Stephen King calls Trump 'senile' after bizarre shark rant

Stephen King has hit out at Donald Trump, calling him “senile” after a bizarre rant about sharks at a campaign event over the weekend.

Trump appeared at a rally in Las Vegas on Sunday (July 9) and spoke about sharks and electric cars during a strange address to the crowd.

The former president began discussing electric cars and boats during a rambling monologue – claiming that “they” want to make boats electric, without referencing any specific group or policy.

Recounting a conversation he had with a boat salesman, he remembered asking him: “What would happen if the boat sank?”

He then started talking about sharks – a topic which has fascinated him for years.

Getty Images

“The [boat’s] battery is now underwater and there’s a shark that’s approximately 10 yards over there, by the way, a lot of shark attacks lately,” Trump said, rambling before the crowd.

After bizarrely saying that sharks confused women’s legs with “sushi”, he went on to say that he asked the businessman: “Do I get electrocuted… or do I jump over by the shark and not get electrocuted? Because I will tell you, he did not know the answer.���

Speaking during the rally, Trump also said that he would “take electrocution, every single time” over hypothetically being killed by a shark.

King, one of the most celebrated living authors and frequent Trump critic, commented on a video of the speech on social media.

"This is like listening to your senile uncle at the dinner table after he has that third drink," King wrote.

Trump’s fascination with sharks is nothing new. Back in 2013, he wrote on Twitter: “Sorry folks, I’m just not a fan of sharks—and don’t worry, they will be around long after we are gone.

“Sharks are last on my list - other than perhaps the losers and haters of the World!” he added later the same day.

Sign up for our free indy100 weekly newsletter

How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings