Donald Trump is Fixated on Hannibal Lecter?

Off the rails’: Donald Trump loses battle with impulse control, delivering rambling RNC speech




Why Is Donald Trump So Fixated on Hannibal Lecter?
The fictional character — famous from 'Silence of the Lambs' — was referenced again by the former president during his Republican National Convention speech


By Daniel D'Addario


donald trump hannibal lecter
Getty Images | Orion Pictures Corporation/Everett Collection
For a moment, Donald Trump seemed — despite everything — to be a whole new man.

We’d been told by speakers throughout the final night of the Republican National Convention that the attempt on his life had changed the 45th president’s outlook and his approach to politics. The experience had made him a unifier.

“He turned down the most obvious opportunity in politics to inflame the nation after being shot,” Tucker Carlson, the former Fox News anchor, said in his speech Thursday night, hours before Trump took the stage. “In the moment, he did his best to bring the country together.”

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And then, somewhat deep into Trump’s stem-winder of a speech, he started talking about Hannibal Lecter.


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“The press is always on me, because I say this,” he began, in an aside. He knew it was not the first time he’d brought up Hannibal, but he couldn’t resist. “Has anyone seen ‘Silence of the Lambs’? The late, great Hannibal Lecter. He’d love to have you for dinner.”

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Great movies have the power to bring people together, certainly. And Trump’s fascination with popular culture had taken over the final night of the Republican convention, with a shirt-rending performance by the wrestler known as Hulk Hogan and a musical performance by Kid Rock preceding Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White introducing Trump. But this was, once again, a random insertion of Trump’s fascination with the character Anthony Hopkins played across three films. The 45th President, and current Republican nominee, referred to Lecter as a “wonderful man” in May, while once again quoting his aphorism about having a friend “for dinner.”

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In both cases, Trump’s evocation of Lecter was to make the case that crime in America is out of control — that potential Lecters, including immigrants whom Trump would forcibly deport, live among us. There would be something movingly childlike about this imaginative capacity, under another set of circumstances: Trump has always struggled to differentiate what’s onscreen from what is real. After all, his entire professional life has been building towards a star turn, given his fascination with the media and culture industries. Why shouldn’t Hannibal Lecter be just another one of the characters who could, potentially, stride across the border and start devouring?


Trump’s appetite for popular films is one of his most relatable qualities, perhaps — he’s a lover of big, broad entertainment. In a 1997 New Yorker profile, a writer accompanied Trump on board a plane and watched as he watched only the highlights (which is to say, the most violent fights) of the Jean-Claude Van Damme film “Bloodsport.”

So it’s no wonder, maybe, that the parts of “The Silence of the Lambs” Trump remembers are Hannibal’s antics, and his one big, funny quote. And it’s unsurprising, too, that he thinks of the character as a relatable avatar for the way crime works in the real world. Hannibal Lecter is a supervillain — cunning beyond belief, with appetites beyond what we’d consider human and a unique way with words. He’s the perfect imagined adversary for a presidential candidate who sees himself as unusually clever (rather than, after everything seemed to break his way toward the end of the 2016 cycle, lucky) and unusually well-spoken (rather than just finding a good phrase now and then in an incredibly long-winded nomination acceptance speech). In Lecter, Trump has found a villain whose outsized monstrosity matches Trump’s own perceived heroism, his own ability to fight back against any villain — whether real or part of our collective imagination.

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If Trump’s debate against President Biden were unsatisfying — if, in the end, it felt a little too easy — there’s always the imagined challenge of hunting down Hannibal Lecter crossing the border. And perhaps those who fear a Trump restoration should be glad that at least some of his focus is on Hannibal, and that the lambs have not yet stopped screaming.

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It was the final night of the Republican National Convention last night in Milwaukee and Donald Trump delivered a mammoth 90-minute speech with his survival of an assassination attempt heavily featured.

Republicans were seen experiencing emotional outbursts during the former president’s monologue, with members of the audience dripping with sweat and visibly crying.

He told the audience: “I’m not supposed to be here” which attracted cries of “You are!” in response from the crowd.


The end of his speech was marked by the formal acceptance of his party’s nomination – a campaign trail that was accelerated rather than marred by the assassination attempt against him five days earlier.

Here are five of the more eyebrow-raising moments from his speech:

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Trump describes his near-miss with death

(EPA)
Mr Trump used his speech to describe in detail the moment he had felt the bullet glide over his ear during a gunman’s attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania last Saturday.

