Cohen: Trump 'doesn't have a sense of humor,' isn't joking about being POTUS for '12 more years'

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President Trump is dead serious when he says he wants to be in the White House for 12 more years, Michael Cohen, his former personal attorney and fixer, said on Tuesday.

Cohen's new book about his time working for Trump, Disloyal: A Memoir, was published Tuesday, and he appeared on MSNBC's Rachel Maddow Show to discuss it. Cohen said Trump has changed dramatically and is "not the same person I knew going back years ago. He was always gruff, he was always a certain way, but the power he now has has gone to his head."

Above all else, Trump wants to be an "autocrat," Cohen said. "He wants to be the president for life. He wants to be just like [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, just like [North Korean leader] Kim Jong Un, just like [Venezuelan President Nicolás] Maduro, just like [Saudi Crown Prince] Mohammad bin Salman. He craves this. He doesn't want to run for president, and that's why he says, 'What about 12 more years, 12 more years.' He's not joking."

Trump isn't capable of wisecracking because he "doesn't have a sense of humor," Cohen said. "He doesn't laugh, he doesn't tell jokes, he doesn't have a sense of humor. He means it when he says it." Cohen likened Trump to a "cult leader," and said he wrote Disloyal in an attempt to "really open the eyes of the 38 percent, the base of his, that no matter what Donald Trump does, it's acceptable to them. He doesn't care and they don't care. He wasn't joking again when he said that he could kill somebody on 5th Avenue and get away with it. He means it." Catherine Garcia

SeanKIL0 on September 9th, 2020 at 13:13 UTC »

Numerous people who have interacted with Trump have made the same claim that he doesn’t get or understand humour or laugh at thing in the same way a ‘normal’ person would.

Here’s an example of Penn Jillette (former ‘Apprentice’ contestant) on Joe Rogan’s podcast talking about his experiences with Trump. The part about him having a lack of sense of humour (or appreciation of music) starts around 6:30, towards the end.

https://youtu.be/A-UK40_XkWw

ReflexImprov on September 9th, 2020 at 12:48 UTC »

That's why the anecdotes in Sarah Huckabee Sanders' book that said 'Trump was joking' or 'Trump was laughing' are likely complete bullshit lies - just like her press briefings were.

Dddydya on September 9th, 2020 at 12:46 UTC »

Trump isn’t going to live 12 more years. He’s declined by quite a bit since taking office. The mini-strokes aren’t helping.

In Charlie Chaplin’s “The Great Dictator”, he gives a great speech in the end. In it, he says “all tyrants die”, or something like that. Trump may hold some weird sway over a section of the population, but he won’t live forever and not just anyone can pick up that mantle and continue it.

Also, while we’re on the topic, if a Trump is re-elected, it will not go well for him. His policies are adversely affecting his supporters. Unchecked, that will accelerate tenfold.

I’m not wishing harm on anyone but fascists always become the enemies of their followers and their followers are the most dangerous people around. Look at these latest protests for proof. Look at Mussolini and Hitler if you don’t believe me.

Nobody buys into empty promises with more fervor than Fascists and nobody is more angry when they fall apart. And they always fall apart.

The problem with division politics is that you have to keep making the circles smaller and smaller. Eventually all the factions turn on each other. It’s unsustainable.