Shaken up over Trump in Poland

Greeting sparks social media

Sometimes people see what they want to see.

From where I sit, Polish first lady A ga taKo rnha user Du da didn’t snub President Trump’s handshake, as Trump opponents are gleefully bellowing.

Here’s the scene yesterday: The two presidential couples stood before a crowd in Warsaw.

As Trump shook hands with Polish President Andrzej Duda, KornhauserDuda walked over to Melania Trump to shake her hand. The presidential handshake had ended and Trump reached out his hand, but the Polish first lady shook Melania’s hand first and then shook hands with Trump.

Awkward? A little.

But a faux pas — at worst — has now supposedly turned into an international incident.

The latest handshake saga involving Trump quickly ignited a social media firestorm where the Polish first lady was hailed a hero by the antiTrump establishment and where Trump supporters vehemently denied a dis with battle cries of “fake news.” Ah, politics in 2017. “Watch Poland’s first lady reject President Trump’s first attempt at a handshake,” tweeted Time magazine. “First Lady of Poland seems to snub President Trump’s handshake,” read a New York Daily News headline.

Video of the missed handshake was all over Twitter.

“For one glorious second, Poland’s First Lady owns Donald Trump. Marvellous. Agata KornhauserDuda — take a bow,” read one tweet.

“Fake MSM reporting Poland’s First Lady ‘rejected’ @POTUS handshake. It’s very clear that she didn’t see him & was headed towards @FLOTUS,” read another.

Even the Polish president himself weighed in on Handshakegate, tweeting, “Contrary to some surprising reports my wife did shake hands with Mrs. and Mr. Trump after a great visit. Let’s FIGHT FAKE NEWS.”

Fred Bayles, a Boston University adjunct professor and former reporter, said, “There’s lots of things in this world to fuss about. The etiquette of order in terms of whether the first lady of Poland shakes the president’s hand first or second seems like we’ve really reached a new low, or new high, in seeking out stuff to fuss about.”

“It shows that everybody is ready for a fight,” said Bayles, who said everyone needs to take a deep breath because “oftentimes, it’s ridiculous.”

He’s right. Especially about this one.

GETTY IMAGES GOTTA HAND IT TO YOU: Polish first lady Agata Kornhauser-Duda reaches to shake hands with U.S. first lady Melania Trump — a move some interpreted as a dismissal to President Trunp. Not so, say others, who said Kornhauser-Duda simply saw Mrs. Trump first.