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President Donald Trump welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping with a red carpet, a state dinner and enough extravagant praise to provide Seth Meyers with material across consecutiveLate Nightepisodes.
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Meyers played various clips of Trump describing Xi as “strong, smart, tough,” “a brilliant man,” “a great gentleman” and “a piece of granite.” Trump also complimented the Chinese leader’s “great look” and “great stature.”
Praise That Sounds Like a Setup
“Not even Chinese citizens gush this much about Xi,” Meyers joked.
He noted that Chinese authorities previously cracked down on social media comparisons between Xi and Winnie the Pooh.
“Trump thinks Xi is a piece of granite, and meanwhile Xi’s own citizens think he’s a cartoon bear; news that is going to make Trump so sad he will continue to have Eeyore’s posture,” he quipped.
“Exaggerated leader-to-leader praise goes viral because it triggers two reactions simultaneously: cringe and suspicion,” said Amore Philip, founder of Apples and Oranges Public Relations.
“The audience laughs because it sounds absurd. Then they ask why he is saying it,” she explained.
“That combination is the perfect formula for a late night punchline that also doubles as a political question nobody wants to answer directly,” she added.
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‘Best Buds’ With Xi Jinping
“Trump doesn’t care about the issues or the details of the meetings,” Meyers said. “All he cares about is being best buds with Xi.”
After showing a montage of Trump praising Xi’s appearance and personality, Meyers compared him to “a Long Island mom trying to set her adult daughter up on a date.”
Trump described their relationship as “a truly great friendship” built on “mutual respect and the vital interests of our people.”
A Spy Admission Draws Another Joke
“In fact, Trump has been so excited for Xi’s visit, he’s even been making excuses for China’s behavior toward the U.S.,” Meyers said, referring to Trump telling Fox News’s Laura Ingraham: “People say, oh, he spies on us. Well, we spy on him, too.”
“I think when you’re spying on someone, you’re not supposed to tell them that,” Meyers responded.
“Seth Meyers did not have to add a single joke. He just had to read the quotes out loud,” Philip said. “That is the definition of meme-ready political language: words that satirize themselves the moment they leave the room they were spoken in.”
