Trump blasts idea he is in cognitive decline (then says Hannibal Lecter was a real person)

Donald Trump dismissed the idea he has cognitively declined seconds beforeclaiming Hannibal Lecter and the film “Silence of the Lambs” are “real stories.”

“You know, they go crazy when I say, ‘the late great Hannibal Lecter,’ OK, they say, ‘Why would he mention Hannibal Lecter? He must be cognitively in trouble,’” Trump said at a Charlotte, North Carolina rally this week.

“These are real stories. Hannibal Lecter from ‘Silence of the Lamb’ is a lovely man,” he continued. “He wants to have you for dinner. He’d like to have you for dinner.”

Hannibal Lecter is a fictional cannibalistic serial killer created by novelist Thomas Harris. The character was featured in Harris’ 1988 novel The Silence of the Lambs. Then, Hannibal Lecter was played by actor Anthony Hopkins in the 1991 film adaptation of the same name.

This isn’t the first time Trump has brought up the fictional character. Trump used Hannibal Lecter as an analogy to vilify migrants during his Republican National Convention keynote address earlier this month.

“You know, the press is always on me because I say this [...] Has anyone seen Silence of the Lambs? The late great Hannibal Lecter. He’d love to have you for dinner. That’s insane asylums, they’re emptying out their insane asylums.”

Hopkins was reportedly appalled by the connection.

Then, at a New Jersey rally in May, the former president asked if anyone in the audience had even seen “Silence of the Lambs.”

“The late, great Hannibal Lecter,” Trump said. “He’s a wonderful man. He oftentimes would have a friend for dinner. Remember the last scene? ‘Excuse me, I’m about to have a friend for dinner,’ as this poor doctor walks by.”

Trump has also previously slammed the idea he is in cognitive decline, repeatedly