Renowned primatologist and environmental activist Jane Goodall likened former Republican President Donald Trump to a "male chimpanzee" after watching a montage of his behavior during an interview on MSNBC.
Speaking on The Beat with Ari Melber, Goodall said Trump's behavior is not unlike the kid "a male chimpanzee will show when he is competing for dominance with another.”
Goodall is, of course, the expert. She is considered the world's foremost expert on chimpanzees and is best known for her 60-year study of social and family interactions of wild chimpanzees since she first went to Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania in 1960, where she witnessed human-like behaviours amongst chimpanzees, including armed conflict.
Goodall made the observation after Melber played her a montage that showed Trump stalking behind Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton during a 2016 debate, hugging and kissing the American flag and calling himself a “perfect physical specimen.”
You can hear what she said in the video below.
Hot Earth Truth: Jane Goodall On Chimps, Conservation And Runaway Capitalism | Summit Series youtu.be
When asked for her opinion on Trump's behavior, Goodall said:
“I see the same sort of behavior as a male chimpanzee will show when he is competing for dominance with another.”
“They’re upright, they swagger, they project themselves as really more large and aggressive than they may actually be in order to intimidate their rivals."
Goodall later commented that "the divisiveness that's being created" in the United States is "a tragedy... that can have ripple effects around the world."
It was a striking observation and most people couldn't help but laugh and agree with it.
Goodall's observation about Trump indicates her opinion has not changed significantly since 2016, when she told The Atlantic that Trump's controversial antics "remind me of male chimpanzees and their dominance rituals."
Noting that male chimpanzees seek to "rise in the dominance hierarchy" by "stamping," "slapping the ground," "dragging branches," and even "throwing rocks," Goodall added that an individual "is likely to rise in the hierarchy" and "maintain that position" the more performative their display.
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