Court Jesters: Trump Pits Allies Against Each Other
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How does Trump view his presidency?
Okay, folks, Jen is on a well-deserved vacation, but boy, do we have a lot to get into today. We all know Donald Trump wants to be a king, right? So this week, he sat back and watched his court jesters fight it out. Plus, after the White House stopped sharing intelligence with Ukraine, Vladimir Putin was ready to take full advantage. And later, MAGA World turns on Amy Comey Barrett, all because of one ruling and one sideways glance. Donald Trump has been president for almost two months now, but we all know he really wants to be a king. He's not subtle about that fact, not at all. Take Exhibit A on Tuesday night, when he used his joint address to Congress to tell the tale of an American empire where he runs it all, rules it all, controls it all. Or Exhibit B, when the White House shared a drawing of Trump in a crowd with the caption, Long Live the King. Or Exhibit C, when he said, He who saves his country does not violate any law.
Or Exhibit D, when he told the governor of Maine, we are the federal law. Folks, I could probably go through the whole damn alphabet listing exhibits of how Trump aspires to be a king. But I'll give you just one more because it's Sunday. This one happened behind closed doors at a cabinet meeting this week when Trump officials clashed with unelected co-president Elon Musk. According to the New York Times, Musk lashed out at Secretary of State Marco Rubio, saying he fired nobody. Rubio, of course, shot back, saying Musk was not being truthful. Musk countered that by saying, ho, ho, Rubio was good on TV, of course, implying he's not good for much else. And here's the kicker. Throughout all of this, the president sat back in his chair, arms folded, as if he were watching a tennis match. Because of course he did. Because Trump loves to pit people against each other. He loves to create internal conflict. He loves to see who will fight harder for him, who will be the most loyal to him. That's how he ran his businesses. That's how he ran the apprentice boardroom.
And folks, that's how he's running his presidency, because he sees himself as all-powerful, like a king. And he sees the people around him as court jesters, just there to serve him. Praise him. Entertain him. And they sure are living up to that name in true royal fashion. All the king's horse's ass and all the king's men have been lining up to pay tribute. This week, a Republican congressman introduced legislation to put Trump's face on a $100 bill. But not to be outdone, another Republican lawmaker wants to go even higher than $100, proposing legislation to design a $250 bill featuring Donald Trump. OK, it gets even crazier. There's also a push to make Trump's birthday a federal holiday, rename Dulles Airport after him and carve his face into Mount Rushmore. But, of course, the biggest jester of them all may be Senator Lindsey Graham, who posted this after Trump's joint address. Trump 2028. Yes, that is Senator, United States Senator Graham, jumping on the unconstitutional bandwagon and endorsing a third Trump term.
So we know Trump sees himself as a king. We know the party sees him as a king as well. But how do our federal courts see it? Well, we got the answer to that question late this week when a federal judge reversed Trump's firing of a member of the National Labor Relations Board. Here's part of the ruling. An American president is not a king, not even an elected one. A president who touts an image of himself as a king or a dictator, perhaps has his vision of effective leadership, fundamentally misapprehends the role under Article II of the U.S. Constitution. Amen to that. I guess the Constitution still matters, folks. Joining me now, former Republican Congressman Joe Walsh, an incoming Senate senior Washington correspondent and co-host for MSNBC, my buddy Eugene Daniels. Joe, I couldn't help but notice your head nodding there throughout that. I'm just going to let you address that. Those scenarios from the $250 bill to Mount Rushmore to, oh, a third Trump term.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
How does Trump view his presidency?
0:01–5:34
2
What does Trump's relationship with Elon Musk reveal?
5:34–12:11
3
How are Trump's actions affecting Ukraine?
12:11–13:39
4
What are the implications of Trump's intelligence sharing policy?
13:39–16:18
5
Why is Trump's behavior concerning for democracy?
16:18–21:35
6
What role do the courts play in limiting presidential power?
21:35–25:32
7
How are allies responding to Trump's foreign policy?
25:32–41:24
Speakers
1 identifiedMore from The Briefing with Jen Psaki
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