Good Riddance to America’s Authoritarian P. T. Barnum

A Showman-in-Chief Will Depart, but the Trumpian Spectacle Lives on

Shortly before his supporters stormed the Capitol, interrupting the official congressional tally of the Electoral College votes, President Donald Trump gave a speech at the “Save America” rally. He promised his supporters that he would provide them with “evidence proving that we won this election” and, thus armed, that together they would march down to the Capitol and demand that only “legal votes” were counted.

“You’ll never take back our country with weakness,” Trump explained, “you have to show strength, and you have to be strong.”

Trump didn’t have any actual proof …

The Greatest Story Ever Told About Hyperbole, Humbug, and P.T. Barnum!

In Turbulent Times, Showmen Can Distort Reality and Make Suckers of Us All

In 1835, Phineas Taylor Barnum was down on his luck and anxious to find an “amusement” that would attract paying customers. One lucky day a stranger came into the shop …