Jon Stewart took a couple minutes out of his Monday program to mock the strange, idiosyncratic way that President-elect Donald Trump shakes the hands of world leaders.
Donald Trump flew to France over the weekend to celebrate the reopening of Notre Dame in Paris, where he met with leaders from across the globe. The medieval cathedral re-opened its doors Saturday, five years after a fire devastated the landmark in April 2019.
Trump continued the “long American tradition of not waiting until inauguration to become president to head overseas and meet with allies and remind everyone how f***ing weird he is about shaking hands,” The Daily Show host joked on Monday.
“Top-down, up-down, bottom, side-to-side, grab it, hit me on the flippity,” Stewart said as clips showed Trump peculiarly shaking the hands of French President Emmanuel Macron and Prince William. One clip captured Trump with his right elbow raised in the air at a 45-degree angle as he shakes Macron’s hand in a downward motion.
The president-elect visited the site alongside First Lady Jill Biden.
“It was a rare moment of conciliation — one that would have given this country hope had it not immediately been undermined by the returning president releasing an actual cologne ad belittling and sexualizing said moment,” Stewart quipped.
The president-elect appeared to use their friendly interaction to promote his new perfume and cologne line.
In a Sunday Truth Social post, Trump shared a photo of himself and the first lady chatting while in the pews of the French cathedral. Bold print over the photo declares: “A fragrance your enemies can’t resist!”
He wrote in the post: “Here are my new Trump Perfumes & Colognes! I call them Fight, Fight, Fight, because they represent us WINNING. Great Christmas gifts for the family.”
The Trump-branded perfume and cologne are both retailing for $199, according to the website.
“You f***ing won! You won! You don’t have to push merch anymore,” Stewart quipped. “I find it hard to believe that I’m saying this but it’s beneath you.”
