When you woke and turned on whatever morning news show you watch, it’s likely that the first thing you saw was a story from Japan, where former prime minister Shinzo Abe was shot and killed by an assassin overnight.
Abe’s assassination doesn’t seem to make any sense, if only because he was no longer in office and doesn’t have the sort of political influence he once did.
Another former world leader, the failed, one-term, twice-impeached ex-president of the United States, Donald Trump, immediately took to his social media platform, Truth Social (a.k.a. Twitter for losers) and issued a bizarre statement that ended in a way suggesting his only motive for issuing it was pure self-promotion:
Really BAD NEWS FOR THE WORLD! Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is dead. He was assassinated. His killer was captured and will hopefully be dealt with swiftly and harshly. Few people know what a great man and leader Shinzo Abe was, but history will teach them and be kind. He was a unifier like no other, but above all, he was a man who loved and cherished his magnificent country, Japan. Shinzo Abe will be greatly missed. There will never be another like him! President Donald J. Trump
President Donald J. Trump? No. His official title is FORMER president Donald J. Trump, and there’s no need for a real man of power and influence to announce who he is. People see a real leader’s name and immediately know who the person is.
Former president Barack Obama, in contrast, said exactly what needed to be said, and didn’t make it all about himself:
“I am shocked and saddened by the assassination of my friend and longtime partner Shinzo Abe in Japan. Former Prime Minister Abe was devoted to both the country he served and the extraordinary alliance between the United States and Japan.
“I will always remember the work we did to strengthen our alliance, the moving experience of traveling to Hiroshima and Pearl Harbor together, and the grace he and his wife Akie Abe showed to me and Michelle. Michelle and I send our deepest condolences to the people of Japan who are very much in our thoughts at this painful moment.”
Perfectly stated and beautifully written, whereas Trump’s is self-serving and egotistical, just like the man who wrote it.
