Call Me, Maybe? Trump’s Appeal Prompts Online Ridicule in Iran
Trump’s phone rings in the middle of the night. “It’s the Iranians,” he says, jolting upright in bed in his underwear.
(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump’s phone rings in the middle of the night. “It’s the Iranians,” he says, jolting upright in bed in his underwear.
But it isn’t Tehran on the other end of the line, only a salesman shilling hair-loss treatments.
This scene, conjured by an Iranian animator after the U.S. president urged the Islamic Republic to “call me,” has gone viral, capturing the derision many Iranians feel for the U.S. president who’s trying to bring their country to heel. It’s one of a string of jabs at Trump that have swept Farsi social media since he made that unrequited offer to an Iran that’s refused to bow to his scaled-up sanctions and displays of military force.
Prank callers have telephoned the Swiss Embassy in Tehran, after CNN reported the White House passed a phone number Iran could use to officials in Switzerland, which has represented U.S. interests in Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Another wag counseled delicacy.
“In my opinion Trump should’ve also given the Telegram I.D. for the White House,” a user named Kev tweeted, referring to the messaging application used by tens of millions of Iranians. “It’s the very start of a relationship and Iran might feel awkward calling straight away.”
Others posted an image of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani holding a phone receiver to his ear, dialing a U.S. phone number and saying the dial code out loud. One Twitter user wondered who’d pay for the call, considering the strains on Iran’s economy. Another mused what might have happened if Trump’s tenure had coincided with the term of Iran’s former hardline president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
“Why weren’t these two in office at the same time??,” the person said. “The two of them would’ve made a brilliant pair!”
To contact the reporter on this story: Golnar Motevalli in Tehran at gmotevalli@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Lin Noueihed at lnoueihed@bloomberg.net, Amy Teibel, Paul Abelsky
©2019 Bloomberg L.P.