President Donald Trump has hit back against claims that White House employees believed his "mental powers were slipping," describing himself on Twitter on Saturday morning as a "very stable genius" and "like, really smart."
The claims, published in journalist Michael Wolff's explosive book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, sparked a stream of furious posts from the president, who is at Camp David this weekend for meetings with Republican leaders.
In a series of extraordinary tweets, the president blamed Democrats and the media for questioning his mental stability and intelligence.
Now that Russian collusion, after one year of intense study, has proven to be a total hoax on the American public,… https://t.co/3RTHPrrh6n
"Actually, throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart," he tweeted.
....Actually, throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart.… https://t.co/G3374En0XQ
Falsely claiming he won the presidency on his first try (he launched a failed campaign for the 2000 election), he finished, "I think that would qualify as not smart, but genius....and a very stable genius at that!"
....to President of the United States (on my first try). I think that would qualify as not smart, but genius....and… https://t.co/X3UO2xDvEv
Many Twitter users were left stunned by the president's tweets.
@realDonaldTrump Ragetweeting at 7am from the White House about how, like, really smart you are may not be the best… https://t.co/KUi5bg0vVL
The use of the word "like" was particularly galling for some.
Even I wouldn’t put ‘like’ in the sentence and I went to a girls school in the 90s https://t.co/75MlyV4TRQ
Others wondered whether the quote would be more at home in The Simpsons...
I’m, like, really smart. Genius. Super duper smart. Bigly intelligent. Best brain. Big boy words. ~ Donald J.… https://t.co/jlrrXQW4Me
Zoolander...
....Actually, throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart.
Or Step Brothers.
“Actually, throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart.”
Even Mindy Kaling got in on the fun.
Hahahahahaha
Many people thought Trump's words were straight out of Mean Girls.
Actually, throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart.
'being, like, really smart' - Regina George, Mean Girls (2004) https://t.co/kFBty55KjT
Is it just me who read the 'being, like, really smart..' bit in Gretchen Wiener's voice from Mean Girls? https://t.co/2ICyp07jUg
The "stable genius" line also paved the way for a bunch of horse jokes.
Nothing but respect for my stable genius
STABLE GENIUS
“stable genius”
Speaking on Saturday afternoon to reporters, the president said he posted the tweets because he went to a good college and made billions of dollars. He described Wolff's book as "a work of fiction."
Q: Why did you feel the need to tweet about your mental state? Trump: Only because I went to the best colleges or c… https://t.co/svbWARzEzE
On Friday night, the president described Wolff, a veteran but controversial reporter, as "a total loser" who made up stories for his "really boring and untruthful book."
Trump also attacked Steve Bannon, the executive chair of Breitbart News and ousted presidential chief strategist who spoke to Wolff for the book and mocked the president's children.
Michael Wolff is a total loser who made up stories in order to sell this really boring and untruthful book. He used… https://t.co/sk2TeLbqjo
In recent months, some Democrats began reaching out to mental health experts with the aim of removing the president from office.
Trump's intelligence, too, has been mocked — even by his own staff.
In November, sources revealed to BuzzFeed News that National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster told guests at a private dinner that the president has the intelligence of a “kindergartner."
NBC News also reported that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called Trump a "moron" after a July meeting.