Mark Meadows, best known as the White House Chief of Staff under former President Donald Trump, was mocked online after he claimed that Trump had shown "unbelievable prowess" while taking questions from the press during his time in office.
Meadows said that Trump "would do what we call chopper talk," likely referring to Trump's tendency to speak in short snippets while taking questions on the White House lawn, usually in front of Marine One, the call sign of any United States Marine Corps aircraft carrying the President of the United States.
Trump "would have rapid fire questions" from members of the press, Meadows added, saying that Trump would do so "for an hour with unbelievable prowess."
You can hear what Meadows said in the video below.
\u201cMeadows: President Trump would do what we call chopper talk. He would have rapid fire questions\u2026 for an hour with unbelievable prowess\u201d— Acyn (@Acyn) 1658280554
While Trump often did engage with the media, he often lied while doing so, a regular enough occurrence that a The Washington Post analysis found that Trump made 30,573 false or misleading statements during his four year tenure.
Meadows has faced regular criticism for covering for Trump and has in recent months been under heightened scrutiny due to his actions before, during, and after the Capitol riot of January 6, 2021, the day a mob of Trump's supporters attacked the United States Capitol on the false premise the 2020 general election had been stolen.
Earlier this month, the Department of Justice (DOJ) declined to prosecute Meadows on charges of criminal contempt after the House Select Commitee tasked with investigating the insurrection referred him for refusing to comply with subpoenas.
Meadows' seemingly deferential — perhaps even reverential — attitude toward Trump exposed him to significant mockery on social media.
\u201cHe forgot to say \u201cDear Leader.\u201d\u201d— Melvin E. Edwards (@Melvin E. Edwards) 1658337039
\u201cWhat planet are you from\u201d— Diana Kelley (@Diana Kelley) 1658334933
\u201cThat's not called prowess. That's called not being able to stay on topic. \ud83d\ude12\u201d— Devin Nunes' missing left testicle \ud83c\udf3b (@Devin Nunes' missing left testicle \ud83c\udf3b) 1658318558
\u201cProwess? You think we ever bought into his self-indulgent bs?\u201d— Sl\u00e1inte...Thots and Pears me arse (@Sl\u00e1inte...Thots and Pears me arse) 1658320147
\u201cIt's really getting to North Korea level. I expect them to start bursting into tears on camera before long (Meadows is known to be weepy anyhow).\u201d— Woke Mob For Disempowering Joe Manchin--Vote '22! (@Woke Mob For Disempowering Joe Manchin--Vote '22!) 1658327407
\u201cHe asked, "What if we use nukes on hurricanes?", and we were blown away with his prowess. And then he asked, "What if we injected disinfectant into our bodies", and it was then we realized we were in the presence of a genius.\u201d— Tony (@Tony) 1658286740
\u201cThey live in a fantasy world.\u201d— TheFinMan (@TheFinMan) 1658285086
\u201cDelusional. \nAbsolutely delusional.\u201d— Victoria Brownworth (@Victoria Brownworth) 1658313508
\u201cYou must be very easily impressed.\u201d— \u262e\ufe0fJudy Williams (@\u262e\ufe0fJudy Williams) 1658328073
Trump has been often been criticized for his freewheeling speaking style, which contains any number of rambling and disconnected thoughts. In fact, a Calvin University historian who has done a comparative study of Trump and Hillary Clinton’s speaking styles, once said that Trumps "speeches are full of non sequiturs."
Trump's speech pattern has also been a regular subject of discussion among those who question whether he was ever cognitively prepared to hold office. During a January 2018 press briefing, the former White House doctor Ronny Jackson vouched for Trump's health, saying his neurological functions are excellent and assuring the press corps that he would be able to serve his entire term.
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