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The video message that threw Washington into chaos was secretly filmed.
President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House, Source: Associated Press
President Donald Trump stood in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, with Christmas garlands and glittering decorations on the fireplace behind him. He spoke to the camera not to deliver warm Christmas wishes, but to threaten to detonate Congress’s NZ $ 1.3 trillion Covid-19 relief and end-of-year package.
The video was released unannounced yesterday, its recording orchestrated by White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and kept safe from a handful of attendees. Today, few Republicans or even members of the White House staff knew what Trump was planning next, in a return to the permanent chaos of his first months in office.
The moment was also a flashback to the beginning of Trump’s political career, when he launched direct attacks on the Republican leadership and the party establishment. Now Trump seems willing to do that again upon leaving office, potentially sabotaging the chances of his party controlling the Senate while lashing out angrily at those he believes have not supported his efforts to roll back the election.
Since his loss to Democrat Joe Biden, Trump has been locked in the White House with a shrinking circle of aides and allies, including some promoting fraudulent conspiracy theories about the elections. It has ignored the growing pandemic that is killing 3,000 Americans a day, and has left it up to others to promote the vaccines that can be counted on to end it.
His focus has largely been on trying to reverse Biden’s victory, embracing unfounded conspiracy theories, pushing forward pointless legal challenges, and undermining trust in the principles of American democracy and the peaceful transfer of power.
The president, who has not held a public event in 10 days, was leaving today for more than a week at Mar-a-Lago, his Florida coastal estate.
“There are mixed signals from the White House that leave more confusion than calm,” Biden said today.
Confusion was the watchword yesterday when Trump posted two videos, one falsely stating that he won the election in a “landslide” and the other asking lawmakers to increase direct payments for most Americans from NZ $ 845 to $ 845. 2800 for individuals and $ 5600 for couples. push most Republicans firmly oppose.
The payments are included in extensive legislation passed by Congress earlier this week. Trump personally played little role in the negotiations, although the White House had initially sent signals that it would sign the bill.
The president’s focus has remained on the election and he has grown increasingly frustrated with Republicans who are acknowledging Biden’s victory. He also complained to allies in recent days that Vice President Mike Pence, who has been proving his loyalty for four years, was not doing enough to defend him. And he said he was pleased with the departure of Attorney General William Barr, who had not supported his requests for a special counsel to investigate voter fraud.
Trump has been buoyed by support from some House Republicans who are considering options to grunt Congressional certification of Biden’s victory in early January. Any such effort would be futile to block Biden but would likely deepen the disinformation campaign that Trump and his allies have launched since Election Day to undermine the incoming president’s legitimacy.
It’s unclear whether Trump is threatening to delay the aid bill simply to annoy Republicans. But the timing of his remarks is particularly troublesome for the party, given the upcoming Senate elections in Georgia, which will determine whether Republicans can maintain control of the chamber.
There are also personal political considerations at stake for Trump. Advisers believed that fighting to put more money in the hands of average Americans could increase their popularity and populist credentials for whatever their next potential move, including a possible presidential race in 2024.
Drafted in near isolation into the White House, Trump has paid attention to attorneys Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell, both promoting electoral conspiracy theories, and listened to the push from his former national security adviser Michael Flynn to declare martial law. However, he rebuked aides who urged him to denounce Russia for probably perpetrating a major hack targeting the computer systems of US government agencies.
In addition to the tumult, Trump today vetoed the annual defense policy bill, following through on threats against a measure that has broad bipartisan support in Congress. It potentially sets up the first invalidation vote of his presidency.
And while Trump has disassociated himself from the pandemic, he used the powers of the office when he pardoned 15 people, including a pair of congressional Republicans who were strong early supporters, a 2016 campaign official caught up in the Russia probe, and former contractors of the condemned government. in a 2007 massacre in Baghdad.
