One of President Donald Trump’s ultimate tells is the phrase “as you know.” Whenever Trump says something and follows it with “as you know,” it’s got one of two purposes. The first is flattery, as in, “I know that you are privy to this incredible insight that I have, too.” The second is conspiratorial, making you complicit in his lies. If he says something absurdly false and adds “as you know,” barring anyone shouting out, “No, I don’t fucking know,” he’s essentially acting as if you have assented to the lies.
For the idiot hordes of his voters, it doesn’t matter. For the rest of us, it should be alarming. Trump could say, “I strangle hobos with Ivanka’s panties and lean in to kiss them as they take their last breath because it’s the only thing that makes me ejaculate, as you know.” We might raise a hand and say, “I’m sorry. Could you go back to that strangling part? We didn’t really know that.” Trump voters would nod and say, “Yes, of course, we know about the hobogasm. Do continue,” and then, when Democrats started to complain about the president jizzing on hobo corpses, they’d get outraged and tell us, “Look, we all know that’s who he is. We don’t care.”
