It was at least the 13th time in the past four years that Trump or his allies have downplayed his remarks with some variation of suggesting he was joking, kidding or being sarcastic, including:

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Inviting Russia to find and release Hillary Clinton’s emails

Praising the release of hacked emails by WikiLeaks

Shooting someone on Fifth Avenue and not losing voters

Suggesting “Second Amendment people” could stop Hillary Clinton from appointing judges

Calling former president Barack Obama the “founder of ISIS”

Asking Americans to “sit up at attention” when he speaks

Suggesting he could be “president for life”

Calling Democrats’ refusal to cheer at his State of the Union address “treasonous”

Telling police officers to not “be too nice” with suspects

Praising a congressman for assaulting a reporter

Saying it would be “easy” to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act

Floating becoming more “presidential”

Touting a higher IQ than that of his secretary of state

It is similar to other rhetorical deflection tactics Trump routinely employs, such as stressing the importance of nearly everything, claiming he is “looking into” over two dozen policy proposals and evading reporter questions via his “roaring” helicopter.

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But unlike his more explicit deflections, it can be hard to tell when Trump is joking, and at times even he doesn’t seem entirely sure.

“Obviously, I’m being sarcastic,” Trump said in 2016, two days after calling Obama the “founder” of ISIS. “But not that sarcastic, to be honest with you.”

That Trump regularly clarifies his sarcasm could mean he is just bad at telling jokes. Or that people take his words too literally. Regardless, it is an ambiguity Trump and his allies have embraced.

Less than two months into office, White House press secretary Sean Spicer was asked whether reporters could trust the president’s words.