Trump claims he wanted the UN to laugh at his speech, calls it 'great'

There is no way he meant it as a joke, folks.
 By 
Marcus Gilmer
 on 
Trump claims he wanted the UN to laugh at his speech, calls it 'great'
Trump's weird day at the UN got weirder, if you can believe it. Credit: Getty Images

President Donald Trump is playing off Tuesday morning's embarrassing moment -- in which he was laughed at by the United Nations General Assembly -- by saying he totally meant it as a joke.

On Tuesday afternoon, between events at the UN, Trump briefly chatted with reporters and he dropped this nugget, apparently confusing the concepts of "laughing at" and "laughing with."

On the one hand, that is a pretty even-keeled response from someone as tantrum-prone as Trump.

On the other, it's a lie. If you watch the speech, immediately following the line that got the laugh, Trump says, "Didn't expect that reaction, but that's okay." So clearly not what you'd say if you'd just told an intentional joke.

As the laughter at Trump's expense -- and the implications -- made waves across the internet, people were quick to surface old tweets in which Trump bemoaned a president (Obama) who he considered a laughingstock.

Trump has been busy enough at the UN that he hasn't had time to tweet about the speech, but once he gets back in to the warmer comforts of his couch, he'll surely let rip with what will no doubt be a tirade for the ages.

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Marcus Gilmer

Marcus Gilmer is Mashable's Assistant Real-Times News Editor on the West Coast, reporting on breaking news from his location in San Francisco. An Alabama native, Marcus earned his BA from Birmingham-Southern College and his MFA in Communications from the University of New Orleans. Marcus has previously worked for Chicagoist, The A.V. Club, the Chicago Sun-Times and the San Francisco Chronicle.

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