this post was submitted on 18 Dec 2024
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[–] cron 248 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (20 children)

False, according to snopes:

What Trump actually said, in his opening remarks during the press conference, was as follows: “The United States and Italy are bound together by a shared cultural and political heritage dating back thousands of years, to ancient Rome …”

Edit: Even after reading this quote twice, I can't really understand what Trump wanted to say.

[–] meldrik@lemmy.wtf 85 points 3 days ago (3 children)

Edit: Even after reading this quote twice, I can’t really understand what Trump wanted to say.

Can anyone ever?

[–] cron 31 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Imagine having to translate such nonsense.

[–] brbposting@sh.itjust.works 8 points 3 days ago

The Olympics did it better

(More difficult than I imagined to find articles about it, there are plenty though from random sources)

[–] Squorlple@lemmy.world 13 points 3 days ago

It doesn’t matter if what he says makes sense or is true; if he says it confidently and double downs on it, people will be convinced (or be coerced to agree)

[–] CritFail@lemmy.world 7 points 3 days ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

My take is that he sees himself as Julius Caesar reincarnate, who spelled the end of the Republic, and wants to be the first emperor of the USA. If you read about the last days of the Republic there are so many historically rhyming events that with the current state of America, a repeat of history seems almost inevitable. A spate of military wins means Rome becomes very rich very quickly, disband rival military power which leads to pirates and banditry, widespread extremes of wealth and poverty, politicians riling the public up into a frenzy with populist talking points, using corrupt judiciary system to punish their political opponents, plebs forcing themselves in on senate discussions, Krassus was a mega oligarch banker who bankrolled politicians and held debts as favours to call on, the Bona Dea scandal, Clodius being unceremoniously taken to court for sneaking into a women-only festival, who is betrayed by another political rival Sicero only to then be equitted (jury was bribed), and the subsequent crossing of the Rubicon by Caesar, leading to insurrection, more political assassinations, and the fall of the Republic.

I would say he is as spiteful and vengeful as Clodius (and feels wronged in the same way he did by the court cases against him), is as ambitious as Caesar, has Musk as his Krassus-figure backing him, craves attention and celebration of himself like Pompey, and thinks he is as important and catalytic to political change as the Gracchus brothers were.

Trump aspires to be as awful and as "great" as the conniving ruling class of ancient Rome, because he us just as morally bankrupt as many of them.

However all of these observations seem at odds with the way he presents himself - seemingly senile, lexicon of a five-year-old, and lacks any of the charisma and knack for timing that the great orators of the Senate had. In comparison, Trump as an isolated figure is but a skidmark compared to the intellectual brilliance of the Roman elite.

[–] Infynis@midwest.social 34 points 3 days ago (4 children)

And it's from 2019. Why was this even posted?

[–] damnedfurry@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago

Because somewhere, someone's Trump rage boner was starting to wilt just a bit.

[–] dutchkimble@lemy.lol 17 points 3 days ago

Alright, you might wanna sit down for this. Hate to be the one breaking it to you, buuut the Internet is not always a rational place...

[–] Maggoty@lemmy.world 7 points 3 days ago

So we can mentally prepare ourselves for Trump 2, the idiotening.

[–] Asidonhopo@lemmy.world 2 points 3 days ago

Thank you, I was getting severe deja vu about that woman in the image

[–] superkret 27 points 3 days ago

He means they're both White countries.

[–] AbsoluteChicagoDog@lemm.ee 23 points 3 days ago

America was founded on Roman ideals. I mean look at our capital building. Not only is it built in a Roman style there's literally a mural of the founding fathers consulting with Roman gods.

[–] Professorozone@lemmy.world 17 points 3 days ago

It may be false but it isn't any better.

[–] BeMoreCareful@lemmy.world 14 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Isn't it some white nationalist shit about real whites being descendent of Rome?

