US governors Jindal, Haley among those insulted by Trump

New York, October 25

Indian-American governors Bobby Jindal and Nikki Haley, as well as an Indian-origin scribe were among those on the receiving end of Donald Trump’s barbs on social media, according to a New York Times compilation of people, places and things the Republican has insulted since declaring his bid for presidency.

“Since declaring his candidacy for president last June, Donald Trump has used Twitter to lob insults at presidential candidates, journalists, news organisations, nations, a Neil Young song and even a lectern in the Oval Office. We know this because we’ve read, tagged and quoted them all,” the daily said.

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The Times has prepared a “complete list” of 281 people, places and things Trump has insulted on Twitter since declaring his bid to run for President.

Part of the long list is Jindal, former Louisiana Governor, who Trump said, was “lightweight”, “registered at less than one per cent in the polls”, “spent $1,000 to register in New Hampshire & dropped out the next day. Such a waste!”

For South Carolina Governor Haley, he said, “The people of South Carolina are embarrassed by Nikki Haley!” Insults lobbed by Trump at Indian-origin journalist at CBS News, Sopan Deb, include “dishonest reporting”, “should be fired”, “lied” and “dishonest”.

Deb was handcuffed and briefly detained by the Chicago Police while he was covering Trump’s election rally in Chicago in March this year.

Hillary Clinton’s top aide Huma Abedin, whose father is from India and mother from Pakistan, was termed a “major security risk” by Trump.

According to the list, Trump has not even spared a podium in the Oval Office, saying it “looks odd” and “not good”.

Others at the receiving end of his insults are his rival Clinton, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is “ruining Germany”, “dopey” Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal who “wants to control our US politicians with daddy’s money” and former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg who, Trump said, “never had the guts to run for president” and “his last term as mayor was a disaster”.

The list includes media giants like NYT itself, AP, CNN, Fortune, Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal to the US visa system (“broken, like so much else in our country”), trans-Pacific Partnership, Obamacare, Iran Nuclear deal, the electoral process and the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation, which he called a “criminal enterprise”. PTI