In a piece at The Nation, “The Embarrassment of Trump’s Midterm Convention” Joan Walsh writes: “I have to say: I almost feel bad writing about Trump these days. Yes, he’s evil, and has been for decades. But he’s also clearly unwell. He allowed himself to become a brunette earlier in the week (after decades of odd, strawberry-blond-dyed hair), then was shown to be hugely balding in a photo on Wednesday.”
This short passage highlights for me what ableism adjacent writing often looks like these days. I agree, Trump is a bad man. But the left spends way too much time focusing on how the man looks. Here he is again, looking uncertain as he descends from the airplane. Here you can see him struggle with a glass of water.
The ageism, which is a form of glee, is wasted time. In the next few sentences Walsh writes: “Most days, he seems to wear an airline tray table over his ample behind and under his suit jacket. I can’t say. People speculate that it’s some kind of diaper contraption, but it looks too big and sharp-angled for that.”
Later she quotes J.B, Pritzker who opines that Trump has dementia. This, it seems to me, is closer to the truth but here’s the thing: the country is being run by the star chamber of Project 2025. That’s the story. The only story. Who cares about the lunch tray under his pants?
And one more thing: the fact that Trump is still sitting in that chair is the real story. As every fifth grader knows, this is a matter of who, what, where, when and why.
Walsh is closer to the truth as she sums up:
“Trump’s almost two-hour speech didn’t prove Pritzker wrong. “Pretend that I’m on the ballot,” he told the crowd. “I’m on the ballot. I’m on. Just one more time.” Trump is right, and wrong, in his belief that Republicans will come out if they indeed believe he’s running. To the surprise of many, myself included, Trump indeed proved adept at turning out infrequent voters for his wins in 2016 and 2024. On the other hand, he’s never been more unpopular, even with GOP voters. ”
Just remember, he’s not the real leader of the country. Personally I don’t care about his hair.
Poet, Essayist, Blogger, Journalist, Memoirist, Disability Rights Advocate, Public Speaker, Professor, Syracuse University
