump is seeing himself as a father figure in this relationship. Nobody can be his equal, so everyone else is somehow subordinate. I just hope Trudeau had a custom fitted oral appliance to prevent him from grinding his teeth to powder or biting off his own tongue. America first, Canada right next door! (Maybe we could build a wall….)
In many ways Trudeau has been a disappointment (approving pipelines, selling arms to Saudi Arabia, reneging on a promise of electoral reform) , but he’s still better than Harper ever was. I imagine it’s awkward having to be polite in the face of the Odious Orange One, but he doesn’t have much of a choice. I can see Trump shifting his foreign policy in response to personal animus towards other leaders. Not that this hasn’t ever happen with other presidents, (e.g. Nixon and Trudeau pere) I’m sure, but with Trump I imagine it would be much more extreme, much less rational.
Jezebel and Wonkette have a video showing Trudeau is pushing back to avoid Trump’s power play handshake. The hand on the shoulder is keep his balance when Trump tries to pull him in.
Fight the good fight, Mr. Trudeau.
Yes, I looked it up and a lot of people are saying that. Trump likes to grab people by the hand and yank them toward him, and Trudeau used his hand on Trump’s arm to brace himself against that yank, thus foiling the disgusting orange bully. Well done M. Trudeau!
I figure diplomatic prep people worldwide are now training their principals in the necessary martial arts. Trick is to make him work for it without him actually falling forward off his platforms; make it too overtly embarrassing, and it’s off the diplomatic incident races.
Honestly having now watched a few compilations of his yanking handshakes I don’t know how his victims keep their tempers in check. He doesn’t pull them toward him, he jerks them, hard. He practically pulled Neil Gorsuch off his feet.
I’ve just seen a few of his patented handshakes, and they seem to represent a very juvenile idea of strength and dominance. Even with his allies (e.g., Gorsuch), he seems to feel a need to throw them off balance and advertise himself as a huge asshole. He’s not just a bully; he’s a middle-school-style bully. Next up, he gives Hollande a wedgie and shoves Turnbull in a locker. Ugh.