Stephen King is no stranger to horror, so the Trump presidency is something he is well-equipped to write about.
On Twitter, the Maine resident is well known for his anti-Trump barbs. Sometimes, however, a simple quote can say more than any long, drawn-out statement.
King hasn't hesitated to lash out at Trump in the past:
Harassers like Charlie Rose and Matt Lauer? Gone in a wink. Yet President Donald "I moved on her like a bitch" Trum… https://t.co/XfyCJkyDTo— Stephen King (@Stephen King) 1527612567.0
But in response to Trump's disgraceful press conference in Helsinki —where he sided with Russian President Vladimir Putin over his own intelligence agencies on the issue of Russian election meddling— King needed only to quote a fellow author:
George Orwell.
George Orwell on Trump and Putin, in 1945: “The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and… https://t.co/1amNb6RioX— Stephen King (@Stephen King) 1532035184.0
King wrote:
George Orwell on Trump and Putin, in 1945: "The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which."
Many may recognize this as the closing line to Orwell's Animal Farm, an allegorical tale about rebellious farm animals which mirrors the Russian Revolution.
The meaning of the quote is fairly simple: that the pigs, who began as a seemingly benevolent group helping to overthrow the tyrannical farmer to liberate all the animals, became exactly what they fought against in the end.
King was not alone in seeing the parallels.
Twitter got behind King's take pretty quick.
@ArjunaX5 @StephenKing I’d love a King horror story take on this White House— Patrick Williams (@Patrick Williams) 1532035855.0
@StephenKing Orwell’s Animal Farm- Nice! How about this: “Power is not a means; it is an end. One does not estab… https://t.co/bIqBpaFSkp— Michael (@Michael) 1532036612.0
Some even had quotes of their own to share, from Orwell and others.
@StephenKing https://t.co/gdgUaWETDt— Joseph Karnilowicz (@Joseph Karnilowicz) 1532036443.0
@StephenKing @TheEliasRework #VoteBlue2018 https://t.co/Sqwcw7rMhX— earthcreature 🌊🐝 (@earthcreature 🌊🐝) 1532065499.0
In addition to the pigs, some Twitter users drew a parallel with another of the farm's creatures: the sheep.
In Animal Farm, the sheep repeat the rhetoric of the pigs, furthering the pigs' agenda to the detriment of the sheep themselves.
@StephenKing Cue the Trump supporters (bleeting) “4 legs good, two legs bad”— ericmiller1 (@ericmiller1) 1532035475.0
People decided to give Orwell's book another perusal.
@StephenKing @LazuliLady I’m going to re-read Animal Farm.— Lillian Buchanan (@Lillian Buchanan) 1532040739.0
King's tweet was so successful, he decided to share another quote.
What Mr. Barclay said. https://t.co/jFFG4z2mNn— Stephen King (@Stephen King) 1531842328.0
And just in case the Maine horror author wasn't being completely clear on his feelings...
Impeach.— Stephen King (@Stephen King) 1531793988.0
Stephen King: Twitter's Maineiac King of Sass.