(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump loves to dole out nicknames to his political rivals -- and they almost always carry an edge of cruelty.
That was certainly the intention when he compared Democrat Pete Buttigieg to Alfred E. Neuman in an interview with Politico.
To those of a certain age -- particularly white men -- Alfred E. Neuman was the geeky, gap-toothed, smiling face of subversion featured in Mad Magazine. To those not of that vintage, he might as well be Charles Bukowski. As a result, Buttigieg, the 37-year-old South Bend, Indiana, mayor running for the 2020 Democratic nomination, had no idea what Trump was talking about.
“I’ll be honest, I had to Google that,” he said. “I guess it’s just a generational thing. I didn’t get the reference.” Neuman first appeared in a 1930s postcard saying, “Sure, I’m for Roosevelt.” Later, when Mad appropriated him, editor Al Feldstein said he wanted the character to be “lovable and have an intelligence behind his eyes. But I want him to have this devil-may-care attitude.”Ironically, Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and a senior White House adviser, was portrayed as Alfred E. Neuman by Mad in 2017.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Fellow candidate stands up for Mayor Pete after homophobic protesters heckle himGet breaking national and world news, broadcast video coverage, and exclusive interviews. Find the top news online at ABC news.
Read more »
Mayor Pete tries to have it both ways on God's political partyEither God is off-limits from politics or he's not, writes CillizzaCNN -- but you can't despair that Republicans have been playing politics with religion for years and then immediately do the exact same thing | CNNPolitics Analysis
Read more »
Mayor Pete Buttigieg asks for help diversifying his baseMayor Pete Buttigieg's is trying to solve his self-described diversity issue early in the presidential campaign.
Read more »
Mayor Pete blindsides Harris in California'Nobody is ceding California to Kamala Harris': Mayor Pete raids the West Coast
Read more »
Mayor Pete blindsides Kamala Harris in CaliforniaButtigieg isn’t viewed as a direct threat to Harris. But his rapid rise, appeal to millennial voters and newfound popularity among Hollywood and Silicon Valley donors stands to hinder her ability to lock down her backyard
Read more »
Mayor Pete doesn't offer staffers health care; is it part of scaling up?South Bend, Ind. Mayor Pete Buttigieg is the only top 2020 candidate not offering staffers health care yet. Instead, Buttigieg is providing a monthly stipend to workers to buy insurance on their own through the Obamacare exchanges. Josh Lederman discusses.
Read more »
Pete Buttigieg responds to Trump insult with Chinese proverb about building walls and windmillsButtigieg subtlety criticized President Trump as someone that cannot deal with change through a Chinese proverb that referenced building windmills and walls.
Read more »
Pete Buttigieg says he had to Google 'Alfred E. Neuman' after Trump insultThe Democratic candidate said he thought the comparison was 'kinda funny' but suggested that perhaps the president could have made better use of his time.
Read more »
London Mayor: Trump doesn't deserve red carpetDonald Trump is not worthy of his upcoming ceremonial state visit to Britain, suggested London Mayor Sadiq Khan, saying that the US President is not 'in the same class' as his predecessors
Read more »
President Trump amplifies far-right voices in protest of Facebook banPres. Donald Trump took to Twitter on Saturday to blast social media platforms for unfairly marginalizing conservative voices, days after Facebook banned several so-called extremist users from its platform.
Read more »