No one who has seen the amount of balloons inhaled at King’s Day in the Netherlands will say the streets of Amsterdam are a laughter-free zone but it’s true that Dutch people aren’t globally renowned for their wit; perhaps they consider it the undignified wheelhouse of their shorter, uglier neighbors.
But Dutch Queen Maxima made a valiant attempt to correct that record last week, lightening the vibe in The Hague of all places with an impromptu impression of visiting dignitary U.S. President Donald Trump.
Any comedy bore will tell you that it’s the context that often makes the joke, which is why it’s the bollocks that it takes to mimic Trump when he is literally standing right there that elevates her passable imitation into something more impactful.
(For the sake of Dutch pride, let’s just skirt over the fact she’s Argentinian.)
This week’s heartiest belly laugh came courtesy of Norwegian tourist Mads Mikkelsen, who claimed he was denied U.S. entry because of the picture on his phone of a bald, startled and balloon-faced JD Vance.
Irish lawmaker displays meme of Vice President JD Vance while addressing new U.S. border rules pic.twitter.com/JhmTVfEiHe
— NewsWire (@NewsWire_US) June 25, 2025
The image of Vance’s smooth visage, cemented in the history books by the Irish lawmaker who held it proudly aloft in parliament like the trophy that it is, is stupid and juvenile. Which is exactly why it prompts the kind of joyful cackle that unites all of us across this continent.