It is the picture of the tie, like the echo of the words, that lingers. The tie no longer secured in its big, boastful knot, but rather hanging limply around the neck, like a boxer on the ropes. The tie, that has been as close to a sartorial spirit animal as President Donald Trump has had, along with his red MAGA hat and his elaborately constructed hair, completely untied.
The tie as it was in the small hours of Sunday morning as the president arrived at Andrews military base from his ill-fated campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, later landing by helicopter at the White House and striding across the South Lawn, MAGA cap crushed in one hand. The tie as most observers could never remember seeing it before, at least around the neck of this president.
Together, the two accessories created an image as striking as those of the sparsely populated rows in Tulsa, and the empty overflow area outside. And as potentially symbolic, though probably not in the way Trump would like.
MOMENTS AGO: President Trump arrives at the White House from Joint Base Andrews. He is holding a 'Make America Great Again' hat. pic.twitter.com/e94ILNFP44
— The Hill (@thehill) June 21, 2020
After all, this is not a president who ascribes to the shirt sleeves photo op. Not someone who invites his electorate in to see him, jacket tossed aside, elbows-deep in work at his desk. Not someone interested, like President Barack Obama and former Prime Minister David Cameron of Britain or even former Vice President Joe Biden, who seems equally comfortable with or without a tie, in announcing his sensitivity to the younger generation and their value system by willingly rejecting the suit.