| | | | Donald Trump *definitely* didn't pay attention to the impeachment hearing |  | | Even as the public debate over his presidential future opened on Capitol Hill, President Donald Trump wasn't paying it any mind.
None.
Like, not at all.
Super not interested.
"He's in the Oval in meetings," White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said Wednesday morning. "Not watching. He's working."
Trump said much the same at a photo with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan: "I did not watch it. I'm too busy to watch it. It's a witch hunt, it's a hoax."
Later, he told reporters that he hadn't watched the impeachment proceedings "for one minute," adding: "I hear that it's a hoax and it's being played as a hoax."
To buy that, you have to ignore both the present and the past.
Let's start with the past. And in that past, we know that Trump is a man (and a politician) who avidly consumes cable news. Since his earliest days as a candidate, he has shown how cable TV news is the frame through which he sees the world.
Asked by NBC's Chuck Todd in 2015 where he gets his military information, Trump said this: "Well, I watch the shows. I mean, I really see a lot of great -- you know, when you watch your show and all of the other shows and you have the generals." In 2018, Trump said this on Fox News of the arrest of onetime confidant Michael Cohen: "I watched a number of shows, sometimes you get good information by watching shows, those two counts aren't a crime."
Then there's the present. During the course of Wednesday's testimony from Ambassador Bill Taylor and State Department official George Kent in front of the House Intelligence Committee, the President retweeted more than 20 tweets from a variety of Republican officials and organizations taking issue with not just their testimony but the whole idea of the impeachment investigation.
How could a President who is is too busy to pay any attention to the impeachment hearings also be retweeting things about the testimony? Either Trump has cloned himself (which would be a big story!), he has delegated management of his Twitter feed on one of the biggest days of his presidency to a junior person or, well, Trump (and Grisham) isn't telling the truth about his viewing habits on Wednesday.
Either way, Trump cares very much about what happened in that hearing room.
The Point: Trump wants you to believe that these hearings are so unimportant that he can't be bothered to pay attention to them. If you believe that, I have a little video company named Blockbuster -- it's a real growth opportunity! -- you might be interested in.
-- Chris | | "Everyone has their own impression of what truth is."
-- GOP Rep. Mark Meadows of North Carolina, one of Trump's fiercest defenders. He later tweeted that the impeachment hearing "is a farce." | | | We're apparently about to have another entrant to the Democratic presidential primary field: Deval Patrick.
The former Massachusetts governor has begun telling friends that he has decided to run for president -- with a formal announcement coming as soon as Thursday.
His decision (and impending announcement) comes ahead of Friday's filing deadline for the New Hampshire primary ballot. As a former Massachusetts governor, Patrick could enjoy a home field-adjacent advantage in neighboring New Hampshire. | | Bernie Sanders had a heart attack six weeks ago. Here's how he is doing today
John F. Harris on what impeachment will cost Republicans
A guide to Iowa dark horses
John Solomon, profiled
Crystal City, RIP
Area 51, Man
This Tom Hanks story did make me feel better! | | | Chris is a BIG Philip Glass fan. BIG. So listen to this. And read this. | | ANOTHER CUMMINGS IN CONGRESS? | | Maya Rockeymoore Cummings is running for her late husband Elijah Cummings' longtime House seat. She kicked off her campaign in Baltimore on Tuesday.
"We fought alongside of each other for a very long time, and now I'm looking to continue to fight. He would want me to continue to fight and so that's what I'm going to do," Rockeymoore Cummings, chairwoman of the Maryland Democratic Party, said in a video interview with The Baltimore Sun published Monday evening.
"I'm looking to extend and carry forward my husband's legacy, while also building and growing a legacy of my own," Rockeymoore Cummings said. | |
LAUREN'S CAMPAIGN TRAIL LATEST | | Joe Biden: Has been endorsed by former presidential contender Tim Ryan.
Julián Castro: Will likely not qualify for the November debate happening next week. He also went with a Honduran immigrant to an ICE check-in in Iowa and called for changing immigration enforcement.
John Delaney: Is planning 30-minute infomercials across Iowa's TV markets, beginning this weekend, until the state's caucuses. His campaign calls this a "long-form program."
Kamala Harris: Will lean on a digital ad campaign as her campaign pivots to Iowa. | | | Bill Taylor's and George Kent's reactions when asked if they want to take a five-minute recess. They ultimately took that break. | | | | | | |
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