In an appearance on MSNBC, actor Jeff Daniels explained how the message of President Donald Trump’s recent AI-generated video in which he dropped feces on “No Kings” protesters could eventually backfire with Midwest voters.
Massive crowds flooded streets across the country on Saturday for “No Kings” protests denouncing Trump’s policies, with major demonstrations in New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Miami, and Los Angeles. Organizers said the demonstrations—which drew nearly seven million participants nationwide—remained overwhelmingly peaceful.
Trump was criticized after he took to Truth Social over the weekend to share a bizarre AI-generated video of himself dumping poop on crowds of demonstrators from a fighter jet.
The video depicts Trump wearing a crown and flying a fighter jet emblazoned with the words “King Trump.” Set to Kenny Loggins’ “Danger Zone,” the doctored clip shows him releasing a massive load of feces onto protesters gathered in New York City’s Times Square.
You can see it below.
Daniels said that Trump’s antics will eventually repel Midwestern voters who voted for him to “deliver on the economy like he promised”:
“Do we really have to treat people like that? You know, the meme that he had where he was flying with the crown and spewing excrement all over the people down below. Would Lincoln have done that? Nixon wouldn’t have done it, you know, Reagan wouldn’t have done it, Bush wouldn’t have done it, either Bush.”
“It’s just, I think people in the Midwest, where I am, still have this … we value our decency and our civility, and you know, we don’t get taken with whatever goes on on the coasts. You know, we got a chip on our shoulder about that. I think it matters.”
“It may not matter right away when you’re voting, but down the road, if he doesn’t deliver on the economy like he promised he would, then that stuff will start to add up. And they’ll get tired of it and they’ll vote for change, which is what they always do.”
“Every generation changes things. And we’re in a place now where they want to change it back to whatever that was. And I don’t think people are as afraid of change, and we’ll find out at midterms.”
“I don’t think they’re afraid of change. I think they wanted things to get solved, you know, economically, but I think when it comes to decency and civility and respect for the rule of law, which governs all of us, whether we’re left or right, will matter again.”
You can hear what he said in the video below.
Many concurred with his assessment.
The “No Kings” protests and Trump’s reaction to them have resonated around the country.
A survey by the Public Religion Research Institute found that 56% of Americans view Trump as a “potentially dangerous dictator whose power should be limited before he destroys democracy,” compared with 41% who described him as a “strong leader who should be given the power he needs to restore America’s greatness.”
That 15-point gap has nearly doubled since April, when the margin stood at just 8 points (52%-44%).
