It turns out that President-elect Donald Trump is as petty on Twitter as the rest of us.
According to a new report, the soon-to-be most powerful person on the planet spends a good portion of his time on Twitter insulting people.
New York Times reporters Jasmine C. Lee and Kevin Quealy have sifted through and categorized the last 14,000 or so (and counting) Trump tweets. The biggest takeaway: One out of every nine tweet is a diss.
The brunt of Trump’s trash talk was aimed at former opponents Jeb Bush, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and Hillary Clinton. Specifically, one out of three insults made during the last two years were directed at them.
How to know what's important to Donald J. Trump? Check what he's insulting on Twitter. https://t.co/KQ8HVLrFX6 pic.twitter.com/DBrcXK7Zwf
— The Upshot (@UpshotNYT) December 7, 2016
Quealy also outlined the president-elect’s methodology.
“First, Mr. Trump likes to identify a couple of chief enemies and attack them until they are no longer threatening enough to interest,” Quealy noted. “He hurls insults at these foils relentlessly, for sustained periods—weeks or months.”
Trump, according to Quealy, also likes to spend his time insulting whatever is on his periphery, like the hit Broadway play Hamilton, for instance:
The cast and producers of Hamilton, which I hear is highly overrated, should immediately apologize to Mike Pence for their terrible behavior
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 20, 2016
Just tried watching Saturday Night Live – unwatchable! Totally biased, not funny and the Baldwin impersonation just can't get any worse. Sad
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 4, 2016
Or more recently, Chuck Jones, president of the United Steelworkers Local 1999, the union that represents the workers at the Indiana Carrier plant Trump claims to have saved. Jones called out Trump on CNN for lying about the number of jobs he allegedly rescued. Of course, Trump did not appreciate that:
Chuck Jones, who is President of United Steelworkers 1999, has done a terrible job representing workers. No wonder companies flee country!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 8, 2016
If United Steelworkers 1999 was any good, they would have kept those jobs in Indiana. Spend more time working-less time talking. Reduce dues
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 8, 2016
If Quealy’s assertions are true, chances are Trump will find another target to insult. Unfortunately, that doesn’t mitigate the collateral damage caused by his Twitter fingers:
https://twitter.com/DPAQreport/status/806671653035982848