Catégorie oBox : OBOXMA

The president of the United States has added another classy remark to his resume of reporter communications, less than a week after calling a woman “piggy”.

Donald Trump lashed out at a reporter on Thursday after being asked about the vetting of the suspect in the shooting of two National Guardsmen in Washington, D.C.

Trump pressed by reporter

During the press conference at Mar-a-Lago on Thursday, Donald Trump was asked about the shooting of two members of the National Guard on Wednesday in D.C. The shooter, who was a suspected Afghan National, had reportedly been vetted by the state.

“U.S. officials say that the suspect worked very closely with the VIA in Afghanistan for years, that he was vetted, and the vetting came up clean.”

Trump claimed the asylum process used by the U.S. forces on asylum seekers coming from Afghanistan via plane was ineffective and had failed to vet the shooter properly.

“He went cuckoo. I mean, he went nuts. It happens too often with these people. You see them. But look, this is how they come in, they’re standing on top of each other,”

Trump continued to say that “There was no vetting or anything. They came in unvetted, and we have a lot of others in this country, and we’re going to get them out.”

The reporter tried pressing Trump, correcting him, “Actually, your DOJ IG [Department of Justice Inspector General] just reported this year that there was thorough vetting by DHS and by the FBI of these Afghans who were brought into the U.S.,”

Trump cut off the reporter angrily.

“Because they let them in. Are you stupid? Are you a stupid person? They came in on a plane along with thousands of other people that shouldn’t be here, and you’re just asking questions because you’re a stupid person.”

He then claimed that it was impossible to remove the people who came in as part of the immigration policies of former U.S. President Joe Biden.

At least 400,000 people have been deported from the U.S. since Donald Trump took office.

Washington, D.C. shooting

Just after 2 PM on Wednesday, November 26, two members of the U.S. National Guard were shot near Farragut Square in downtown Washington, DC.

The soldiers, both hailing from West Virginia were on a high-visibility patrol near the corner of 17th and I street, an area that services lunchtime needs for White House staff.

Washington Metropolitan Police Assistant Chief Jeff Carroll said the shooter « came around the corner » and « immediately started firing ». He claimed the soldiers were ‘ambushed’.

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser called the shooting a targeted attack.

The victims were 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom and 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe.

Specialist Beckstrom died from her injuries on Thursday; Wolfe remains in critical condition.

Who was the shooter?

The suspected gunman has been identified by law enforcement as 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal. He will be charged with three counts of assault with the intent to kill while armed and criminal possession of a weapon.

Lakanwal is believed to come from Afghanistan. He came to the U.S. in 2021 and was granted asylum in April 2025 under the Trump administration.

When FBI director Kash Patel was asked about the vetting process, he refused to answer, instead referencing a post on X from Kristi Noem.

The suspect who shot our brave National Guardsmen is an Afghan national who was one of the many unvetted, mass paroled into the United States under Operation Allies Welcome on September 8, 2021, under the Biden Administration.

I will not utter this depraved individual’s name.…

— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) November 27, 2025

Donald Trump has blamed the Biden administration for Lakanwal’s presence in the U.S., but it was his administration that granted Lakanwal asylum.  

Prior to his arrival in the US, Lakanwal worked with the CIA “as a member of a partner force in Kandahar,” John Ratcliffe, CIA Director, said in a statement.

Lakanwal currently faces charges of assault with intent to kill while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.

Soon after the shooting, Trump said he would send 500 more National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., though it’s unclear where the additional troops would come from.

After threatening Canada more than a month ago with another tariff hike, it seems Trump has lost his taste for the trade war, or maybe he’s forgotten.

It’s like nobody wants to remind the teacher that the homework is due.

Tariff threat in October

Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he would be raising the tariffs on Canadian goods by 1 percent after the Ford administration ran an ad during Game One of the World Series.

“Canada was caught, red-handed, putting up a fraudulent advertisement on Ronald Reagan’s Speech on Tariffs.“

The ad in question featured clips from a Reagan speech where he was heard saying, “ When someone says, let’s impose tariffs on foreign imports, it looks like they’re doing the patriotic thing by protecting American products and jobs… But over the long run, such trade barriers hurt every American worker and consumer. High tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars.”

Trump almost immediately had a temper tantrum, posting “TARIFFS ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO THE NATIONAL SECURITY, AND ECONOMY, OF THE U.S.A. Based on their egregious behavior, ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED.”

Trump claimed he told the government of Ontario to pull the ad, but they didn’t listen.

