File under news that will absolutely not shock you at all: on Friday, President Trump tweeted that Time magazine told him he would “probably” be 2017’s “Person of the Year,” but that he turned down the annual honor. Time, on the other hand, begs to differ.
As you may remember, the president was 2016’s Time “Person of the Year” — and he’s now claiming that the magazine called to say they were thinking of selecting him again in 2017.
“Time Magazine called to say that I was PROBABLY going to be named “Man (Person) of the Year,” like last year, but I would have to agree to an interview and a major photo shoot,” the POTUS tweeted Friday evening. “I said probably is no good and took a pass. Thanks anyway!”
Time Magazine called to say that I was PROBABLY going to be named “Man (Person) of the Year,” like last year, but I would have to agree to an interview and a major photo shoot. I said probably is no good and took a pass. Thanks anyway!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 24, 2017
Hmm. Okay. If the whole scenario sounds kind of ridiculous, it’s because it probably never happened. According to Time, Trump’s story is completely false — and that the president is wrong about how the magazine even chooses its annual “Person of the Year.”
The President is incorrect about how we choose Person of the Year. TIME does not comment on our choice until publication, which is December 6.
— TIME (@TIME) November 25, 2017
“The President is incorrect about how we choose Person of the Year. TIME does not comment on our choice until publication, which is December 6,” the magazine tweeted in a statement following the controversy surrounding Trump’s tweet.
As CNN reports, this isn’t the first time the president has been outspoken about his feelings toward the magazine, often changing his opinion on it entirely. As early as 2012, Trump was tweeting that Time “lost all credibility” after it didn’t name him as one of its “100 Most Influential People.” He had similar sentiments toward the magazine in 2013 when he was, once again, not on the list.
However, his tune changed when he was named “Person of the Year” in 2016. “Thank you to Time Magazine and Financial Times for naming me “Person of the Year” – a great honor!” he tweeted only less than a year ago.
Thank you to Time Magazine and Financial Times for naming me “Person of the Year” – a great honor!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 15, 2016
Clearly, the president doesn’t even take a break from his pettiness for the long holiday weekend.