President Trump on Wednesday stunned the White House press pool by offering up what appeared to be a map of Hurricane Dorian’s path edited with a Sharpie. The image was clearly — and likely illegally — doctored in order to give some credence to the President’s false claim that the looming hurricane was going to hit Alabama.
The assertion was quickly refuted by the National Weather Service, which of course prompted an angry backlash from Trump and presented the nation with the utterly bizarre sight of the President of the United States arguing with his own scientists about the weather.
When asked about the hurricane map, Trump said that “he didn’t know” if it was altered by a Sharpie (his writing implement of choice) but asserted that there was a 95% chance that it would have and that there were “other, better maps” that showed Alabama could have been affected.
President Trump says he doesn’t know about the hurricane map being altered by a Sharpie. He also insisted there are “other, better maps” that show Alabama was in the area that could be affected by Hurricane Dorian, though the weather service said that’s not true.
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) September 4, 2019
The childishness and pettiness of the President’s behavior immediately provoked an outpouring of mockery on social media as commentators shook their heads in disgust at just how absurd the president has become.
Here’s a selection of the best responses:
Guys, Trump didn’t use a sharpie to draw a circle extending the projected impact of Hurricane Dorian around Alabama. Millions of us used the created power of the mind, along with two minutes or prayer, visualization, and meditation to extend those lines on the NOAA map.
— Sam Stein (@samstein) September 4, 2019
https://twitter.com/JRMcGrail/status/1169327971448102916?s=20
[Trump scrawls NOT in Sharpie on a GUILTY verdict slip]
— Drew Magary (@drewmagary) September 4, 2019
— Siraj Hashmi (@SirajAHashmi) September 4, 2019
NONE OF THIS IS REAL. WE ALL DIED AND WE LIVE IN A SIMULATION. THE SIMULATION KEEPS GLITCHING. THERE'S NO WAY ANY OF THIS COULD BE REAL. https://t.co/N3sOrWUcqa
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) September 4, 2019
Yet another reason why you don’t put a thin-skinned man, who is so driven by ego he can’t admit he’s wrong, into the most powerful position in the world.
Trump is lying about Hurricane Dorian to the face of Americans while forecasts are directly contradicting his statements. https://t.co/OofY25ZSBS
— Ahmed Baba (@AhmedBaba_) September 4, 2019
That hurricane projection map isn’t the first thing Donald Trump has altered with a Sharpie. pic.twitter.com/yCCny3vTy4
— Rex Huppke (@RexHuppke) September 4, 2019
This is so weird, now Melania Trump has released her own altered hurricane map, using a red Sharpie. pic.twitter.com/yrv4BR2pNn
— Rex Huppke (@RexHuppke) September 4, 2019
Yikes. Anyone who's been alive the past few weeks or years watching hurricane coverage would know what those forecast cones look like and thus would know that this little Sharpie'd blip Trump had added to include Alabama is fake. This is so dumb. https://t.co/wbnuB9tDrS
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 4, 2019
National Weather Service: The hurricane isn't going to hit Alabama
Trump *sets down sharpie*: That's not what this totally legit map I have here says.
Everyone: pic.twitter.com/TANY5wDfaU
— Alaina Riley (@ComradeAlaina) September 4, 2019