“Their Advertisement was to be taken down, IMMEDIATELY, but they let it run last night during the World Series, knowing that it was a FRAUD,”

Yes, it’s a sad look for a world leader to throw a temper tantrum over a fairly tame attack ad (has he ever watched the ones his administration puts out?), but this is the reality in America.

A forgotten threat

It appears as though Trump has forgotten about the threat entirely, and it doesn’t seem like anyone is in a rush to remind him. American reporters haven’t prodded him (as a Canadian, I thank you), and according to reports by Politico, no official paperwork has been created regarding the 10% hike.

Maybe all is forgiven after Carney apologized to Trump at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea.

 “I have a very good relationship [with Carney]. I like him a lot, but what they did was wrong. He was very nice. He apologized for what they did with the commercial.”

Maybe Carney can tap into whatever charm newly elected NYC mayor, Zohran Mamdani, hypnotized Trump with over the weekend.

On his side, Doug Ford was unapologetic for the ad, “They’re talking about it in the U.S., and they weren’t talking about it before I put the ad on. I’m glad that Ronald Reagan was a free trader,” Ford said.

According to experts, the 10% hike could seriously jeopardize Canada’s steel-reliant auto manufacturing industry even further than the existing tariffs already have.

One U.S. official suggested the Trump administration had opted to hold off on additional duties—and instead choose to dangle the threat — as the two sides gear up for future talks.

The wholesale retail giant Costco has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the so-called Trump tariffs, seeking to claw back what it says are unlawful costs. The case comes as the Supreme Court is weighing the legality of those tariffs and whether Trump has the authority to impose sweeping duties on most imports under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

Costco’s lawsuit, filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade in New York on Nov. 28, asks the court to rule that Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose broad tariffs was unlawful.

Costco joins a growing list of corporations racing to protect themselves as Trump’s tariff gambit faces a skeptical Supreme Court.https://t.co/X8aoBkcgUq

— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) December 2, 2025

A full refund

The wholesale retailer is seeking a full refund of the tariffs it paid and is also suing the Trump administration for an unspecified amount of damages linked to those duties.

In its complaint, Costco argues that importers have no assurance they will be refunded tariffs already paid, even if the Supreme Court ultimately strikes them down as unlawful, unless they bring their own lawsuits.

By going to court now, Costco is effectively trying to secure its place in line, ensuring it can recover what it views as improperly collected tariff payments if the high court rules that Trump overstepped his legal authority.

No deadline for a ruling

Now before the justices in the consolidated cases Learning Resources v. Trump and V.O.S. Selections v. Trump, the Supreme Court heard arguments on November 5 over whether Donald Trump can use a 1977 emergency-powers law to levy sweeping tariffs on most imports, but has set no firm deadline for a ruling, which court watchers expect sometime later this term.

Several companies, including Bumble Bee Foods, Kawasaki Motors, EssilorLuxottica, Revlon and Yokohama Tire, have already gone to court over the Trump tariffs, but Costco — with more than $275 billion in annual revenue and a business heavily reliant on imports — is by far the largest corporate challenger so far.

Wholesale giant Costco has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration for a "full refund" on import duties the company says it paid this year under global tariffs imposed by President Trump. https://t.co/2PfUnyEAez

— ABC News (@ABC) December 2, 2025

In a committee meeting on Tuesday, November 25^th, regarding investments into Stellantis, Conservative MP Jeremy Patzer managed to pry out the fact that Melanie Joly, Minister of Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions, never read the contracts she claimed that Stellantis breached.

The issue stems from Stellantis’ announcement they would be moving production of the Jeep Compass to the U.S., laying off 3000 Canadians. Minister Melanie Joly claims that Stellantis breached the contract by doing this, but was unable to provide any proof of the claim.

The meeting came to a head when witnesses shared that neither Joly, the Privy Council Office (PCO), nor the government’s legal team had read the entirety of the $15bn contract before signing it.

The kicker?

Stellantis was supposed to be at the meeting, but failed to tune in due to « IT issues ».

Present in the meeting were Philip Jennings, Deputy Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED); Stephanie Tanton, Assistant Deputy Minister of Innovation Canada; Denis Martel, Director General of Innovation Canada; and Benoit Tessier, Director General of the Industry Sector—all appointed officials.

What are the Stellantis contracts?

The Government of Canada signed a multi-billion-dollar deal with automaker Stellantis to build a battery plant in Windsor, Ont. In total, the government of Canada has three contracts signed with Stellantis, all of which can reportedly be voided if Stellantis breaches any clauses.

