Donald Trump says that “no one knows what magnets are” during a strange Oval Office press conference. During the swearing in of a new ambassador to India on Monday (10 November), the President launched into a rant about China, whilst discussing their recent agreement to start easing rare earth export rules. “China was going to hit us with rare-earth. Now, everybody says, ‘Oh, what does that mean?’ Magnets. If China refused to give magnets, because they have a monopoly on magnets… there wouldn’t be a car made in the entire world.” He then claimed that “nobody knows what magnets are”, before going on to praise the “great deal” the two nations made in October. Whilst the talks did not end in a formal agreement, Mr Trump agreed to reduce tariffs on some Chinese goods entering the US, whilst Beijing agreed to suspend export control measures it had placed on rare earths.
I’m lost for words. Every time he says something, it’s the dumbest thing I’ve heard. And I always think to myself, this is it. this is peak stupid. There is no way he can say something dumber than this with a straight face.
I really thought we peaked when he tried to tell their Navy, that they don’t know what happens when you put water on a magnet. The god damn navy.
But here we are. With the president of the USA, telling us, with a straight face, being serious, that no one knows how magnets work. Next he’ll probably try to tell us we don’t know how electricity works.