Inmate P01135809, The Scowl, & The Merch

 


I hate to debase my own blog but this is the infamous mugshot of Donald Trump. It is the first mugshot ever of a former president. Please note the hard-edged scowl and the glaring stare. Word is that Trump did not want his mugshot done but the indicted criminal had no choice in Fulton County, Georgia. That probably helps account for the look but I think it isn’t the total story. Trump is rarely seen smiling and his smiles have always been totally fake when he does smile. He prefers to be seen as the ultimate tough guy so photos of him usually show what is more easily interpreted as a man pissed off with the world who wants others to believe he is really intimidating. 


However, he has already profited from this photo. CBS News says as of this morning Trump and his campaign have raked in $7.1 million from the merchandising of the mug’s mug on a mug. Of course, that is what Trump does and has always done – grifting off his faithful cult. Nowadays the money is probably going to multiple lawyers trying to defend him against 91 (thus far) felony indictments in an effort to keep inmate P01135809 from being inducted into prison. The irony is deep. Trump’s MAGAt supporters send their hard-earned dollars to a supposed billionaire who turns around and gives them to the elites that those MAGAts hate (college educated lawyers) who are working overtime to keep Trump out of jail. The irony is deep and delicious. 


The other laugh of Trump’s booking at the Fulton County Jail was his being allowed to radio in his height, weight, and hair color. Trump says he is 6’3” tall and 215 pounds and that his hair is “blond or strawberry.” In January 1974, when I was a senior medical student, Muhammed Ali fought Joe Frazier for the second time. Ali was at the peak of his boxing career. He measured 6”3” and weighed 212 pounds. Look at Trump and photos of Ali from that fight. Perhaps some portion of Donald Trump weighs 215 pounds but his total weight is surely higher. As for “strawberry” hair? Risible.


So we have what I call the scowl and the merch. My guess is that this will be the image of Trump that appears in history books and that some suggest could be his portrait in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. 



Trump wants to think of himself as a superhero like Batman. In reality he is a bad imitation of The Joker.



But he will always be inmate P01135809.

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