The problem is that we don’t know what’s in the contracts, and the Minister who signed them might not know either. The government of Canada released 70 pages of documents, but they were heavily redacted, leaving other government officials wondering about the details.

In total, the contracts have avenues for $15bn in Canadian investment using public funds.

Joly never read the contract?

In the meeting on November 25, a meeting that a representative from Stellantis was supposed to be at but failed to show, Jeremy Patzer found out that nobody had read the contract.  

When it was time for the MP from Swift Current – Grasslands – Kindersley, Saskatchewan, to question witnesses, he first asked whether Joly approved all the redactions, to which Jennings replied, “We did not interact with the minister’s office about this, related to the redactions.”

When Patzer pushed further, asking, “Has the minister seen the fully redacted contract?”

“If she has, it certainly wouldn’t be through my office, so my sense is no.”

Jennings then continued to seemingly tell on himself and the minister.

“I have actually not seen the fully unredacted version myself.”

The answer clearly took Patzer by surprise, and he took a beat before continuing, asking, “You’re saying only four, maybe six other people have seen this contract? Has the Privy Council (PCO) seen the contract?

“My sense is no, they would not have seen it, we really treat these documents with a lot of care so at the end of the day its on a need to know basis.”

Apparently, the elected officials signing off on the document don’t “need to know”.

Jennings did go on to clarify, “these were negotiated before I was deputy… Had it been negotiated when I was deputy, I would have seen the documents,” but could not confirm whether the previous deputy had seen the contracts.

Jennings was then asked whether any sort of legal department had seen the contracts, to which he asked to convene with Tanton, Martel, and Tessier.

Tanton responded, saying that legal oversaw certain clauses of the contract, but “do they see the whole thing? Denis? No I don’t think so.” Denis Martel shook his head when she turned to him mid-sentence.

Patzer sat open-mouthed and shocked. Yes, that’s right, the legal team for a contract estimated at $15bn wasn’t overseen in full by any legal team before being signed by elected government officials at the directive of appointed department employees.

“[The legal team] would be pulled in where clauses are deviating from what we would normally negotiate.”

It leaves the question, how does Minister Melanie Joly know what clauses Stellantis has breached, and how many other items are in the contract that let the corporations cut Canadian jobs?

Breaching a contract you’ve never seen

Suspicion about the $15bn deal began in a meeting on November 3^rd, where Minister Joly herself was present.

The meeting began with a speech from Joly, who claimed that Stellantis had breached its contract through job guarantees and that the government would take action to rectify the situation.

When Joly was asked about the specifics of the job guarantee in the contract, she was unable to give any solid numbers. Since the Government has only released a heavily redacted version of the contract, there was no way for Committee members to dispute her claim.

“You will see in the contract, you will see that there’s job numbers – the government will be acting in good faith.”

Joly cited that one reason for the redaction was “commercially sensitive” matters. Still, the government had no problem releasing unredacted versions of a similar contract signed with NextStar Energy to fund a battery plant, sparking questions in Parliament.

Joly then failed to answer a follow-up about a specific clause linking the three Stellantis contracts.

“Maybe Charles [Vincent], if you want to be able to address the question?”

Charles Vincent is the Senior Assistant Deputy Minister of the Industry Sector.

Contrasting claims

Shortly after trying to deflect to Vincent, Joly gave a conflicting statement, claiming that “[the contract] is linked to the fact that the Brampton facility must be operating – if the Brampton facility ceases production, there will be a violation of a contract.”

Charles Vincent claimed that there are “regular commitments around jobs, around the maintenance of activities.”

Once again, no details.

Joly was then asked whether she would withdraw the funding (up to $15bn) if they don’t “properly equip” the 3,000 laid-off employees in Brampton.

Joly said they would “continue to hold [Stellantis] accountable,” but refused to confirm whether the government would cut funding.

“You’ve kind of been quite evasive about the numbers, whether there’s a real guarantee. It should be explicit if you’re going to give a historic amount of taxpayer funding. I’m not sure you understand the amount of money you have committed.”

-Raquel Dancho

Dancho broke down the sheer volume of wealth, saying that it would take 647,000 two-member households a full year of work to fund this bill.

Not understanding

It’s more than likely that MP Dancho is correct; Minister Joly does not understand the amount of money because she hasn’t read an unedited version of the contract she signed.

According to Patzer, the government has already paid out almost half a billion dollars of this contract, and apparently, not a single elected official has seen the details. A contract designed to create Canadian jobs may end up paying for factories in America.

