Every decade contributes a word or phrase that becomes so overused in political discourse it becomes meaningless and vague.

The 1970s had “malaise,” something associated with a speech given by President Jimmy Carter in which he actually never used the word.

The 1990s had “gravitas.” I know what it’s supposed to mean in Latin, but what I got from CNN talk shows of the era was that it was basically defined as Bill Clinton choosing a power tie to convey manly confidence. (In retrospect, it probably meant there were some new interns starting work at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. that day.)

As for the current decade, I’ve gotten dizzy with these overused, shopworn words and phrases, but the one I loathe more than any other — edging out “privilege” and “positionality” for top spot on the over-employment podium — is “gaslighting.”

At this point, “gaslighting” essentially means “whatever a person more conservative than I am says that doesn’t comport with reality,” at least as currently deployed.

It is — or was, considering the phrase has been watered down to the point where it’s lost all meaning — a real phenomenon, one where a person psychologically manipulates another individual into believing that everything they observe might be a delusion.

The term derives from a 1944 film called “Gaslight” in which one character concocts an elaborate scheme to convince his wife that’s what’s real is false and what’s false is real, thus leading her to so doubt reality that she’s almost at the point of institutionalization.

In other news, some among the party that attempted to convince us that Joe Biden was as fit as a fiddle mentally and physically — despite his obvious decline even before he was elected president — is now trying to push the idea that a bruise on President Donald Trump’s hand is a sign of a serious physical condition, despite the fact that it’s happened before and there’s a totally rational explanation for it.

In case you missed it, here’s the very important bruise that lefties insist you should be very worried and demand answers about:

Scrolling Getty and couldn’t help but notice this photo of a huge bruise on Trump’s hand today pic.twitter.com/LY9LFypsFF

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 25, 2025

Whoa, this looks exactly like the bruises Trump had before on his right hand.

Trump holding newspapers: August 2020
Trump with Elon: December 2024

Is Trump hiding a medical condition? Is this why he wouldn’t release his medical records? https://t.co/cporbWKm0X pic.twitter.com/u1T84XiihN

— Gabe Sanchez (@iamgabesanchez) February 25, 2025

And, in fact, some of the conspiracy theorists even knew what the explanation was — and still insisted on saying, “But is it really the explanation?”

The White House just said the mysterious makeup-covered bruise on Trump’s right hand is because he is “shaking hands all day every day.”

Trump has still refused to release his full medical report. pic.twitter.com/QaN7d9KIgt

— No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen (@NoLieWithBTC) February 25, 2025

Yes, that’s right — as president, he shakes people’s hands. Shocker! Demand answers!

“President Trump is a man of the people,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, according to an NBC News report about the bruise filed Tuesday. “His commitment is unwavering, and he proves that every single day.”

“President Trump has bruises on his hand because he’s constantly working and shaking hands all day every day,” she added.

“The bruise was visible during Trump’s visit with French President Emmanuel Macron at the White House on Monday,” NBC noted in its report.

And this was reported in March 2024, when he was on the campaign trail, as well. As The Hill noted in a report, “Donald Trump’s hands have gotten roughed up by enthusiastic fans, at times creating bruises, with the former president acknowledging he has had to get over being a germaphobe.”

During a profile interview with the Washington Examiner’s Byron York, York described how, after delivering a speech, “Trump walked along a rope line on his way out of the room. He shook hand after hand, but rather than a simple handshake, some excited admirers would grasp his hand so heartily, and squeeze so hard, that Trump had to pull back to move on to the next person. Near the end of the line, one woman seized Trump’s hand so vigorously that a Secret Service agent had to deliver a sort of mini karate chop — nothing violent, just a firm tap — to break up the one-sided embrace.”

York then asked Trump about the hand-shaking and his alleged germaphobia.

“‘In this business, you just have to get over it,’ he said. He held out his right hand and showed that the back was covered by a large, greenish bruise. There were also marks left by female admirers with carefully manicured nails. It happened all the time, he said,” the piece noted.

Yet now we’re concerned about this. Meanwhile, this was the guy whose mental fitness we weren’t allowed to question, lest we be considered ageist:

Here’s that moment Joe Biden was talking about playing record players for kids pic.twitter.com/7t5CIoEKpq

— BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) September 13, 2019

Joe Biden: “We have to take care of the cure. That will make the problem worse no matter what — no matter what.”

WHAT??????????????????? pic.twitter.com/ao2IGDr6x9

— Caleb Hull (@CalebJHull) March 24, 2020

JOE BIDEN: “In beer brew here… Huh ish issah use to make the brew beer here.. Issh Weer-fining… Oooooh Earth Rider… Thanks for the Great Lakes!” pic.twitter.com/qfHeoIxEj1

— The First (@TheFirstonTV) January 25, 2024

Joe Biden Tried to Talk to a Dead Woman That He Knew Was Dead

On September 28, 2022, Joe Biden, in a speech to a crowd at a hunger conference said:

“Jackie are you here? Where’s Jackie? … She must not be here.”

On August 3, 2022, The White House published a statement from Joe… pic.twitter.com/5vIf5VW4LK

— justredpillme (@justredpillme) May 28, 2024

But nobody could question this man’s fitness, lest they be considered a conspiracy theorist. Until the debate, then he was shuffled offstage posthaste.

Now, the left is worried about a … bruise on the hand of a guy who shakes a lot of hands.

As the “gaslit” woman said in the movie that gave the phenomenon its name: “Have you gone mad, my husband? Or is it I who am mad?”

And just like in the movie, nobody was really mad. It’s all just the deliberate manipulation of reality. But please, do tell us more about how Trump and the right are “gaslighting” America, gaslighters.

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