[–] Geobloke@lemm.ee 13 points 3 days ago

We're all the descendants of when Hercules impregnated every female trojan as part of his 13th labour. You can read all about it in my book "The Da Vinci Code: Die Harder"

[–] pyre@lemmy.world 10 points 3 days ago

he's talking about how fascists are obsessed with Rome and think they share white heritage or whatever

[–] dumbass@leminal.space 8 points 3 days ago

Wouldn't it be funny if we found out the native Americans and Romans had a long standing friendship, much like them and the Vikings and that's what he means.

Obviously he's just dribbling shit he thinks sounds smart, but it would be kinda funny.

[–] YarHarSuperstar@lemmy.world 12 points 3 days ago

I mean yeah, fascism.

[–] hOrni@lemmy.world 14 points 3 days ago

So the thing he actually said is even dumber.

[–] Lucidlethargy@sh.itjust.works 7 points 3 days ago (1 children)

He said what he wanted to say. He's a fucking idiot that's got progressive dementia.

[–] nexguy@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago

I'd say it's conservative dementia but I'm not a doctor.

[–] Maggoty@lemmy.world 7 points 3 days ago

He thinks he's complimenting them by linking them to the Roman Empire. Also he's probably completely forgotten that democracy was created by the Greeks.

[–] ShadowRam@fedia.io 12 points 3 days ago

Weird,

Trump already says a bunch of stupid shit on his own.

Not sure why someone would make the OP and make shit up.

[–] hopesdead@startrek.website 8 points 3 days ago (1 children)

I think he meant culture and politics has been similar since the time of ancient Rome, maybe thinking the United States existed that long ago.

It did not.

[–] AEsheron@lemmy.world 16 points 3 days ago (5 children)

To play the ultimate Devil's Advocate, the Romans did leave a lasting cultural impact on Brittain. So in a way we have a cultural bloodline that is distantly connected to Rome.

[–] samus12345@lemm.ee 12 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Ridiculous, I suppose next you'll say that the US government has a senate that meets in a columned building!

[–] Soulg@sh.itjust.works 5 points 3 days ago

While you are correct, he deserves absolutely 0 benefit of the doubt

[–] DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social 4 points 3 days ago (1 children)

The American system is a direct descendant of Enlightenment Classicism, which includes a respect for the Classical Republics. Athens, Rome, Thebes, etc.

American federal government and arguably as a result liberalism is quite literally an imitation and attempt at modernization of the Roman Republic, which is, among other things, why we adopted the eagle as a national symbol and have a fasces in the House of Representatives.

[–] Lodespawn@aussie.zone 1 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

You have a WHAT in the house of reps?! Like .. on purpose?

[–] Bronzebeard@lemm.ee 3 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Yeah, there's a fasces there. Symbol of Rome. It's been there since before Mussolini claims he invented fascism

Unlike the fasces adopted by the National Sheriff Association, which was adopted in the 1930's, because ACAF.

[–] blazeknave@lemmy.world 2 points 3 days ago

This was what I thought. Legacy of Republic, Latin words, imperialism, the usual.

This devil has more than enough advocates. Don't join them even for a bit.

[–] TootSweet@lemmy.world 7 points 3 days ago

Thanks for the fact checking. You're doing God's work.

[–] Mk23simp@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 points 3 days ago

He probably likes how the US is similar to the Roman Empire in being imperialist.

[–] Kaput@lemmy.world 4 points 3 days ago

Imperialism I suppose.

[–] ArbitraryValue@sh.itjust.works 4 points 3 days ago (1 children)

I think he's talking about the influence of Roman ideas on western culture.

[–] dustyData@lemmy.world 16 points 3 days ago (1 children)

No, don't rationalize the crazy.

[–] ArbitraryValue@sh.itjust.works 15 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

It doesn't look like something that he wrote himself, and it does make sense. Wikipedia even has an article about it.

Trump says a lot of nonsense, but something isn't nonsense just because Trump said it.

[–] slazer2au@lemmy.world 3 points 3 days ago (1 children)

It's diplomacy, what you don't say is more important then what you do say.

[–] Alexstarfire@lemmy.world 2 points 3 days ago

There's not a lot this man doesn't say.

[–] Arbiter@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago

It’s white supremacy, he’s talking about whiteness.