Ottawa and Alberta signed a brand new energy deal on Thursday that has sent positive and negative feelings throughout every actor involved in Canadian politics.

The deal promises a new bitumen that will run from Alberta all the way to the coast of British Columbia. The decision has sent climate supporters reeling and has left Indigenous groups furious.

The deal also confirmed that Carney’s government will not impose the proposed cap on oil and gas emissions and will amend the “greenwashing” provisions, which his government first announced in the Liberals’ Nov. 4 budget.

The deal outlines both Ottawa’s and Alberta’s commitments to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

The new pipeline will be in addition to the extension being built to the Trans Mountain pipeline.

 What does Carney think?

PM Carney was all smiles as he shook hands with controversial Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. Premier Smith has been heavily criticized for her stance on climate change, immigration, vaccines, and social programs that Canadians rely on.  

“At the core of the agreement, of course, it’s a priority to have a pipeline to Asia. That’s going to make Canada stronger, more independent, more resilient, more sustainable,”

-Mark Carney

Carney claims the deal will “set the stage for an industrial transformation.” And that the deal is “multifaceted”.

Problems in BC

The government of British Columbia has rejected the deal, which would give Alberta an exemption to a federally imposed ban that stops oil tankers from carrying more than 12,500 tonnes of crude oil and other persistent oil products as cargo off B.C.’s North Coast.

First Nations groups in the area want the tanker ban to remain, with the Heiltsuk Nation stating that coastal First Nations communities are “ground zero for the dangers of marine accidents, including oil spills, and we shoulder the burden of risk of expanded marine traffic.”

BC Premier David Aby has also made his thoughts known.

“The vast majority of those projects rely on the support of coastal First Nations, for whom the oil tanker ban is the sole reason they’re able to tolerate those other projects, »

First Nations say it will ‘never happen’

The president of the Coastal First Nations in B.C. made her stance clear. Marilyn Slett said her group, which represents nearly a dozen First Nations, has been completely left in the dark and that an oil pipeline to the province’s North Coast « will never happen ».

« While the details of this MOU remain to be seen, under no circumstances can it override our inherent and constitutional rights and title, or deter our deep interconnection of mutual respect for the ocean. »

First Nations groups in Alberta are also opposing the deal,

« It’s frustrating when people are having talks, and we’re absent from the table, » said Cold Lake First Nations Chief Kelsey Jacko.

Liberal MP resigns

Possibly the most dramatic reaction came from Steven Guilbeault, a Liberal MP from Quebec, who resigned his seat in protest of the deal.

In a lengthy statement posted to Twitter, Guilbeault said he informed the prime minister of his decision on Thursday, noting he is also departing from his role as Carney’s Quebec lieutenant.

This afternoon, I informed the Prime Minister of my decision to resign as Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture, Minister responsible for Official Languages, Minister of Nature and Parks Canada, as well as his Lieutenant in Quebec.

You can find my full statement below. pic.twitter.com/6s7HhdXaLO

— Steven Guilbeault (@s_guilbeault) November 27, 2025

“I chose to enter politics to champion the fight against climate change and the protection of the environment.”

Guilbeault outlined a myriad of reasons why the deal goes against his beliefs.

“There was no consultation with the Indigenous Nations of the West Coast of BC, or with the provincial government.”

He also cited how lifting the tanker ban in BC could “significantly increase the risk of accidents in the region.”

The tanker ban was unanimously passed by the House of Commons in 1972 due to the treacherous nature of the Hecate Strait, the route tankers need to take. The Hecate Strait is known as the most dangerous body of water in Canada.

There are no set plans for the construction of this pipeline, but Carney claims they will “build big, we will build fast.

As the competition for Canada’s lucrative submarine project winds to a close, it looks like Germany might be the candidate to run away with it after a Norwegian defence company is using its country’s Arctic link to persuade Canada.

“We like to lose to Canada in ice hockey. It’s one of the countries we like to lose to. The cultural fit, being Arctic-centric nations, being NATO members — there’s so much alignment.”

-Kjetil Myhra, executive vice president of defence systems at Kongsberg

Myhra told media outlets that his firm is already an expert in creating submarine infrastructure in Arctic conditions, something this project would certainly entail.

Kongsberg is supporting Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, or TKMS, in the bid. If successful, they would be rewarded with the multi-billion dollar contract to build a fleet of submarines designed to patrol Canada’s Arctic coast.

