President Donald Trump revived two of his strangest grievances on Thursday ― electric power and sharks ― as he recounted a conversation with the owner of a boat company.
“I said, ‘Let me ask you a question: If you get a little leak and the water starts coming in your boat and you’re in electric, do you get electrocuted or not?’” Trump said. “He said, ‘You know, nobody’s ever asked me that question.’”
That led Trump to pose a how’d-you-rather situation.
“So, if I’m in an electric boat and I see I’m going down and the water’s pouring in, so I know I’m gonna be electrocuted, but five yards away there are sharks, do I take the electrocution or do I go swimming with the sharks?” Trump asked. “And you know what my answer was? I’ll take the electrocution. OK? I’ll take the electro.”
As Trump noted, he enjoyed “driving the press crazy” by frequently telling versions of the same story in 2023 and 2024, when he was running for president.
It also seems he still hasn’t learned much about boats, given that the risk of electrocution isn’t limited to electric-powered vessels. Many gas-powered watercraft have batteries for onboard appliances, which can lead to injuries and even death from electric shock drowning. As the Boat Owners Association of the United States noted, electrocution is commonly caused by “faulty wiring and equipment on boats or docks.”
If nothing else, Trump’s tale fits two common themes of his: He hates nearly everything involving renewable energy ― from electric cars to wind turbines ― and really, really, really does not like sharks.
In 2011, then-porn star Stormy Daniels told In Touch Weekly that he was “obsessed” with the sea creatures, and not in a good way.
“Terrified of sharks,” she said. “He was like, ‘I donate to all these charities and I would never donate to any charity that helps sharks. I hope all the sharks die.’”
Greg Skomal/Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries via AP
Daniels claimed to have had an affair with Trump, which the former president has denied. But he did inadvertently back her claim about sharks.
“I’m not a big fan of sharks,” he admitted in 2020. “I have people calling me up, ‘Sir, we have a fund to save the shark, it’s called Save The Shark.’ I say, ‘No, thank you, I have other things I can contribute to.’”
Trump even got in a dig at sharks on Thursday as he described speed restrictions for boats that he plans to reverse via executive action.
“They didn’t want to hurt something in the water,” he said. “They didn’t want to hurt sharks. It’s unbelievable.”
Critics also found Trump’s comments unbelievable: