“Don’t you need to uphold the Constitution of the United States as president?” Welker asked.
“I don’t know,” Trump replied. — This morning, on ‘Meet the Press.’
Happy Sunday.
On today’s “To the Contrary” podcast, I’m joined by Former White House Homeland Security Advisor Olivia Troye to unpack the surreal and sobering first 100 days of Trump's return to power — from authoritarian impulses and economic meltdowns to doll rationing and military parades.
We discuss how fringe figures like Laura Loomer are influencing national security decisions, the disturbing escalation of deportation policies, and the eerie complacency of American institutions. As the courts push back and allies rethink their trust in the US, our conversation turned to whether America is facing a generational crisis — or an historic one.
Are you not triggered?
Lest you think that this was an internet prank, this is real... posted by the president of the United States and reposted by the official White House account. Are you not owned?
Let’s leave aside the quasi-blasphemy and raw offensiveness of the thing. A billion Catholics are still mourning the death of Pope Francis, and the disrespect would be gobsmacking in any other context, from any other world leader. But the outrage is the point, isn’t it? The crass and juvenile minds of the American presidency are trolling us.
But take a moment to imagine the sniggering adolescent minds who thought that posting this was a good idea. And the fact that no one thought to say, “Maybe we shouldn’t actually use the official White House account to insult the Church… and amplify the juvenile narcissism of the president.”
They wouldn’t think it was particularly insulting to call this “unpresidential,” because they clearly don’t give a rat’s-ass about being “presidential.”
At least some Catholics were not amused:
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It also seems worth noting that the Pope Donald moment came just days after Trump’s Marie Antoinette moment with the dolls…. Via the Financial Times:
When Donald Trump announced this week that American children will have to make do with fewer toys at Christmas, unflattering comparisons were drawn to noted figures from history.
“It sounded like Marie Antoinette saying ‘let them eat cake’,” said Whit Ayres, a Republican pollster….
Trump said China had made a “trillion dollars . . . selling us stuff, [and] much of it we don’t need”.
He said people had been warning of empty shelves and “maybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30 dolls . . . and maybe the two dolls will cost a couple of bucks more than they would normally”….
Trump’s exhortations carry a political risk similar to that of Jimmy Carter’s widely lampooned “malaise” speech of July 1979 at the height of the Middle East oil crisis, when he called on citizens to “set your thermostats to save fuel”. He went on to lose the presidency to Ronald Reagan in a landslide the following year.
Consumers have reacted with dismay to Trump’s call. “Does this mean I’m going to have to stockpile dolls for my grandkids now?” said Cheryl, a grandmother in her 70s doing shopping in Austin, Texas. “My husband is already talking about stockpiling toilet paper.”
But, but, but… The good news is that we are getting a multi-million dollar military parade for Trump’s birthday. So, there’s that.
ICYMI:
Some highlights of my conversation with Olivia Troye:
Too loony for Marjorie Taylor Greene…
“You know Stephen Miller….”
Sunday dogs
Moses, Auggie, and Pete… six years ago today.
When Baby Eli was still growing into his ears.
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