An international effort

What makes this particular bid interesting is that it’s a merger of Germany’s and Norway’s respective governments. It appears that TKMS, backed by Kongsberg, are presenting itself as part of a group of nations and private companies working toward the same goal.

With TKMS bringing in a company whose expertise lies in building advanced submarine technology, Germany is potentially suggesting a linked international submarine fleet.

With Russia continually threatening northern waters, it’s an offer the Canadian government may be inclined to take.

Kongsberg, which was already contracted by TKMS, will be lending the TKMS 212CD subs its combat system, dubbed ORCCA, which will operate in the Norwegian and German subs. It will also operate in Canadian subs if TKMS wins the contract.

In need of a marine fleet

Canada is currently in a race to replace its aged fleet of submarines: the Victoria class. The Victoria subs are scheduled for retirement in 2035, but three of the four ships have already been retired.

The Canadian government is looking to purchase a fleet of 12 submarines from foreign suppliers. Only TKMS and South Korea’s Hanwha Oceans remain in contention for the contract.

Kongsberg executives have been meeting in Canada regularly over the last month, trying to push their case. Part of their argument is resume: Konsberg has been receiving Canadian contracts for decades and exporting defence tech into international markets.

The company is currently under contract for the Royal Navy, outfitting naval River-class destroyers with key operating components and naval strike missiles.

Kongsberg is also looking to purchase a factory in Newfoundland. Kjetil Myhra told the media that “The message that we’re also carrying here to Canada is, make sure that you build long-term relationships that build sustainable jobs for Canada and not just something that comes in for a particular program, and when the program ends, the jobs goes away,”

Ottawa privately sent bid instructions to the two sub makers on Nov. 14. The Canadian government has refused to release those instructions, citing concerns for national security.

“Given the sensitive nature of procuring an advanced submarine capability, the bid instructions will not be made public, given the national security and sovereignty context,”

-Nicole Allen, Public Services and Procurement Canada spokesperson.

Reportedly, the instructions said the government’s scoring of the bids will place most of the emphasis on the boats’ long-term maintenance.

At 79 years old, Donald Trump is the oldest person ever to be inaugurated president. Yes, that’s right: in a role almost solely occupied by men aged 60 or older, Trump is the oldest to have been inaugurated.

While losing cognitive ability is not a joke, and certainly not something to be made light of or even analyzed, most people are not the leader of the ‘free world’.

Being the President of the United States means you are no longer just another person; you’re arguably the world’s most powerful public figure.

Society must hold the president to a higher standard.

In this article, we’re going to list as many examples as possible of statements and behaviour made and exhibited by Donald Trump that lead us to believe that the president is in full cognitive decline, and should be sitting at home with his family, not running America.

An expert opinion

Dozens of experts have given their take on Trump’s mental state. Harry Segal, a senior lecturer for the psychology department at Cornell, gave his thoughts on the signs and symptoms displayed by DJT.

“Trump has shown evidence of dementia for the past year, as indicated by his strange gait, phonemic paraphasia—when he begins a word and can’t finish it—and decline in the complexity of his words and concepts. This limited capacity explains his poor debate performance, but there are two more disturbing signs of his decline.”

He cited a few specific moments, including: “[In October] he got cognitively lost in a rally and began to talk about the ‘eight circles’ that Biden filled up with journalists. No one on his staff has been able to explain the reference.”

Examining behaviour

It’s not hard to find a myriad of examples of Trump exhibiting concerning behaviour. We’re going to take a look at some of the grossest examples.

A month ago, Trump claimed that he had halted a “nuclear” war between Iran and Pakistan, a conflict that does not exist.

On October 16, Trump told a group of reporters outside the White House that he had prevented Iran and Pakistan from descending into a nuclear conflict that would have ‘devastated the world’.

“If you look at Pakistan and Iran, I told them I was in the midst of negotiating a trade deal with… Iran and Pakistan was gonna be in line… And I said during one of my conversations, ‘Are you guys gonna go to war, two nuclear powers?’ I said, ‘Here’s the deal. You go to war, I’m gonna put a 200 percent tariff [on you both]. I’m gonna stop you from doing any business in the United States.’”

Firstly, Iran and Pakistan have never been in conflict. One must assume the president meant to say India. Still, it’s a mistake that most presidents would have been publicly shamed for.

The kicker? Pakistan credited the U.S. with helping secure a ceasefire, but the Indian government strongly disagrees, denying that the president helped ‘in any way’ in establishing the ceasefire agreement.

