| | | | Trump's zany theory on the "Access Hollywood" tape | | Buried in a New York Times piece about why President Trump decided to back Roy Moore's embattled candidacy in the Alabama Senate race is this paragraph:
"He sees the calls for Mr. Moore to step aside as a version of the response to the now-famous 'Access Hollywood' tape, in which he boasted about grabbing women's genitalia, and the flood of groping accusations against him that followed soon after. He suggested to a senator earlier this year that it was not authentic, and repeated that claim to an adviser more recently. (In the hours after it was revealed in October 2016, Mr. Trump acknowledged that the voice was his, and he apologized.)"
So, Trump not only believes personally but has told at least one aide and one US senator that the "Access Hollywood" tape -- in which he can be heard making a series of lewd comments about women -- is, in fact, a fake?
That would be a major reversal from Trump's apology for his self-described "locker room talk" during the campaign. Neither he nor Billy Bush, the "Access Hollywood" host who can be heard chatting with Trump on the tape, raised any questions about the recording's authenticity when the Washington Post revealed its existence a little over a year ago.
Surely the President didn't/doesn't think the tape is a fake, right?
When that very question was put to White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders on Monday afternoon, her response was, um, odd. "The President addressed this," she said. "This was litigated and certainly answered during the election by the overwhelming support for the President and the fact that he is sitting here in the Oval Office today. He's made his position clear at that time as well as the American people at that time."
Pressed on whether Trump had changed his view on the tape's authenticity, Sanders added: "Like I said, the President hasn't changed his position. I think if there's anything the President questions, it's the media's reporting on that accuracy."
But, wait! It gets even more confusing! Asked what accounts on the tape Trump was citing that were available now but hadn't been reported back in October 2016, Sanders responded: "The ones that are current that he's questioning."
Honestly, your guess is as good as mine about what she means there. Is Trump questioning whether the audio was authentic? Whether the reporting on it was somehow wrong? That more information has come to light that has turned him skeptical about the original tape?
So. Many. Questions.
-- Chris | | On Monday afternoon, during an event honoring Navajo code talkers, Trump said: "I just want to thank you because you are very, very special people. You were here long before any of us were here. Although, we have a representative in Congress who has been here a long time ... longer than you -- they call her Pocahontas!"
Trump was using his nickname for Sen. Elizabeth Warren, "Pocahontas" -- a label he has long used for the Massachusetts Democrat -- while standing in front of a portrait of President Andrew Jackson, his political idol, who instituted a policy of "Indian removal" from a handful of states -- a forced exodus known as the "Trail of Tears." Pocahontas was a historical figure from the 17th century, and many Native Americans say that using her name in a disparaging way insults native peoples and degrades their cultures.
As Chris writes, "insults, of course, are not policies. And bullying is not a strategy. Trump either doesn't understand that, doesn't care or is simply incapable of moving beyond a political philosophy that would be recognizable to any grade school bully."
Read more in Chris' analysis here and CNN's full story on the comment here. | | NOW THAT THANKSGIVING IS OVER... | | The countdown to Christmas at the White House begins today. CNN's Kate Bennett reports:
"On Monday, First Lady Melania Trump unveiled 'Time-Honored Traditions,' which she personally designed, with a nod to the past 200 years of White House holidays. This year, some 150 volunteers from 29 states spent more than 1,600 hours setting up spaces from the East Wing, which houses the Gold Star Family Tree, to the China Room, where the Reagan china has been set out in a display of traditional Christmas dinner. In the library, Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1866 edition of 'A Christmas Carol' holds court, and in the grand foyer of the State Floor, there's a tribute to the very first themed White House Christmas, 'Nutcracker Suite,' started by Jacqueline Kennedy in 1961."
Also on Monday -- per CNN's Allie Malloy -- the beginning of Trump's decoration tour "featured an odd moment, which is already creating buzz, of when she stood on the steps of the residence watching ballet dancers performing a number from the Nutcracker in silence. She then moves off the steps to watch them from another angle." (pictured above).
Read more in CNN's full story about the White House's holiday decor here. | | MOOCH V. STUDENT NEWSPAPER | | | Anthony Scaramucci, the White House's ex-communications director, is persona non grata at Tufts University (for now). The university postponed the Mooch's scheduled event following his legal attack on the student newspaper, The Tufts Daily. Per the Daily, the Mooch threatened to sue the paper for publishing two op-eds written by student Camilo A. Caballero, questioning whether Scaramucci should have an advisory role at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. After a Fletcher professor called out Scaramucci on Twitter for threatening to sue students, the Mooch replied: "I asked for an apology for defamatory statements. That is a teachable moment professor. The student is an adult, let his actions stand without any coddling. You can't defame people in America because you don't like their political views." He has been defending his decision on Twitter with others as well. | | Mick Mulvaney was captured by his comms director in the tweet (above) hard at work on a Monday at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, where is working as acting director. The tweet comes amid some administrative drama. CNN's Allie Malloy reported in her story:
"A showdown over the leadership of a major consumer fraud protection agency was underway Monday morning, as both President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the person tapped by its former director showed up to work. Sunday night, lawyers for Leandra English, whom Richard Cordray named the effective acting director when he resigned on Friday, filed a lawsuit in the US District Court for the District of Columbia seeking to halt the appointment of Mick Mulvaney, who serves as head of the Office of Management and Budget and is also named in the lawsuit. Both Mulvaney and English were present at the CFBP Monday morning."
During the press briefing, Sarah Sanders said Mulvaney "has the full cooperation of the staff and appeared there this morning and things went very well on his first day over at the CFPB." | | | That feeling when you aren't sure how to react to a comment... anyway, happy Monday! Reminder: Tell everyone you know to subscribe to The Point. | | We'd love to share our other newsletters with you. Follow this link for daily coverage of the world's top stories, savvy market insights, an insider's look into the media, and more. Our authors for The Point are Chris Cillizza and Saba Hamedy. Send your tips and thoughts via email to Chris or Saba. Follow on Twitter: Chris and Saba. | | | | | | |
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