The morning after announcing that he will resign next month to take a job as chairman of risk management for the international consulting firm Teneo, NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton went on TV to manage the planetary risk that is Donald J. Trump. Appearing on MSNBC's Morning Joe, the outgoing commissioner and Vietnam veteran said that he was "appalled" at Trump's glib reaction to the Purple Heart medal that Trump received from a retired lieutenant colonel on Tuesday.
"I was appalled by it, quite frankly," Bratton said. "Appalled that the Purple Heart, along with the medals for bravery, highest awards you can give, serious injury received in combat. And the idea to treat it so lightly, amazed—absolutely amazed and appalled."
Bratton went further when asked if he thinks Trump can be taken seriously as a "law and order" candidate:
I do not. I do not. Talks tough, but I think I know a little bit about law and order and policing, and I would not trust that he would be able to do much about that, being quite frank with you. Cities aren't spiraling out of control. Some unfortunately have rises in crime. New York City fortunately is not one of them.
I always wonder about tough guys. Talk tough. I wonder if Mr. Trump’s ever taken a punch in his life, in the sense of an actual punch. It’s nice to talk tough, but in this situation, I would have serious concerns about his abilities in that area.
(Getty)
It's been several hours since Bratton questioned Trump's ability to take a punch like a real tough guy, and we have not seen a single tweet from Trump challenging Bratton to a shirtless bare-knuckle boxing fight in Atlantic City. Trump hasn't even made an easy tweet dismissing Bratton as a Clinton stooge, now that he's taken a job at a company with deep Clinton connections. Is Trump spending the morning weeping into his pillow as he tries to come up with an appropriately manly riposte? Sad!