He said: “I felt something hit me really really hard on my right ear. I said to myself, wow what that – it can only be a bullet.

“And moved my right hand to my ear, brought it down.

“My hand was covered with blood. Just absolutely blood all over the place.”

Though he declared he would only mention the details of the incident once due to the pain it incurs and said that despite the incident, he felt safe because “I had God on my side.”

Vowed to carry out one of the largest deportation efforts in history
Harking back to his days in the Oval Office, Mr Trump hailed the “great job” his administration did at the US-Mexico border.

US Border Patrol had nearly 250,00 encounters with migrants crossing into the United States from Mexico in December 2023 according to government statistics.

The border crossings chart displayed on-screen during his Butler rally was duly noted where he described the figures as being “absolutely amazing.”


But he claimed that under Joe Biden, the nation faced “an illegal immigration crisis” that was unlike anything the country had ever endured.

Adopting conflict rhetoric, he described immigration as a “massive invasion […] that has spread misery, crime, poverty, disease, and destruction to communities all across our land.”


He surmised his anti-immigration testimonial declaring that under a Republican leadership: “I will end the illegal immigration crisis by closing our border and finishing the wall, most of which I’ve already built.”

The wall which was halted under the Biden administration and by several judges overspending in the US Supreme Court.

Biden who? Trump only makes two jibes at his opponents
Though minimal, his comments packed a punch.

Mr Trump made a jibe against Joe Biden’s tenure, stating: “The damage that he’s done to this country is unthinkable. It’s unthinkable.”

While he described the current president’s administration as worse than the 10 worst presidencies combined, he avoided highlighting recent concerns over Mr Biden’s mental fitness.

He only mentioned the incumbent president one more time in the speech, telling the crowd: “Biden. I’m not going to use the name anymore. Just one time.”

Kamala Harris was also omitted from his statements.

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Financial Markets New York
Financial Markets New York (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Mr Trump was quick to blame Mr Biden for Americans feeling the pinch of the cost-of-living crisis.

He said: "Inflation, remember, it’s called a country buster. You can go back to Germany from 100 years ago. You can go back to any country that’s suffered great inflation. We’ve suffered the worst inflation we’ve ever had. But go back and see what’s happened to those countries. We’ve had the worst inflation we’ve ever had under this person."

Trump highlighted that the “inflation crisis is making life unaffordable” using harsh rhetoric to describe how the pinch is “ravaging” low-income families and “eating you alive”.

He even said that he could make inflation “vanish completely” sending incomes skyrocketing at a rapid rate – comments which would appeal to us all if they could be realistically achieved.

Inflammatory statements on the economy were epitomised in his false claims that record inflation persisted under Mr Biden.

Inflation in the US stood at 3 per cent in June, while Mr Trump claimed it was at a massive 23.7 per cent (something not seen since the Great Depression).

Celebrities on board to welcome Trump to the stage

Hulk Hogan rips shirt off on Republican National Convention stage
Several celebrities were on hand to mark Mr Trump’s confirmation as the Republican candidate for president.

Professional wrestler Hulk Hogan and singer Kid Rock took to the stage to fire up the crowds, with the former tearing his tank top to reveal a Trump/Vance shirt underneath.

Trump described Kid Rock’s desire to get involved: “I want to be a part, because, you know, Kid does this great song. Big, big monster song. I had no idea. You know, he became a friend of mine over the last 10 years. And, uh, he’s amazing. Everyone loves him.”

Last but not least: Trump uses Hannibal Lecter to vilify immigrants
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“You know, the press is always on me because I say this [...] Has anyone seen Silence of the Lambs? The late great Hannibal Lecter. He’d love to have you for dinner. That’s insane asylums, they’re emptying out their insane asylums.”

This villainous dichotomy is not a stunt he’s pulled as a means to creating division in the US but as expected, Anthony Hopkins was shocked and appalled, according to the Hill.


***
Six wild moments from Trump’s record-breaking RNC speech
From professional wrestling stars to Silence of the Lambs, the Republican contender’s conference speech had its fair share of bizarre moments

Madeline Sherratt
10 hours ago
3
Comments

Key moments from Donald Trump's RNC speech
Support truly
independent journalism
SUPPORT NOW

Find out more
It was the final night of the Republican National Convention last night in Milwaukee and Donald Trump delivered a mammoth 90-minute speech with his survival of an assassination attempt heavily featured.

Republicans were seen experiencing emotional outbursts during the former president’s monologue, with members of the audience dripping with sweat and visibly crying.

