Good Monday morning.
Here is what’s on the president’s agenda today:
- The president receives his intelligence briefing
- President Trump participates in the arrival of the prime minister of the Italian Republic
- The president meets with the prime minister of the Italian Republic
- President Trump participates in an expanded bilateral meeting with the prime minister of the Italian Republic
- The president hosts a joint press conference with the prime minister of the Italian Republic
- President Trump participates in the swearing-in ceremony for the secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs
Trump vs. the media
Over the weekend, the president decided to tweet about a meeting he had earlier this month with The New York Times.
On Sunday morning, nine days after sitting down with New York Times Publisher A.G. Sulzberger at the White House, Trump decided to make the once-private meeting public. At 8:30 a.m., the president declared on Twitter that he had talked with Sulzberger, one of most powerful media executives in the country, about “the vast amounts of Fake News being put out by the media,” sending the Times scrambling to offer its own version of events.
“Had a very good and interesting meeting at the White House with A.G. Sulzberger, Publisher of the New York Times,” Trump tweeted. “Spent much time talking about the vast amounts of Fake News being put out by the media & how that Fake News has morphed into phrase, ‘Enemy of the People.’ Sad!”
The Times responded to Trump:
“I told the president directly that I thought that his language was not just divisive but increasingly dangerous,” Sulzberger said in a statement released by the Times about the July 20 meeting. “I warned that this inflammatory language is contributing to a rise in threats against journalists and will lead to violence.”
“I repeatedly stressed that this is particularly true abroad, where the president’s rhetoric is being used by some regimes to justify sweeping crackdowns on journalists,” Sulzberger continued. “I warned that it was putting lives at risk, that it was undermining the democratic ideals of our nation, and that it was eroding one of our country’s greatest exports: a commitment to free speech and a free press.”
That’s fascinating. Follow this logic with me: Trump’s rhetoric against the media is contributing to rising threats against journalists, therefore, the media’s rhetoric, fake news, and unhinged attacks on Trump are leading to rising threats against FILL IN THE BLANK. See how that goes both ways? The media started it and they are upset because, for the first time in forever and unlike his weak, sissy Republican predecessors and elected officials, Trump fights back. And they hate that.
Boo hoo.
Related:
Trump threatens to shut down the government
Here’s some good news for your Monday morning: Trump wants his border wall, the one he promised he would build when he campaigned for the presidency. He is prepared to shut down the government to get it.
Trump tweeted Sunday morning, “I would be willing to ‘shut down’ government if the Democrats do not give us the votes for Border Security, which includes the Wall!”
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1023557246628900864
Quickly, Republicans at the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) panicked and tried to backtrack on Trump’s threat. “I don’t think we’re going to shut down the government,” Rep. Steve Stivers of Ohio said. “You know, I think we’re going to make sure we keep the government open, but we’re going to get better policies on immigration.”
Do you ever see the Democrats do that when one of their nutters goes native and encourages something like physical confrontations with Trump administration officials, ala Maxine Waters? They may spit out some platitudes after it’s dragged out of them, but they certainly are not johnny-on-the-spot distancing themselves from their own immediately. Republicans always do it.
Congress has a deadline of Sept. 30 to pass a budget for next fiscal year or risk a shutdown of the federal government, such as happened as recently as January when Senate Democrats and Republicans failed to reach agreement on immigration policy.
Let’s see what happens, especially now that all the congressmen are back in their districts talking to their constituents.
Historical picture of the day:
Allied soldiers are seen pushing a jeep, while others unload military equipment and vehicles from nearby transport ships, at a beachhead on Sicily, Italy, on July 30, 1943. (AP Photo)
Other morsels:
Disabled People Are Decrying The Plastic Straw Ban
Rename Austin? A report suggests taking a closer look at city’s Confederate legacy
Six people killed as California wildfire spreads
Netflix focused on building faith and family-based shows, exec says
Bannon slams Kochs: ‘What they have to do is shut up and get with the program’
Florida woman claims her daughter died because emergency responders haggled over ambulance price tag
I’m not sure about that: Ruth Bader Ginsburg: I’ve got ‘at least five more years’ on the bench
Phishing Attacks ‘Widespread’ and Affect Both Political Parties, Says Dem Lawmaker
Vandals paint Nazi symbols on wall at Jewish temple in Indiana
Excellent news 3-D printed guns will soon be just a click away
Jerks: Company Agrees to Block 3D Downloadable Guns in Pennsylvania
And that’s all I’ve got, now go beat back the angry mob!
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