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One of President Trump’s more recent incidents of “foot in mouth” disease came with his remarks at a White House ceremony to honor athletes who participated in the Olympics and Paralympics, the games featuring athletes who are physically impaired.
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“And what happened with the Paralympics was so incredible and so inspiring to me,” Trump improvised speaking at the ceremony. “And I watched — it’s a little tough to watch too much, but I watched as much as I could. It was really fantastic, and I want to thank you.”
Trump’s gratuitous insertion of the comment that the Paralympics were “a”little tough to watch too much” was instantly condemned by advocates for the physically impaired.
Today the organization that holds the games, The International Paralympic Committee, responded to the president’s thoughtless, but ultimately intensely revealing, comment with a post on Twitter that addressed Trump’s difficulty watching the competitions.
Record numbers around the world are not finding @Paralympics tough to watch. Billions of viewers now take in the Paralympics in hundreds of countries around the world. We hope the US President continues to watch and be inspired by the Paralympics. https://t.co/3jhr5Fd8tT
— Paralympic Games (@Paralympics) April 28, 2018
The IPC tweet links to a video of the highlights of the 2018 Paralympic Games in PyeongChang, South Korea to prove their point of how inspiring the Paralympics truly are.
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That the IPC responded with such a mild and relatively unscathing response to Trump’s blathering is a mark of the international diplomacy that comes part and parcel with the organization of a multi-national competition.
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Perhaps they were giving the president the benefit of the doubt and interpreting his off the cuff remarks as simply meaning that he is simply too busy with his multitude of presidential duties to spend “too much” time watching the Paralympics.
Most Americans, however, would point to Trump’s daily “executive time” and his constant awareness of every single segment broadcast on Fox News as proof of that particular interpretation as being far from the mark.
Instead, they would consider the tweet from the American bronze medalist in figure skating Adam Rippon — who decided to boycott the White House visit — as more reflective of their feelings.
Current mood: Having no regrets about missing this trip. https://t.co/xxcKxKz6NL
— Adam Rippon (@Adaripp) April 28, 2018
Follow Vinnie Longobardo on Twitter.
