Donald Trump Has Been Named Time‘s Person of the Year for 2016, Because It’s 2016

Following in the footsteps of other political leaders like Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Vladimir Putin and Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump, who won the electoral college in this year’s presidential race, has been named Time’s Person of the Year for 2016.

It should be noted right at the top, as Time does in their piece, titled “The Choice,” Person of the Year isn’t a superlative; it simply denotes “the person who had the greatest influence, for better or worse, on the events of the year,” and it’s hard to deny that, for the kind of year that 2016 was for many of us, that person is Donald Trump.

Time seems just as reluctant to select Trump as we are to see him on that cover with those words emblazoned above him. Their explanation for the selection pays lip service to those who see him as a force for change, but the article is mostly a list of statements like “vile streams of racism, sexism, nativism” and “assault on truth and logic.”

It’s hard to argue with the decision, but now Time is responsible for the many unending arguments explaining to Trump supporters the difference between influential and good. Couldn’t Time just have picked Beyoncé instead?

Surprisingly, Trump hasn’t tweeted to brag about the reveal yet. Read Time explain their choice here, and find their full feature on Trump here.