Since the announcement of the winner, Trump has not yet been in it appeared publicly. But a sample of Trump’s tweets in recent days show that he is not admitting defeat.
‘Don’t just give up’
He writes: “I won the election with 71 million legal votes”, “Fraud has taken place” and “Since when does the media determine who the next president is?”
So far, any evidence whatsoever when it comes to electoral fraud is lacking. The ex-wife of the president is also involved in the discussion. “I’m completely done with it,” said Ivana, who was married to Trump from 1977 to 1992. “Donald is not a good loser, so he will not just want to give up this fight.”
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Why doesn’t Trump just admit his loss? According to professor of social psychology Kees van den Bos, there are good and bad losers. “Man is a purposeful being. Trump had only one goal in mind in recent weeks: to be re-elected again. If that does not happen, it will evoke a lot of anger and disappointment. says van den Bos.
“With Trump, you see that anger comes out on Twitter. The blame is mainly sought with the other.” For example at Biden, the polling stations or the media.
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Concession speech
By not admitting his loss for the time being, Trump is also breaking with a long-standing American tradition: the concession speech. The form of this speech may vary, but usually the losing presidential candidate admits defeat, congratulates the new president and calls the people to unity. How did Trump’s predecessors handle this?
The most recent concession speech is that of Democrat Hillary Clinton. She lost to Trump four years ago.
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The loss came as a big surprise to Clinton. Although she and Trump weren’t big fans of each other, she gave a speech the next day. “Last night I congratulated Donald Trump and suggested that he work with him for the benefit of our country. I hope he will be a successful president for all Americans.”
Losers or winners
Trump himself said one year after the election – via Twitter, which he often uses – what he thinks of Clinton. “Hillary Clinton is the worst (and biggest) loser ever,” he wrote in his tweet at the time. “Get on with your life and try again in three years.”
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The word losers is more common in Trump’s tweets. “Trump has been dividing people into winners or losers for years,” says Van den Bos. “If you keep thinking in those two categories, it can be difficult to admit that you yourself are sometimes a loser.”
2008 speech is now going viral
Someone known as one of the top losers in the US presidential election is John McCain. He lost to Barack Obama in 2008. McCain’s speech was widely shared last week because, according to Americans, it “ contrasts with what is happening now. ”
McCain not only congratulated Obama, but also extensively praised him. Even when McCain’s backers started to shout after mentioning Obama’s name in the speech, he calmed the audience.
“This is a historic election and I recognize its special importance to African Americans,” said McCain.
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Are there really bad and good losers? “Yes, they exist,” says Van den Bos. “That may have to do with personality and life experience. McCain, for example, was a professional soldier in the navy. There you learn discipline and learn that you are part of a larger whole.”
“As a businessman, Trump is used to putting his self-interest first. In that area he also thought it important to win.”
Still his way?
Even before the end of this week, new ones cases brought by Trump’s legal team. According to the Trump camp, there is ‘strong evidence’ that the elections have been stolen. But the chance that Trump will still become president is very small. To still win, a huge number of ballots would have to be declared invalid.
And so it seems likely that Biden will take over from Trump on January 20, 2021 as president of the United States. Or one more before then concession speech comes from Trump, is wait and see.
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