In Donald Trump\u2019s world there are weeks and then there are weeks. This one was a doozy. From declaring war on Tylenol to an escape with an escalator, Trump surpassed himself with his gaffes, outlandish statements and unhinged stunts \u2013 many of which involve decisions with real world consequences.<\/p>\n
This was the week in the theatre of the politically absurd:<\/p>\n
Saturday<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cPam\u201d, Trump wrote on social media, addressing Pam Bondi, the attorney general. The president demanded<\/a> that Bondi pursue legal action against political adversaries including James Comey, a former FBI Director, and Letitia James, the New York attorney general, whose name he misspelled as \u201cLeticia\u201d.<\/p>\n Pronouncing them \u201call guilty as hell\u201d, Trump insisted: \u201cWe can\u2019t delay any longer, it\u2019s killing our reputation and credibility.\u201d But the president deleted his Truth Social post about an hour later, prompting speculation that he had been trying to send Bondi a direct message but hit the wrong button.<\/p>\n Sunday<\/strong><\/p>\n Speaking at a memorial service for the killed rightwing activist Charlie Kirk, Trump delivered a message that stood in stark contrast to the event\u2019s prevailing theme of reconciliation.<\/p>\n The president recalled that Kirk had said he wanted his ideological opponents to know he loved them. \u201cThat\u2019s where I disagreed with Charlie,\u201d he said<\/a>. \u201cI hate my opponents and I don\u2019t want the best for them, I\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n In another jarring moment during a singing of America the Beautiful, Trump performed a little dance as he stood beside Kirk\u2019s grieving widow, Erika.<\/p>\n Monday<\/strong><\/p>\n Trump directed the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to issue new guidance advising pregnant women to avoid acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, citing an unproven link to autism.<\/p>\n But \u201cacetaminophen\u201d proved tough to pronounce. \u201cEffective immediately, the FDA will be notifying physicians<\/a> that the use of aceta \u2013 well, let\u2019s see how we say that,\u201d Trump said. \u201cAcetam \u2013 enophin. Acetaminophen. Is that OK? Which is basically commonly known as Tylenol.\u201d<\/p>\n Pregnant women with a high fever should consult their doctors about taking a small dose, the president added. \u201cIf you can\u2019t tough it out, if you can\u2019t do it, that\u2019s what you\u2019re going to have to do. You\u2019ll take a Tylenol, but it\u2019ll be very sparingly. I think you shouldn\u2019t take it.\u201d<\/p>\n A link between Tylenol and autism has not been established. Health experts pointed to a Swedish study<\/a> published last year that tracked 2.4m births and found no evidence of an association between prenatal exposure to the drug and autism.<\/p>\n Tuesday<\/strong><\/p>\n A decade after he descended a Trump Tower escalator to announce his run for president, Trump was stopped in his tracks<\/a> at the UN headquarters in New York. He and his wife, Melania, had just stepped on an escalator when it abruptly stopped.<\/p>\n In his address to the UN general assembly, Trump falsely claimed that he \u201cended seven wars\u201d and bitterly complained that he never received a phone call from UN leaders. \u201cAll I got from the United Nations<\/a> was an escalator that, on the way up, stopped right in the middle. If the first lady wasn\u2019t in great shape, she would have fallen, but she\u2019s in great shape. We\u2019re both in good shape.\u201d<\/p>\n He added: \u201cThese are the two things I got from the United Nations, a bad escalator and a bad teleprompter. Thank you very much.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump also used the global stage to boast of US glory and chastise world leaders: <\/strong>\u201cIt\u2019s time to end the failed experiment of open borders. You have to end it now. It\u2019s \u2013 I can tell you. I\u2019m really good at this stuff. Your countries are going to hell.\u201d<\/p>\n Wednesday<\/strong><\/p>\n Escalator-gate escalated further. In a 357-word social media screed,<\/a> Trump alleged: \u201cA REAL DISGRACE took place at the United Nations yesterday – Not one, not two, but three very sinister events! This wasn\u2019t a coincidence, this was triple sabotage at the UN. They ought to be ashamed of themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n The escalator \u201cstopped on a dime\u201d, he wrote, expressing relief that he and the first lady \u201cdidn\u2019t fall forward onto the sharp edges of these steel steps, face first\u201d. Then, when Trump took the podium, his teleprompter went \u201cstone cold dark\u201d, he added.<\/p>\n Then, after being forced to ad lib part of his speech to the general assembly, he asked his wife how he had done and she replied: \u201cI couldn\u2019t hear a word you said.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump demanded an immediate investigation, adding: \u201cAll security tapes at the escalator should be saved, especially the emergency stop button. The Secret Service is involved. Thank you for your attention to this matter!\u201d<\/p>\n The UN said a videographer from the US delegation who ran ahead of Trump may have inadvertently triggered the stop mechanism at the top of the escalator, while the White House was responsible for the teleprompter.<\/p>\n Thursday<\/strong><\/p>\n Trump kicked off an Oval Office meeting<\/a> with the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan by remarking: \u201cWe\u2019ve been friends for a long time, actually, even for four years when I was in exile \u2013 unfairly, as it turns out. Rigged election.\u201d<\/p>\n Pointing at Erdo\u011fan, he added: \u201cHe knows about rigged elections better than anybody.\u201d<\/p>\n During the meeting Trump also blamed the left for rising political violence, even though statistics show otherwise, and delivered a menacing warning: \u201cI mean, bad things happen when they play these games and I give you a little clue: the right is a lot tougher than the left. But the right\u2019s not doing this, they\u2019re not doing it and they better not get them energised, because it won\u2019t be good for the left.\u201d<\/p>\n Later, while signing executive orders, Trump veered off script to denounce Democratic congresswoman Jasmine Crockett<\/a>, who is Black. \u201cIs she any relation to the late, great Davy Crockett? I don\u2019t think so. Let me tell you before you even ask. She\u2019s a very low IQ person.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile he added a presidential walk of fame to the White House, featuring portraits of his himself and his predecessors \u2013 except for one. Instead of Joe Biden\u2019s portrait, Trump hung a photo of an autopen signing the Democratic president\u2019s name.<\/p>\n Friday<\/strong><\/p>\n Four days from a looming government shutdown, Trump went to see US golfers take on Europe in the Ryder Cup<\/a>. \u201cThe team is not doing so well,\u201d he explained. \u201cSo, when I heard that I said, \u2018Let\u2019s get on the plane. We have to fly and help them.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Trump also circled back to baseless medical advice, repeating his plea for pregnant women to stop using Tylenol. He also called for the measles-mumps-rubella combination vaccine to be split into separate shots, and for children not to get the hepatitis B vaccine, normally given in the first 24 hours after birth, before the age of 12 years.<\/p>\n