Dan Rather has some choice words, or rather, a little proverb for President Donald Trump.
The veteran broadcast journalist and former “CBS Evening News” anchor seemed to hit a nerve Monday, sharing on Facebook a post aimed squarely at Trump’s tumultuous administration — to nearly one million likes and more than 60,000 comments.
“When a clown moves into a palace he doesn’t become a king, the palace instead becomes a circus. — Turkish proverb,” the post reads.
Rather also shared a recent article of his in the comments of Monday’s post about Trump’s steep international tariffs and the U.S. economy, seemingly confirming the proverb was about him.
The premise of a clown entering a palace seemed to strike a chord.
“Perfect description of what is going on right now. I never understood people’s fear of clowns, until now…,” wrote one Facebook user, with another commenting: “My daughter used to be afraid of clowns. Here is one we can all be afraid of.”
Trump has certainly created the current White House in his image.
The proverb itself likely originated with the Circassians, Sunni Muslims from the Northwestern Caucasus, and is not specifically Turkish. Regional newspaper Türkiye Today noted as much after NBA star LeBron James shared the words on Instagram in February.
“Turkish proverb / American reality,” one user nonetheless argued on Rather’s post Monday.
Mark Schiefelbein/Associated Press
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In his career, Rather covered some of the biggest events in modern history, including the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Gulf War and 9/11. He was fired in 2006 over reporting on then-President George W. Bush’s National Guard service — and later sued the network for $70 million.
Rather has spent his retirement sharing his political thoughts on Facebook and Substack.
