The internet is on fire talking about a handshake. Specifically, a handshake between U.S. President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe. It’s a weird handshake that goes on far too long even for Abe’s liking. Seriously.
This raises an important question: Does Donald Trump know how to shake hands with a fellow human being? We decided to take a deep dive in and find out. What we found is that the president has a tendency to pull powerful men toward him in a way that jerks them forward. It’s, uh, kind of strange. Don’t believe us? Here’s some proof.
Here he is doing it with former CNBC talk show host Donny Deutsch.
And here he is doing it with former “Apprentice” winner Bill Rancic. Notice he won’t let Rancic win.
Here, in a handshake with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the forcefulness of both men leads to an awkward game of tug of war.
Even Vice President Mike Pence is not immune to the Trump tug.
Nor is a very sad-looking Neil Gorsuch, Trump’s pick for the Supreme Court.
When Mitt Romney shook Trump’s hand a few years back, he tried to fight the tug. And he failed.
Somewhat oddly, Shinzō Abe didn’t get the full tug on Friday.
But he was clearly weirded out by the Trump handshake experience all the same.
So, does Donald Trump know how to shake hands? We’re going to go with no.