October 16, 2019 | by Chris Cillizza and Lauren Dezenski

Can we admit Donald Trump has no idea what he's saying?

At a photo op with the Italian President on Wednesday, President Donald Trump was asked about his decision to remove American troops from northern Syria. Here's how responded:

"It's been going on for a long time. Syria may have some help with Russia. And that's fine. It's a lot of sand. There's a lot of sand over there. So, there's a lot of sand that they can play with."

Yes, really. The President of the United States, with a foreign leader sitting next to him, said the following about an ongoing onslaught by the Turks against Kurds in northern Syria: "There's a lot of sand over there. ... There's a lot of sand that they can play with."

Just sit with that for a minute.

OK, now. There have been some attempts within the Republican Party -- even among those critical of the move -- to try to fit Trump's decision to remove US forces from northern Syria as part of some sort of broader strategic goal. Comments like Trump's "sand" one seem to prove that those justifications are just that: justifications.

Trump simply does not know what he is doing in this case. He wanted troops out of an area where he didn't see a) why we were really there and b) what purpose it served American interests, so he decided to pull them out. That's it. As almost always with Trump, the most obvious explanation is the right one. He didn't foresee the almost-immediate Turkish invasion -- and attacks on the Kurds in the region -- because, well, he just decided to do something and did it. That the Syrian Kurds are American allies wasn't really a factor either.

Attempts to explain away Trump's impolitic and ill-informed comments have become de rigeur among Republicans in Washington. But when we try to fit stuff Trump says into some sort of broader historical or political context and framework, we overlook the truth that is staring us in the face: He often has no idea what he is talking about.

The Point: Embrace Trump's know-nothingness if you will. But there are real consequences that won't just impact Democrats (or Republicans) in what this President says and does vis a vis the rest of the world.

-- Chris

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"I say this with great respect: They're no angels."

-- President Donald Trump on the Kurds, who have been US allies and considered instrumental in the fight against ISIS in northern Syria.

✅ FACT CHECKING BEHIND CLOSED DOORS

This week President Donald Trump claimed that there was "no transparency" in the impeachment inquiry from the House. "Let the facts come out from the charade of people," Trump tweeted, "not selective leaks."

CNN Fact Checker Holmes Lybrand digs in for The Point.

Q: Are Dems providing "no transparency" over the impeachment inquiry?

A: Yes and no. A lot of testimony given so far has been behind closed doors. But there are particular reasons why.

Ever since the House began its impeachment inquiry into Trump -- led by the Intelligence Committee -- there have been multiple testimonies given behind closed doors.

Normally, committee hearings are required to be open to the public, but in certain circumstances committees can vote on holding the hearing behind closed doors; no media, no public record, all hush hush. According to House rules, a hearing should only be closed if "disclosure" would defame or incriminate someone, endanger national security, compromise law enforcement info or violate a House rule.

This, however, doesn't stop those "selective leaks" Trump mentioned from coming out of the closed-door hearings. For instance, certain text messages between Trump officials over Ukraine were leaked to the press, and in order to "correct the record" Democratic chairman of the House Intel, Oversight and Foreign Affairs committee announced that they would provide additional text messages to the public. (Once they review the texts for "personally identifiable information," the chairmen say they will release all of the messages.)

So Trump's criticism is not without merit. Some information has been leaked and Democrats are choosing what info to release to the public. But impeachment is a political game, not a legal one, and closed-door hearings are pretty common during impeachment hearings. And both Republicans and Democrats have a long history of leaking information when convenient, and ridiculing leakers when the info is inconvenient.

LAUREN'S GOOD READS

More like Wheel of Misfortune

How one tweet turned pro-China trolls against the NBA

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Give me all of Shiv Roy's outfits, please!

Helpful: The modern NBA dictionary

MUSICAL INTERLUDE

The entire Point team stopped in its tracks when Taylor Swift's Tiny Desk Concert dropped. Get those bridges, girl.

MEANWHILE IN WASHINGTON

How gun control got lost in the impeachment drama

For a time, gun control was arguably the most important issue of 2019, including on the campaign trail when Beto O'Rourke called for a mandatory buyback program. But that was before the impeachment inquiry.

Stay in the know with The Point on YouTube.

LAUREN'S CAMPAIGN TRAIL LATEST

Bernie Sanders: Is bouncing back strong from his heart attack with a rally in New York this Saturday, plus endorsements from Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar.

Joe Biden: Spent more than he raised in the third quarter, leaving him with $8.98 million cash on hand in October. Compare that to Sanders, who reported having more than $33 million in cash on hand.
📊 Wonk out with more CNN coverage of the Q3 fundraising numbers

Pete Buttigieg: Continued his Elizabeth Warren criticism even after the debate, saying Warren is more specific about "selfies" than a health care plan.

Cory Booker: Said his girlfriend, actress Rosario Dawson, gives him constructive criticism on his campaign style, like to "have more fun, relax even more and let people see that spirit."

ONE BIG THING

The percentage of Republicans who support Trump's impeachment and removal from office, according to a new Gallup poll. Across all Americans, that support climbs to 52%.

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