On the topic of made-up conflicts, Trump also insisted that he had “solved” an imaginary conflict between Cambodia and Armenia—two nations 4,000 miles apart.

Let’s make this fact-check abundantly clear: Cambodia and Armenia have never fought a war.

Trump made the absurd claim at the American Cornerstone Institute’s Founders’ Dinner on Sept 20, 2025. While standing at the podium, rambling about how he should have won the Nobel Peace Prize, Trump said, “Cambodia and Armenia, it was just starting, and it was a bad one. Think of that.”

Cambodia did have a scuffle with Thailand the previous week, and, of course, Armenia has been in a long battle with Azerbaijan —so there is a string to connect these countries with. Still, this would be front page news during the Biden administration.

Speaking of Azerbaijan, Trump didn’t forget to mention it as well. The Don has twice mistaken the Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict this past fall.

The president has continually mistaken Armenia for Albania, and now even the world leaders are laughing at his memory loss. On the topic of the conflict, Trump offered his unprompted comments,

“I think that we settled Aber-baijan and Albania,”

Yes… he mispronounced the country as well. He continued by saying, “It was going on for years. It was never going to be settled… If you remember the prime minister and the presidents, they were there for many years. When they were in my office, we settled.”

To his credit, the U.S. has been credited as being a key contributor to the agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Still, you’d think Trump would be able to remember, considering he hosted both world leaders in the Oval Office just a month before this embarrassing blunder.

To add insult to injury, multiple leaders then ridiculed Trump at the Copenhagen summit on October 2. Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama was caught poking fun at Trump with French President Emmanuel Macron and Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev.

“You should make an apology … to us because you didn’t congratulate us on the peace deal that President Trump made between Albania and Azerbaijan,” Rama told Macron. President Ilham Aliyev then burst out laughing.

Trump managed to forget House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ name just a day after meeting with him to discuss avoiding a government shutdown.

Speaking to reporters, Trump discussed his talks with “Chuck Schumer, who was here yesterday, along with… uhh, the, a very nice gentleman who I didn’t really know. You know who I’m talking about.”

We know who he was talking about… did he?

Trump has confused Nikki Haley and Nancy Pelosi.

The only thing that links these Haley and Pelosi is Trump’s feelings, and their gender, but a mix-up has occurred.

Trump claimed, regarding the Jan. 6 riot that, “Nikki Haley, you know they, do you know they destroyed all of the information, all of the evidence, everything, deleted and destroyed all of it. All of it, because of lots of things like Nikki Haley is in charge of security. We offered her 10,000 people, soldiers, National Guard, whatever they want. They turned it down. They don’t want to talk about that. These are very dishonest people,”

Nikki Haley was in charge of absolutely nothing on January 6, 2021.

Trump invented a fake senator, Kristi Whitman/Whitmer

This one is especially concerning. In August 2025, Donald Trump confused every single reporter in the Oval Office after going on a rant about ‘Kristi Whitman,’ a person who does not exist.

“You know, I did a favor for Kristi Whitman… Whitmer… Kristi Whitmer.” After a moment of confused silence the president plodded on, ““A good favor, I think. With the fish, the carp, the China carp—you ever hear of it? China carp, it’s taking over your Great Lakes.”

The president glanced around the room of shocked faces before nodding to himself, seemingly satisfied with what he had just said.

It’s possible the president meant Gretchen Whitmer, Christine Todd Whitman, Chris Christie, or even Kristi Noem, whom he called Kristi Kerr a few weeks earlier.

My money would be on Whitmer, since she is the only Governor responsible for a Great Lake

Names are tough, apparently.

Trump told reporters—not once, but twice—that he was “going to Russia on Friday.” – August, 2025

In reality, the president was headed to Alaska for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“This is a tragic emergency, and it’s embarrassing for me to be up here,” Trump told reporters.

He continued to say, “You know, I’m going to see Putin. I’m going to Russia on Friday. I don’t like being up here, talking about how unsafe and how dirty and disgusting this once-beautiful capital [is].”

The White House had to quickly retract the statement, and Trump himself clarified the fact on Truth Social hours later.

Trump tells TIME that he ordered Israeli attacks in the fall of 2024

During the October 23 interview, TIME’s reporter brought up attacks committed by Israel against the Lebanese group Hezbollah (a group funded by Iran, Syria, Lebanese diaspora, and in parts by Israel itself). Broaching the topic sparked Trump to blurt out a ‘fact’ that took the interviewer by surprise:

“All of those attacks were done under my auspices, you know, with Israel doing the attacks—with the pagers and all that stuff,” Trump, who was not the president at the time, but in the midst of his campaign against Joe Biden, told TIME. “They let me know everything [happening],”

He then added that “And sometimes I’d say no—and they’d be respectful of that.”

