| | | | The real reason Trump can't stand the Russia probe | | Over the weekend, we learned that White House counsel Don McGahn spent 30 hours talking to special counsel Robert Mueller's office about the ongoing investigation into Russia's meddling in the 2016 presidential election, the possibility of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russians and the idea that Donald Trump himself may have sought to obstruct the investigation.
On Monday, we learned that Trump was surprised -- and bothered -- that he didn't know the extent of the time McGahn spent with Mueller's team or, exactly, what was discussed. This, from CNN's Kaitlan Collins, Kevin Liptak and Jeremy Diamond, is telling:
"The President was unsettled by the notion that he didn't know everything McGahn said to the special counsel during their interviews, the sources said. And while he had approved the cooperation, Trump did not know the conversations stretched for 30 hours or that his legal team didn't conduct a full debriefing with McGahn after the fact. ... Trump remained agitated for the rest of the weekend, the people said, believing the revelation made him look weak. Between conversations with his lawyers and a round of golf with Sen. Rand Paul, Trump lashed out on Twitter, decrying the suggestion he was caught off-guard."
The McGahn episode -- and Trump's reaction to it -- is illustrative of the broader problem Trump has (and continues to have) with the probe and Mueller: The former FBI chief is an absolute stickler for detail while the President is, um, not.
Trump built a massive real estate and marketing empire by staying out of the fray. He would come in at the last minute to close the deals, to effectively be "Donald Trump." He had zero interest in negotiating the particulars of any deal. Leave the details to the pencil pushers, he would handle closing. He succeeded by staying at 50,000 feet -- only swooping in to exert his unique sort of pressure and influence.
Mueller has made a career out of meticulousness. In any investigation (and don't forget that Mueller was the head of the FBI for a decade) the details matter hugely. It's in the details where well-crafted stories break down. It's in the details where mistakes are made. It's in the details where inconsistencies emerge.
So while Trump blusters on Twitter about alleged corruption within the ranks of Mueller's team, the special counsel silently gathers details and more details. And that makes Trump mad. Really mad. Because, big picture, he deeply believes he had nothing to do with collusion or obstruction. Mueller, Trump thinks, is missing the forest for the trees. Manafort wasn't even working for Trump when he allegedly made a bunch of illegal financial transactions! George Papadopoulos was just a guy who got coffee! On and on it goes.
But Mueller is just gathering facts and details -- and seeing what they add up to.
The Point: Trump is impatient and doesn't want to wait. Unfortunately for the President, he's not driving this car. Robert Mueller is.
-- Chris | | "I think that's the end of that career."
-President Donald Trump, talking about New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Monday at an event at the White House after mentioning Cuomo's "America was never that great" remark. | | | First lady Melania Trump promoted her "Be Best" platform on Monday morning, speaking out against cyberbullying and warning against "destructive and harmful" uses of social media. CNN's Kate Bennett and Betsy Klein wrote about what she had to say.
As the first lady was speaking, the President was tweeting from the White House about former CIA Director John Brennan, whose security clearance Trump stripped last week, as well as special counsel Robert Mueller:
"I hope John Brennan, the worst CIA Director in our country's history, brings a lawsuit. It will then be very easy to get all of his records, texts, emails and documents to show not only the poor job he did, but how he was involved with the Mueller Rigged Witch Hunt. He won't sue!"
Chris noticed the juxtaposition, tweeting: "I can''t decide if Melania's cyber-bullying campaign is just a massive troll on her husband or if she is truly unaware of all of the context here."
The first lady's spokeswoman, Stephanie Grisham, responded to him on Twitter, saying, "It's a sincere campaign meant to help children w the many issues they face today." But this doesn't answer what the first lady is doing, if anything, about her own husband's Twitter antics.
Read Chris' response, and the rest of his analysis, here. | | | Chris got to see an AMAZING Avett Brothers concert this weekend. Here's a throwback to their 2009 "Tiny Desk Concert" at NPR. It's just so damn good. | | Another weekend, another onslaught of 2020 news. Here's a look at what transpired over the past few days related to the rapidly approaching 2020 election: - On Monday morning, California Rep. Eric Swalwell told CNN's Poppy Harlow that he's thinking about taking on Trump. "After the midterms, Poppy, I am going to consider it," he said. You can watch the whole exchange here.
- Montana Gov. Steve Bullock appeared on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday morning and was pressed by Jake Tapper about his plans. I wrote up Bullock's notable response saying he "would" support an assault weapons ban -- a stark change from his views on guns when he ran for re-election in 2016. This new stance could be Bullock staking out a strong position on the issue ahead of a possible run for president in 2020.
- Michael Avenatti -- yes, Stormy Daniels' attorney -- was in Florida on Saturday before flying up to New Hampshire on Sunday. Earlier this month he was in Iowa, where he spoke at the fifth Annual Wing Ding fundraiser in Clear Lake, where many past presidential candidates have tested out their messages. "Obviously, New Hampshire is the second state that ultimately picks a Democratic nominee. In the event I were to run, it's important to be there," he told CNN. Read more from CNN's Sara Sidner and Dan Merica's story.
| | Need a beach read to tackle in these last few dog days of summer? Let former President Barack Obama and current President Donald Trump offer some suggestions.
Obama published his summer reading list in a Facebook post on Sunday, and the titles encompass old and new works of fiction and nonfiction. His list includes "An American Marriage" by Tayari Jones, which he says "is a moving portrayal of the effects of a wrongful conviction on a young African-American couple" and "Factfulness" by Hans Rosling and describes it as "a hopeful book about the potential for human progress when we work off facts rather than our inherent biases."
While Trump hasn't published a formal list, he's had a busy summer recommending books on Twitter to his followers. Many of these have been written by his supporters and friends, as well as Fox News personalities. One of his recommendations was the new book by Sean Spicer, his former press secretary, titled "The Briefing: Politics, the Press and the President." | | In case you missed it, President Trump's attorney Rudy Giuliani appeared on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday and made quite a statement. Read this exchange:
"When you tell me that, you know, he should testify because he's going to tell the truth and he shouldn't worry, well, that's so silly because it's somebody's version of the truth. Not the truth," Giuliani told NBC's Chuck Todd.
"Truth is truth," Todd said in response.
"No, no, it isn't truth," Giuliani said. "Truth isn't truth. The President of the United States says, 'I didn't ...'" "Truth isn't truth?" Todd interjected. "Mr. Mayor, do you realize, what ... I think this is going to become a bad meme."
Now Giuliani is trying to walk back his "truth isn't truth" remark. Read Chris' breakdown of the disaster that Sunday morning was for the former New York mayor. | | | From Brenna: "If you've ever tried first lady Melania Trump's signature outerwear-around-the-shoulders style and (like me) have really only succeeded in dropping your clothes on the ground, this moment shows that sometimes even she needs to do a little readjustment. Get your friends up to speed on the latest D.C. fashion trends by sharing The Point with them!" | | | | | | |
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