2016 Mock Front Page Eerily Foretells Trump World

A parody newspaper front page featuring Donald Trump  as president and created by The Boston Globe’s editorial board two years ago turns out to be so dead-on that it’s creepy.

The headline screams: “Deportations to Begin; President Calls for Tripling of ICE.” A center photo of Trump features a quote from the president: “DEPORT ILLEGALS ‘SO FAST YOUR HEAD WILL SPIN.’”

The eerie mirror of reality doesn’t stop there. The story in the right-hand column of the newspaper is headlined: “Markets sink as trade war looms.” The story begins: “Worldwide stocks plunged again Friday, completing the worst month on record as trade wars with both China and Mexico seem imminent .” 

Other front-page stories have the headlines: “U.S. soldiers refuse to kill ISIS families” and “New libel law targets ‘absolute scum’ in press.” Another: “Bank glitch halts border wall work.” That story starts: “Construction on the new border wall with Mexico stopped suddenly on Friday, dealing a major setback to one of President Trump’s key campaign promises after Mexico refused to pay.”

The front page also notes: “Trump on Nobel short list.” In reality, Trump has been nominated — twice — in the past two years for a Nobel Peace Prize for his “ideology of peace through force.” But the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced that both nominations were forged , and officials launched an investigation. 

One thing the paper got wrong: A story about Trump’s new pet, a wrinkly shar-pei puppy he named after the Chinese first lady.

An editorial note on the mock front page alerts readers: “This is Donald Trump ’s America.  What you read on this page is what might happen if the GOP front­runner can put his ideas into practice, his words into action.”

The page was created during the presidential election and published April 10, 2016 (though it’s falsely dated April 9, 2017). A real editorial inside called on the GOP to “stop Donald Trump ” and characterized his campaign as “deeply disturbing” and “profoundly un-American.”

Readers were stunned after seeing the page in a tweet Friday from Natasha Bertrand, a writer for The Atlantic. One follower was convinced the paper was created by time travelers.