One might say we’re in the midst of a “cuss-titutional” conundrum.
The political landscape is increasingly punctuated by profanity, with a startling 87% of presidential swear words in the last century being uttered in just the past decade, as revealed by a new analysis.
Responsible for much of this surge, former President Trump and President Joe Biden together have accounted for 538 instances of profane language. This number represents 78% of the 692 expletives recorded since the era of Woodrow Wilson, according to the research conducted by a Welsh scholar.
“Historically, it was uncommon for presidents, even when campaigning, to use such language in official speeches,” noted Dr. Joseph Phillips, a researcher at Cardiff University. He mentioned that Woodrow Wilson first opened the floodgates to presidential profanity in 1919, candidly recalling a moment he felt he made a ‘conspicuous *ss of himself.’
Dr. Phillips further explained, “Profanity can serve as a marker of authenticity. In an era where political trust is waning, indications that a politician is genuinely ‘authentic’ are highly valued.”
Trump hasn’t been shy about breaking out the expletives when he feels the stakes are high or is simply in the mood for it.
On Wednesday, he told Fox News’ chief foreign affairs correspondent Trey Yingst that the US will “beat the f–king s–t out of” Iran.
That came on the heels of other potty mouth outbursts such as his April ultimatum for Tehran to “open the f—in’ strait, you crazy bas—s, or you’ll be living in hell.”
Trump has proven to be a pioneer on presidential swearing, bringing a broader range of curse words into the presidential vernacular, such as “bas—d,” “b—”, and “f—”, according to Phillips.
While Biden used expletives as president, they were typically more low-key ones such as “d—,” a word he leaned on periodically. During his time as vice president, Biden had infamously dropped the f-bomb, telling then-President Barack Obama “this is a big f—ing deal,” as he signed the Affordable Care Act.
But he refrained from using f-bombs as president in the public eye, though at one point in 2022, he told then-Fort Myers Beach Mayor Ray Murphy that “No one f—s with a Biden” in a hot mic moment.
The public has seemingly grown more accustomed to hearing politicians use expletives. A YouGov poll found that younger people generally find it more acceptable than their older peers.
On Wednesday, Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) dropped an f-bomb in a Senate hearing while grilling Dr. Anthony Fauci.
“Who the f— do you think you were for doing that?” Moreno fumed at him in a viral moment while grilling him over COVID-19-era lockdown policies.
Democrats have also increasingly become potty mouths. Last year, Rep. Susie Lee (D-Nev.) went viral for an X post where she said, “So f—ing f—ed up. I’ll pray they f— him to his face,” in response to an article about Trump attending the Supreme Court hearing on the birthright citizenship case.
“Sorry I just say f— a lot these days.”