During a recent appearance on PBS NewsHour, NPR White House Correspondent Tamara Keith attempted a simile to help illustrate what it’s like to go to a Donald Trump rally:

“Trump rallies are in some ways like going to see the Grateful Dead,” said Keith. “You get to hear the songs you want to hear and he always plays the greatest hits.”

…Pause for incredulous laughter from Deadheads.

If you read this website, you likely don’t need us to explain why that comparison is so starkly incorrect. The Dead were famous for their ever-changing setlists. Fans didn’t go to the shows expecting to “hear what they wanted to hear.” They might have gone hoping to hear a certain song, but no particular song was ever a sure thing.

As for the “greatest hits” bit, aside from “Touch of Grey”, no Grateful Dead song can truly be called a “hit.” Even in a less literal sense, “greatest hits” was far from what fans expected at Dead shows.

Get a good giggle in over the clip below:

On President Trump’s reelection rally tomorrow in Florida: “Trump rallies are in some ways like going to see the Grateful Dead,” says @tamarakeithNPR. “You get to hear the songs you want to hear and he always plays the greatest hits.” pic.twitter.com/jrweyV6dSS — PBS NewsHour (@NewsHour) June 17, 2019

If you know enough about the Grateful Dead to know how off-base the comparison was, you likely know how up-in-arms their fanbase gets about mischaracterizations such as this. Unsurprisingly, the clip was roasted with a slew of snarky Deadhead comments on Twitter. Like, a lot. Here are just a few:

50 years and all those greatest “hits”! pic.twitter.com/IuTBbOIJmg — Dead Cane (@davidagreene) June 18, 2019

Umm.. that is the exact opposite of how a Grateful Dead show worked. — Stephen Leavern (@Sagan520) June 18, 2019

at least they played it at every single show, right Tamara? 😑 — sweet wolf (@nej1a) June 18, 2019

she could have picked literally ANYONE else for this comparison lol. nothing says “consistent” like the dead! — sweet wolf (@nej1a) June 18, 2019

I hate to be that guy, but you couldn’t possibly be more wrong — Jeff (@deadhead111) June 18, 2019

Obviously @tamarakeithNPR has never been to a Dead show🙄 — ZenTaoPrincess (@ZenTaoPrincess) June 17, 2019

lol pic.twitter.com/TlcYWeCKAE — Live For Live Music (@L4LM) June 18, 2019

Later, on the NPR Politics Podcast “Weekly Roundup” episode from June 20th, Tamara Keith referenced the mishap as a sort of cautionary tale for comparisons. She apologized to those she offended with the comment and explained what she learned from the outpouring of Deadhead disagreement. You can listen to the segment here (in the last 5 minutes of the recording).

Don’t take it too hard, Tamara. You accidentally stumbled into a very impassioned audience with some very strong opinions. Here’s hoping this is your entry point into the (actual) joys of the Grateful Dead!