Fallacious Trump

In the seventy-first episode we explore the Anecdotal Fallacy, starting out with Trump telling stories of employees whose children were turned autistic with vaccines, and friends who were cured by hydroxychloroquine. In Mark's British Politics Corner (yes, Mark is actually back!) we look at the Irish and Thai leaders explaining why they relied on anecdotal evidence when they stopped vaccinatin...

In the seventieth episode we explore the Appeal to Anonymous Authority, starting out with Trump claiming 'the best analysts' predicted a stock market crash if Biden won, and that there are those who say you can test too much. We also heard about his extremely credible source for birtherism, and got a masterclass in combatting this fallacy from WH Press Secretary Jen Psaki. In Mark's Br...

In the sixty-ninth episode we explore the Imposter Fallacy, starting out with Trump claiming the Deep State have infiltrated the FDA and various people claiming Antifa attacked the Capitol on January 6. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Alistair Campbell claiming Corbyn supporters are actually trying to bring down the Labour Party. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples f...

In the sixty-eighth episode we explore Failing Occam's Razor, starting out with Trump not understanding why he didn't get more mail in ballots and Lou Dobbs wondering why there's no proof of election fraud. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Therese Coffey and Baron McColl claiming obesity, age and population density are the reasons for the UK's atrocious COVID respon...

In the sixty-seventh episode we explore the Argumentum ad Lunam, starting out with Trump claiming that we can give every child school choice since we put a man on the moon. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Boris Johnson claiming we can solve Brexit since we put a man on the moon. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from The Garbage Pail Kids Movie, Scott Pilgrim vs Th...

In the sixty-sixth episode we explore Promised Proof, starting out with Trump promising proof for rain in France and Mexico sending their criminals to the US, and a Trump supporter promising proof of Antifa attacking the Capitol. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Boris Johnson promising that he has seen evidence that Dominic Cummings didn't do anything wrong, but you can't s...

Happy New Year! It's part two of our special present to our lovely listeners, our breakdown of the Donald Trump movie Ghosts Can't Do It! And this part has the actual Donald Trump cameo in it (which won him a Razzie for Worst Supporting Actor) and you don't even have to wait long, as it's pretty much the first scene we talk about this time! Anyway, enjoy part two of our take on one...

Merry Christmas! As a special present to our lovely listeners, we thought we'd give you the breakdown we did of the Donald Trump movie Ghosts Can't Do It! OK, technically, it's a Bo Derek movie, but the Donald does have a cameo (for which he won a Razzie for Worst Supporting Actor) - but you'll have to wait until part 2 on New Year's Day to hear us laugh at his bit. Yes, like a...

In the sixty-fifth episode we explore the Argument from Consequences, starting out with Trump unable to accept either the results of the election or climate change. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Boris Johnson promising we wouldn't end up in the No Deal situation we are currently in. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, Conta...

In the sixty-fourth episode we explore the Thought-Terminating Cliché, starting with Trump dismissing hundreds of thousands of dead Americans as "It is what it is", and arguing that election fraud is common sense. Then various Republicans claim now is not the time to talk about gun control. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Rishi Sunak and others deflecting questions on the...

In the sixty-third episode we explore the Ad Hoc Fallacy, starting with Trump making shit up about why he lost the election (and also pretending he didn't lose the election). In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Piers Morgan interviewing Matt Hancock and Nigel Farage. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from 12 Angry Men, The Simpsons Movie, and Uri Geller's appea...

In the sixty-second episode we explore the Ambiguity Fallacy, starting with Trump vaguely claiming the coronavirus will go away on its own. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Boris Johnson being ambiguous about how much money he'll pay the EU to leave. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from The Simpsons and No Country For Old Men. Jim and guest host Rachel go head...

In the sixty-first episode we explore the Prosecutor's Fallacy, starting with Trump misrepresenting a CDC study about masks and coronavirus. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Mark Francois confusing a claim by Will Self, and the Telegraph's reasoning regarding false positive coronavirus tests. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out real life legal cases including People v....

In the sixtieth episode we explore the Contextomy Fallacy, starting with Trump taking London Mayor Sadiq Khan out of context, and Bill Barr and Mike Pence doing the same to Robert Mueller and Ron Klain. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at both Boris Johnson awkwardly quoting song lyrics and Keir Starmer probably quoting himself. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from a...

In the fifty-ninth episode we explore the Argument by Slogan, starting with Trump rally crowds chanting "Lock her up!" and "Build that wall". In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at the various slogans the UK government have tried out for Coronavirus. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from Friends, Ryan Reynolds and the Colombian Tourist Board. Jim and Mark...

In the fifty-eighth episode we explore the Argument by Gibberish, starting with Trump talking nonsense about Obamacare and economic plans. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at the drivel Matt Hancock talks about coronavirus tests. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from Spies Like Us, Peter Sellers, a toothpaste ad and Billy Madison. Jim and Mark go head to head in Fake...

In the fifty-seventh episode Jim and special guest host Chris (Mark's away this week) explore the Politician's Fallacy, starting with Trump explaining his motivations for the China tariffs and the Muslim ban. In Chris' British Politics Corner we look at Brexit. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from Yes Minister and the world of British professional football. Jim and Ch...

In the fifty-sixth episode we explore the Accelerating Truth Fallacy, starting with Trump claiming Robert Mueller really wanted to be his FBI Director. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at the media's approach to a recent invasion of the UK by a few people in a rubber dinghy. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from a BBC documentary about Lewis Carroll, Twitter, and...

In the fifty-fifth episode we explore the Base Rate Fallacy, starting with Trump boasting that the police kill loads of white people and falsely claiming he rebuilt the military. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Boris Johnson and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez arguing about who's more coronavirusy. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from Letterkenny and QI...

In the fifty-fourth episode we explore the Appeal to Ridicule, starting with Trump asking if he should tell the FBI every time he talks to the Queen, and claiming Biden is anti-windows. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Matt Hancock laughing instead of answering a question. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from Dave Gorman, House M.D., and Friends. Jim and Mark go h...

In the fifty-third episode we explore the Appeal to the Law, starting with Trump and Giuliani claiming that paying off Stormy Daniels and colluding with Russia were both fine because there's no law against it. Then we heard Louie Gohmert using a child's excuse for disrupting a Congressional hearing. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Dominic Cumming's defence for breaking...

In the fifty-second episode we explore the Overextended Outrage Fallacy, starting with Trump attacking immigrants, and following that up with Trump attacking protesters. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Priti Patel's outrage over statues being destroyed. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from X Men, Star Trek: Picard, and Jaws. Jim and Mark go head to head in Fa...

In the fifty-first episode we explore the Argument by Rhyme Fallacy, inspired by Trump's "When the looting starts, the shooting starts" tweet. Then we hear some more fun with words from Trump and Kellyanne Conway. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at the Boris's rhetorical devices which Boris is convinced make him sound like Churchill. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we che...

In the fiftieth (yay!) episode we explore the Alleged Certainty Fallacy, starting with Trump claiming that everyone knows what crimes Obama committed. Then we hear 50 other things everyone knows according to Trump. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at the government attempting to explain how Staying Alert is better than Staying Home. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples fr...

In the forty-ninth episode we explore the Historical Fallacy, starting with Tucker Carlson claiming that since we flattened the curve, the lockdowns weren't necessary. In Mark's British Politics Corner we look at Boris Johnson claiming success and telling everyone how much worse it could have been. In the Fallacy in the Wild, we check out examples from Knowing and climate change denier Pat...