Letter to the Editor: Bread, circuses, and the president
Published 3:00 pm Thursday, June 25, 2026
I have never understood Trump’s grotesque fascination with human cock-fighting events. This narcissist is a frequent attendee of mixed martial arts events, he regularly celebrates combat sports personalities, and seems drawn to displays of physical dominance and celebrity culture. Trump salivates in the presence of dubious so-called “good looking” muscular men.
Trump relishes praising UFC fighters, commenting on athletes’ physiques, marveling at Arnold Palmer’s anatomy, or surrounding himself with celebrities (e.g. Sylvester Stallone, Tom Brady, Tiger Woods, military academy graduates and UFC fighters). Trump all too often seems more captivated by inauthentic and ornamental displays of strength and image than by the quiet, unglamorous work of governing.
Did you shrug when Trump publicly commented on the physical attributes of the late golfer Arnold Palmer during a campaign rally? I did not. I found it uncouth, bizarre, juvenile, and beneath the dignity of a presidential candidate, a president or a sensible astute person. More troubling, however, is what it symbolizes: Trump’s focus on personalities, entertainment and homoeroticism rather than governance.
How did you react to a revealing moment in America when UFC fighter low-life troglodyte Josh Hokit used a post-fight interview to smear Michelle Obama by calling her a man? Why did Hokit feel compelled to do that? Insecurities? He then asked the crowd for approval. His indignity and the cheers that followed were a sobering reminder that bigotry and racial resentment remain potent forces in America.
Equally troubling was the silence from Trump, Mike Johnson and Republicans who are notoriously quick to denounce offenses committed by their opponents but often look the other way when they or their allies do it. When racist taunts and Trump’s unseemly homoeroticism are rewarded with applause rather than condemnation, Americans should not dismiss them as jokes or isolated incidents. They are warning signs of a contemptible unwashed troglodytic low-life culture in America that increasingly rewards and encourages division, grievance, and the dehumanization of fellow citizens.
Immature Trump continues to vandalize America. Trump’s blatant lawlessness, kleptocracy, oil companies recording record profits, the lack of affordable healthcare, housing affordability, the gun violence epidemic, misuse of the military, retirement security will continue to bring America to its knees while we are too often treated to a steady stream of never ending spectacles. Appearances at sporting events (e.g., NBA Finals, the Super Bowl and the Daytona 500, UFC cage fighting), vanity-driven projects and made-for-television moments dominate the headlines while serious policy challenges remain unresolved.
The presidency is not a reality-TV entertainment franchise. It is a public trust. Citizens should expect leaders who devote their energy to solving problems, strengthening institutions, and serving all of the citizens in the nation—not cultivating a cult. Seventy thousand Americans looked at the mindblowing corruption, lawlessness, incompetence, chaos, the spectacle, the grievances, the self-promotion and decided they wanted more. So much for greatness (sarcasm). What have we done? Now, with emphasis: What have we done?! We are doomed.
Stanley McKie
Enumclaw
