Copyright NJ.com
It may not be the Nobel Peace Prize, but President Donald Trump is patting himself on the back over another prestigious award. In a post on his Truth Social platform Thursday, Trump appeared to take credit for the Nobel Prize in Physics, which was awarded to physicists John Clarke, Michel Devoret and John Martinis earlier this month for their discoveries related to quantum mechanics in 1984 and 1985. Trump cited a statement, attributed to Energy Secretary Chris Wright, which appears to give the president credit over the experiments conducted decades ago. “Chris Wright: ‘A former Lawrence Berkeley National Lab scientist won the Nobel Prize in physics for work in Quantum physics. Quantum computing, along with AI and Fusion, are the three signature Trump science efforts. Trump 47 racks up his first Nobel Prize!!’” the statement reads, referring specifically to Clarke, a British scientist and emeritus professor at the graduate school of University of California, Berkeley. Trump’s apparent victory lap comes amid his long campaign for the Nobel Peace Prize, which faced a setback this month after the Nobel Prize Committee announced Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado as the 2025 recipient. The announcement prompted swift outrage from several of the president’s supporters and allies, many of whom argued that his efforts in securing a U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas should have been worthy of this year’s recognition — despite the committee’s deadline for submitting a nomination having already passed on Jan. 31. Trump has also pointed to his false claim of ending eight wars since starting his second term. Although his efforts did not result in a personal victory, Machado had dedicated her award in part to Trump. “We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world as our principal allies to achieve Freedom and democracy,” Machado wrote on X on Oct. 10. “I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!” In later remarks to reporters, Trump said he spoke with Machado following the recognition, calling her “very nice.” “The person who actually got the Nobel Prize called today, called me and said, ‘I’m accepting this in honor of you, because you really deserved it,’” he said, adding: “A very nice thing to do. I didn’t, I didn’t say, ‘Then give it to me,’ though I think she might have.”
