Trump posts bizarre video of himself dancing and having his hair ruffled for 2020 campaign

Hollywood romance-style animated film launched ahead of next year’s election and amid growing impeachment crisis

Harry Cockburn
Tuesday 01 October 2019 14:21 BST
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Donald Trump 2020 campaign 'Keep America Great'

An election is coming in the US next year, and while the Democrats scrap for the top ticket, Donald Trump’s campaign to win another four years in the White House is already well underway.

The US president has broadcast a short animated film in which he appears as a flickering, lightly sketched figure in some of the memorable moments from his last successful presidential campaign – hugging the stars and stripes, having his hair ruffled by talkshow host Jimmy Fallon, dancing to Drake’s “Hotline Bling” on Saturday Night Live, and then being sworn-in as president.

While these pertinent visual reminders of how America came to elect Mr Trump play out, a sentimental surge of minor chords are struck on a piano, accompanied by a sweep of violins and imperial bass drum hits.

As the music reaches its saccharine crescendo, the quivering line-drawings give way to oscillating text which reads: “Donald Trump Wins”, and then “Keep America Great” – Mr Trump’s 2020 election campaign slogan.

The ad is made in the recognisable style of a Hollywood trailer, albeit one twisted from the bowels of the American dream, as it comes while the president launches “increasingly unhinged tirades,” as CNN describes them, while he fights an aggressive impeachment effort.

The impeachment bill, or in the president’s words, “The Greatest Witch Hunt in the history of our Country!”, centres on a whistleblower who alleges Mr Trump sought foreign interference in the 2020 American elections for his “own personal political interests”.

This includes the allegation Mr Trump asked officials in Ukraine to investigate Democrat Party candidate Joe Biden’s son in an apparent effort to find evidence of any wrongdoing or misdemeanors which could damage his potential opponent.

In a whirlwind of fulmination and posturing, Mr Trump quoted a US pastor who said the president’s removal from office “will cause a Civil War like fracture in this nation”, and also called for Democrat representative and House Intelligence chairman Adam Schiff – the face of the impeachment inquiry – to be tried for treason.

But Mr Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, has admitted he asked senior Ukrainian officials to investigate widely debunked bribery allegations against Mr Biden.

The Democrats have now issued a subpoena for the communication records of the relevant phone calls from Mr Giuliani.

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