Trump is either insinuating that he was a decision-maker for the Israeli government in 2024, or that he was president at the time.

Trump mixes up Kristi Noem with pro golfer

As mentioned earlier Trump has mistook Kristi Noem before, with a golfer.

In August, Trump called Kristi Noem ‘Christie Kerr’, a female pro golfer while thanking a myriad of GOP politicians.

“I want to recognize several members of the task force, including our great Vice President JD Vance. JD, thank you very much. Thank you. Our equally great Attorney General Pam Bondi. Pam, thank you very much, Pam. Secretary of Homeland Security Cristie Kerr,”

This time, Trump caught himself right away,

“Cristie Kerr, do you know who Cristie Kerr is?” he said, as Vance and others on stage laughed. “She’s a friend of mine. Great golfer.”

Noem seemed unfazed by the moment.

Quantico ramblings

We’re not even going to break down Trump’s unfocused, rambling speech addressing hundreds of America’s military generals and admirals assembled in Quantico, Va. If you’re interested, watch it; it has more content than we can disseminate here.

The generals could be seen wide-eyed and visibly concerned as the president ranted.

A cognitive test

In April 2025, Donald Trump completed the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, a basic test used to gauge whether an elderly person’s cognitive ability has begun to decline.

The test asks respondents to draw a clock with a specific time, identify pictures of animals, remember a series of words, and count backwards by a specific number. According to the creators of the test, it is meant to detect mild cognitive impairment as early as possible, not to measure intelligence or IQ.

“It’s a very, very low bar for somebody who carries the nuclear launch codes in their pocket to pass and certainly nothing to brag about,”

Trump reportedly scored a perfect 30/30 score, which he took the time to brag about like it was the LSATS:

“One of the doctors said he’s almost never seen a perfect score. I had a, had a perfect score. I had the highest score. And that made me feel good,”

“There aren’t a lot of people in this room that would get every single question right, I can guarantee you.”

Then he decided to compare himself to some Democrats,

“Have [Ocasio-Cortez] pass the exams that I decided to take when I was at Walter Reed. Those are very hard—they’re really aptitude tests, I guess, in a certain way, but they’re cognitive tests. Let AOC go against Trump. Let Jasmine go against Trump.”

In a legendary Fox News interview, Trump also explained how he had aced the test. “It’s like, you’ll go, ‘Person. Woman. Man. Camera. TV.’ So they’d say, ‘Could you repeat that.’ So I said, ‘Yeah. So it’s person. Woman. Man. Camera. TV.’

The average toddler can identify pictures of common animals, and most children learn to read an analog clock around age 6 or 7, according to The New York Times.

But hey, it’s still impressive, right?

“It’s actually not that easy. But for me it was easy,”.

Again, experts estimate that the test should be easily aced by any 12-year-old, but don’t take their word for it; check out the test yourself here. The toughest section for the president may have been the ‘serial subtraction’ (also known as skip counting), which most American children learn in third grade. It’s also important to note that this test takes no more than 10 minutes to complete.

Trump is the first American president to openly admit to a cognitive assessment.

“It’s a very, very low bar for somebody who carries the nuclear launch codes in their pocket to pass and certainly nothing to brag about,” Jonathan Reiner told The Washington Post. Reiner is a professor at the George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences, and a cardiologist.

Some purposeful statements?

Now, beside this list of examples, Trump has also been consistently ‘misremembering’ a key fact: who the president was in 2020.

Trump and his administration have made at least five statements implying that Trump was not the president in 2019-2020 over the last two months.

Trump is claiming that Joe Biden was responsible for a slew of controversies during that period, including COVID-19, the Jan. 6 riots, the deficit, the 2020 census, and school closures related to COVID-19.

Of course, Trump was either directly or indirectly responsible for all of those points.

This feels purposeful and pointed. These examples are not cognitive decline or a memory issue; these examples are purposeful manipulation.

Either the president is in cognitive decline and remembers little over the last four years, or he’s openly trying to manipulate the American public. We’re not sure which is worse.

As backlash grows over the president’s latest outburst, his recent decision to call Minnesota Governor Tim Walz the R-Word is drawing widespread condemnation from disability advocates, political opponents and even some within his own party, who see the remark as another blatant example of ableist and demeaning rhetoric unworthy of the office.

