There seems to be some confusion about Donald Trump’s weight.
People, who have nothing better to do with their lives, have been posting articles and commentary about the question.
Me — also having nothing better to do with my life — I’m willing to join in the fun. (And I bet even Mr. Trump will tweet about the question at some point. He will certainly have an opinion, as he does about most everything.)
The former President was booked last week at the Fulton County jail in Atlanta, charged with violating election laws… along with 18 co-defendants, the size of whom are also in question, but not as likely to end up in a humor column in the Daily Post.
Before I get into this issue, I will admit that I’m a few pounds overweight. Not obese. Just pleasantly plump.
It’s a struggle, to adjust our bodies to meet the Body Weight Index standards set by the folks at the Centers for Disease Control. And some of us have become skeptical, lately, of anything the CDC tells us. I assume Mr. Trump is among us. He seems to have no fear of questioning medical experts.
That said, we can get into the ‘meat’ of the matter.
The controversy started when Mr. Trump posed for his mug shot in Atlanta, and reporters found out that the Fulton County booking record listed his weight at 215 pounds. Not many men who are 6 foot 3 and who live on a diet of fast food can maintain a weight of 215 pounds.
Photographs of Mr. Trump (and my God, there are a lot of photographs of Mr. Trump online) suggest that he may have weighed a bit more than 215 pounds prior to his visit to Atlanta.
A crash diet?
A careless booking clerk?
A former President who occasionally exaggerates the situation?
An article on Insider.com suggested that Mr. Trump’s attorneys had helpfully reported their client’s weight prior to the booking. “215 pounds.” So I suppose we can blame the lawyers, knowing the challenging relationship that most lawyers have with the truth.
One question that comes to mind. Would it give America a bad reputation, globally, if we had a fat president? Most of our presidents, over the past 100 years, have been reasonably trim. Barack Obama was, in fact, something of a bean pole.
A few U.S. presidents have been hefty, however. I’m thinking of Grover Cleveland, for example. 260 pounds.
William Howard Taft, for another example.
340 pounds of political fury.
But it benefits us to remember: a big belly has been a sign of health and happiness, at certain times in history. And also, of spiritual strength, particularly in Asia. There are thousands of statues of Buddha reminding us that even fat people can reach Nirvana.
Perhaps in keeping with that Asian tradition, the president of North Korea, Kim Jong Un, appears to be the type of fellow who doesn’t skimp on the egg rolls. But he can still have nuclear missiles.
I guess what I’m trying to say is, this whole thing is kind of silly, worrying about who weighs how much. Lord knows there are other, more important things to worry about.
And better ways to judge a person’s worth.
Like, for example, their golf score.