The White House’s public claims that the Russia scandal is no big deal are completely different from what is going on behind the scenes as the West Wing is growing increasingly paranoid while Trump is getting obsessed with the Russia scandal.
Two White House officials said Trump and some aides including Steve Bannon are becoming increasingly convinced that they are victims of a conspiracy against Trump’s presidency, as evidenced by the number of leaks flowing out of government — that the crusade by the so-called “deep state†is a legitimate threat, not just fodder for right-wing defenders.
“The more people talk to him about it, the more he obsesses about it,†said one outside adviser who is close to the president. The White House did not respond to requests for comment as to how Trump was spending his day after returning from the nine-day foreign trip the night before.
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What Politico described above is a textbook example of White House that is being consumed by scandal. The Trump administration was dysfunctional before the Russia scandal blew up, but now a dysfunctional Executive Branch is obsessed with a scandal.
The result of this lethal political mixture has historically been paralysis and a lack of accomplishment, which is the last thing that the Republican Party can afford.
Congressional Republicans are already on edge because fears are growing that they might spend the entire first year of the Trump presidency getting nothing accomplished. The odds are growing each day that Republicans may have to face the 2018 midterms with no legislative accomplishments and a scandal-plagued unpopular president weighing them down.
The Trump White House is responding to a self-created crisis by collapsing into a pile of paranoia and obsession.
At a time when America needs leadership, the mentally and emotionally fragile Trump is obsessed with the Russia scandal.
In record time, Donald Trump has become a portrait of presidential failure.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