Reporter: "You mentioned Tim Waltz and you called him what many Americans do find an offensive word—'retarded'. Do you stand by that claim of calling Tim Walz 'retarded'?"

Trump: "Yeah, I think there's something wrong with him. Absolutely sure. Do you have a problem with it?" pic.twitter.com/wuoMELG7nd

— Forbes Breaking News (@ForbesTVNews) November 30, 2025

«Release the MRI results.»

-Minnesota Governor Tim Walz

Yet despite the criticism and repeated calls to apologize, the president does not appear to have a second thought about his words. When questioned by reporters about the slur and whether he regretted using it, he chose instead to double down, brushing aside concerns about respect and decorum and adding another cutting line aimed at Walz. Rather than soften his stance or walk anything back, he escalated the attack by declaring in front of cameras and microphones:

«I think there’s something wrong with him», a statement that further inflamed the controversy and reinforced the impression that he is deliberately leaning into insults as a political weapon.

«This is not normal behavior. It’s not healthy.»

A late-night Thanksgiving message on Truth Social

Trump first used the slur against Tim Walz in a late-night Thanksgiving message posted on Truth Social on November 27, where he launched into a long attack on immigration, Somali refugees in Minnesota and what he portrayed as rising crime in the state, presenting Minnesota as a «once great» place that was being overwhelmed by newcomers. In that post, after claiming that Somali gangs were roaming the streets and that residents were afraid to leave their homes, he turned his fire directly on the Democratic governor and labeled him «seriously re****ed», writing the now-quoted line:

«The seriously re****ed Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, does nothing, either through fear, incompetence, or both.»

During a press gaggle aboard Air Force One on November 30, the president was directly confronted about his earlier use of the slur against Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. A reporter asked: «You mentioned Tim Walz and you called him what many Americans do find an offensive word—‘re****ed’. Do you stand by that claim of calling Tim Walz ‘re****ed’?» Instead of backing down, the president doubled down without hesitation, replying: «Yeah, I think there’s something wrong with him. Absolutely sure. Do you have a problem with it?» He went on to insist that Walz was «incompetent» and blamed him for what he described as a massive influx of Somali refugees into Minnesota, claiming the state had spent “billions” tied to immigration and community support — remarks that further escalated the controversy and reinforced his strategy of transforming criticism into an opportunity to intensify personal attacks.

«President of the eighth grade.»

-Jimmy Kimmel

Not normal behavior

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz was the first to answer the president’s insult directly, turning Trump’s language back on him with a short, pointed message that instantly went viral. On X, he reposted the Thanksgiving Truth Social rant in which Trump called him «seriously re****ed» and replied with just four words: «Release the MRI results.» In the days that followed, Walz used interviews to frame the slur as a question about the president’s own fitness for office. On Meet the Press, he described a leader who spent Thanksgiving night ranting online instead of being with family and warned that «This is not normal behavior. It’s not healthy», adding that he believes the president is «fading physically» and that he is «deeply concerned» Trump may be «incapable of doing the job». Walz also accused him of «throwing around slurs» that «demonize our children», arguing that a president who refuses to release basic medical records while attacking people with disabilities is failing the standards historically expected of the office.

« I will be voting NO on redistricting, perhaps he can use the next 10 months to convince voters that his policies and behavior deserve a congressional majority.»

-Indiana State Senator Michael Bohacek

A «president of the eighth grade»

Beyond Walz, the backlash spread quickly through both cultural and political circles, with late-night host Jimmy Kimmel and at least one Republican elected official publicly rebuking the president’s language. On Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the comedian read from Trump’s Thanksgiving post and mocked his claim that the world is laughing at America by shooting back: «They’re laughing at you!», before zeroing in on the insult toward Walz and sarcastically calling Trump the «president of the eighth grade» to underline how juvenile the slur sounded coming from a head of state. The criticism from inside his own party was even more striking: Indiana state senator Michael Bohacek, whose daughter has Down syndrome, wrote that he has been «an unapologetic advocate for people with intellectual disabilities» and warned that the president’s rhetoric cannot be brushed aside because «His choices of words have consequences.» Bohacek went further, announcing, «I will be voting NO on redistricting, perhaps he can use the next 10 months to convince voters that his policies and behavior deserve a congressional majority», effectively tying his opposition to a key Republican priority directly to Trump’s use of the slur and underscoring how politically costly the comment could become even among Republicans.

The President is unwell. Release the MRI results. pic.twitter.com/Kw9RGEjLmL

— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) November 30, 2025