He told the audience: “I’m not supposed to be here” which attracted cries of “You are!” in response from the crowd.


The end of his speech was marked by the formal acceptance of his party’s nomination – a campaign trail that was accelerated rather than marred by the assassination attempt against him five days earlier.

Here are five of the more eyebrow-raising moments from his speech:

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Trump describes his near-miss with death

(EPA)
Mr Trump used his speech to describe in detail the moment he had felt the bullet glide over his ear during a gunman’s attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania last Saturday.

He said: “I felt something hit me really really hard on my right ear. I said to myself, wow what that – it can only be a bullet.

“And moved my right hand to my ear, brought it down.

“My hand was covered with blood. Just absolutely blood all over the place.”

Though he declared he would only mention the details of the incident once due to the pain it incurs and said that despite the incident, he felt safe because “I had God on my side.”

Vowed to carry out one of the largest deportation efforts in history
Harking back to his days in the Oval Office, Mr Trump hailed the “great job” his administration did at the US-Mexico border.

US Border Patrol had nearly 250,00 encounters with migrants crossing into the United States from Mexico in December 2023 according to government statistics.

The border crossings chart displayed on-screen during his Butler rally was duly noted where he described the figures as being “absolutely amazing.”


But he claimed that under Joe Biden, the nation faced “an illegal immigration crisis” that was unlike anything the country had ever endured.

Adopting conflict rhetoric, he described immigration as a “massive invasion […] that has spread misery, crime, poverty, disease, and destruction to communities all across our land.”


He surmised his anti-immigration testimonial declaring that under a Republican leadership: “I will end the illegal immigration crisis by closing our border and finishing the wall, most of which I’ve already built.”

The wall which was halted under the Biden administration and by several judges overspending in the US Supreme Court.

Biden who? Trump only makes two jibes at his opponents
Though minimal, his comments packed a punch.

Mr Trump made a jibe against Joe Biden’s tenure, stating: “The damage that he’s done to this country is unthinkable. It’s unthinkable.”

While he described the current president’s administration as worse than the 10 worst presidencies combined, he avoided highlighting recent concerns over Mr Biden’s mental fitness.

He only mentioned the incumbent president one more time in the speech, telling the crowd: “Biden. I’m not going to use the name anymore. Just one time.”

Kamala Harris was also omitted from his statements.

Prices are up and again, it’s unlike anything we’ve seen before – oh and it’s false.
Financial Markets New York
Financial Markets New York (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Mr Trump was quick to blame Mr Biden for Americans feeling the pinch of the cost-of-living crisis.

He said: "Inflation, remember, it’s called a country buster. You can go back to Germany from 100 years ago. You can go back to any country that’s suffered great inflation. We’ve suffered the worst inflation we’ve ever had. But go back and see what’s happened to those countries. We’ve had the worst inflation we’ve ever had under this person."

Trump highlighted that the “inflation crisis is making life unaffordable” using harsh rhetoric to describe how the pinch is “ravaging” low-income families and “eating you alive”.

He even said that he could make inflation “vanish completely” sending incomes skyrocketing at a rapid rate – comments which would appeal to us all if they could be realistically achieved.

Inflammatory statements on the economy were epitomised in his false claims that record inflation persisted under Mr Biden.

Inflation in the US stood at 3 per cent in June, while Mr Trump claimed it was at a massive 23.7 per cent (something not seen since the Great Depression).

Celebrities on board to welcome Trump to the stage

Hulk Hogan rips shirt off on Republican National Convention stage
Several celebrities were on hand to mark Mr Trump’s confirmation as the Republican candidate for president.

Professional wrestler Hulk Hogan and singer Kid Rock took to the stage to fire up the crowds, with the former tearing his tank top to reveal a Trump/Vance shirt underneath.

Trump described Kid Rock’s desire to get involved: “I want to be a part, because, you know, Kid does this great song. Big, big monster song. I had no idea. You know, he became a friend of mine over the last 10 years. And, uh, he’s amazing. Everyone loves him.”

Last but not least: Trump uses Hannibal Lecter to vilify immigrants
Trumps used a bizarre Silence of the Lambs analogy to vilify migrants during his speech.

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“You know, the press is always on me because I say this [...] Has anyone seen Silence of the Lambs? The late great Hannibal Lecter. He’d love to have you for dinner. That’s insane asylums, they’re emptying out their insane asylums.”

This villainous dichotomy is not a stunt he’s pulled as a means to creating division in the US but as expected, Anthony Hopkins was shocked and appalled, according to the Hill.

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