Tom Hanks labeled the presidential election “crapfest 2016,” but was hopeful that voters would reject Donald Trump while explaining the state of American politics at the Rome Film Festival Thursday.
“It strikes me as ‘Crapfest 2016,’ ” Hanks said, according to the Hollywood Reporter. “Every four years the circus comes to town in the United States. Every four years we decide who’s going to be the leader. Sometimes we’re in an era when it seems that the country is at a crossroads. It’s always at some form of crossroads. Oftentimes there is a fever pitch of fear and anxiety. Sometimes it’s warranted, and other times it’s manufactured.”
He said Italian reporters frequently ask him how Trump gained popularity, and he responds: “You’re Italian. Why the Berlusconi?” referring to the Italian politician with a similarly bombastic personality and penchant for sexual scandal. The award-winning actor said despite the many fears voters have about the future, he doesn’t think Americans will elect Trump.
“I think without a doubt the world is going through something quite profound in which the future is shaky, in which the future is mysterious, in which great parts of the world are dealing with problems that seem as though they have no solution,” he said. “When America has faced those circumstances and times, we have never turned to a simplistic, self-involved gasbag of a candidate.”
Hanks listed a number of politicians, including Louisiana Gov. Huey Long and Sen. Joseph McCarthy, who gained loyal initial followings in American history to show that Trump’s rise is not a unique phenomenon before arguing voters always reject demagogue-like figures.
“There’s always been some version of the current nominee of the Republican Party that holds sway,” said the actor and noted history buff. “But we never invest our future with them. We have never done it, and we will not do it now.”
Hanks said he thinks the election is largely the result of dangerous “ignorance,” but said he doesn’t think the problem is limited to the U.S. presidential election.
“There’s an awful lot of ignorance that is promoted in any sort of campaign,” he said. “Ignorance is a commodity that can be sold and bought. There are people who maintain the status quo because they promote a brand of ignorance. There are people who maintain their power in the zeitgeist by promoting a brand of ignorance. When ignorance has prevailed, bad things have happened to the course of humankind.”
