NBC’s Chuck Todd pointed to the Republicans’ treatment of Trump as proof that the description of the President as an idiotic man-baby who is a danger to the country is accurate.
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Todd said on MSNBC’s MTP Daily, “The president and the white house say Wolff’s reporting is a ‘book of lies,’ but look around. Seemingly everyone around the president is treating him like the president in Wolff’s book. Which frankly, a lot of people in this town say looks like the president they know as well. It’s hard to ignore because everywhere you look it seems like the people around this president adopted a two-part strategy of containment and appeasement in dealing with him. Appeasement from Republicans to get him to sign seemingly whatever they want and containment from White House staffers to prevent him from seemingly doing whatever he wants. The appeasement is obvious. Whether the party fawning over him for their tax plan. Or cabinet meetings that begin by paying homage to his greatness, like some religious benediction, or the pretzels they tie themselves into to defend everything he says. Or the leads they pursue seemingly at his request. For example, the very first congressional criminal referral in the Republican investigation into Russian interference is — against someone who tried to expose Russian interference.”
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Chuck Todd summed up what everyone sees around Trump on a daily basis. It is foolish of the White House and Congressional Republicans to pretend otherwise. We’ve all seen the Rose Garden victory parties where congressional Republicans say things about Trump that they don’t really mean because they know that the quickest path to getting what they want runs through flattering the ego of the simpleton.
Trump’s war against this book is both stupid and futile. While all the quotes might not be 100%, and there are parts that people will quibble about, the picture of Trump that this book paints is devastating. It’s the type of characterization that turns a first-term president into a one-term president.
Todd was right. The reason why Wolff’s book is resonating is that it passes the eye test, and it is that same eye test that will doom Donald Trump.
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
