Last month, in one of those moments that would have been unimaginable in any other presidential administration, Donald Trump was given the Nobel Peace Prize.
No, the president was not awarded the prize by the Nobel committee, as has traditionally been how such prizes have been handed out. But instead, after years of whining that he hadn’t gotten the Nobel Peace Prize yet, the actual winner of last year’s prize, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, presented the prize to Trump:
This does not, alas, make Trump the rightful owner of the Nobel Peace Prize. The Prize committee, in fact, was soon out with a statement, making clear that “the medal and the diploma are the physical symbols confirming that an individual or organisation has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The prize itself – the honour and recognition – remains inseparably linked to the person or organisation designated as the laureate by the Norwegian Nobel Committee.”
This is all, to be clear, unprecedented. But I did realize that it does have one precedent, in the world of pro wrestling. In fact, it was one of the most famous storylines in WWF/WWE history.
The year is 1987. Hulk Hogan has been the WWF world champion since early 1984, and has been challenged by top heel “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase. DiBiase has offered to buy the championship from Hogan, who, of course, turned him down:
After that, in early 1988, DiBiase went to plan B: In a match between Hogan and Andre the Giant, broadcast live on NBC on The Main Event, he “rigged” the match, with the help of twin referees, to end Hogan’s four-year reign. And then, Andre agreed to sell the belt to DiBiase:
Soon after that, WWF figurehead President Jack Tunney played the role of the Nobel committee, making it clear that the title could not be given away by the champion to someone else. Instead, Tunney decided to make the title vacant and convene a tournament to be held at Wrestlemania IV:
The similarities between the situations, however, did not end there. Wrestlemania IV was held in Atlantic City and “hosted” by… Donald Trump:
The guy complaining about Trump sitting in his box? That’s then-WWF announcer, and later Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura, who, all these years later, is still righteously denouncing the Donald:
As for the other man in the booth, Vince McMahon, he’s a longtime Trump fan. As is Ted DiBiase, who has said that both he and his character would support Trump. As was Hulk Hogan, who endorsed Trump at the 2024 Republican convention, and was eulogized by Trump after he passed away last year. Andre the Giant, bless him, missed all this, having died in 1993.
At any rate, don’t take my word for it on the legal precedents, but rather Philadelphia-based lawyer Adam Bonin, who has worked on election law cases:
