| | | | The 10 most amazing lines in the new Trump book | | Journalist Michael Wolff's new book documenting the first year of Donald Trump's presidency isn't out until next week, but the excerpts we got on Wednesday have already had a major impact -- leading the President to torch former senior strategist Steve Bannon.
There's lots and lots more news in the adapted excerpt of Wolff's book that New York magazine published Wednesday afternoon, however. I went through the piece and plucked out my favorite -- and most telling -- lines. (You can -- and should -- read the whole piece here.)
1. "This is bigger than I ever dreamed of," (Trump) told (Fox News boss Roger) Ailes a week before the election. "I don't think about losing, because it isn't losing. We've totally won."
2. "The candidate and his top lieutenants believed they could get all the benefits of almost becoming president without having to change their behavior or their worldview one whit."
3. "There was, in the space of little more than an hour, in Steve Bannon's not unamused observation, a befuddled Trump morphing into a disbelieving Trump and then into a horrified Trump. But still to come was the final transformation: Suddenly, Donald Trump became a man who believed that he deserved to be, and was wholly capable of being, the president of the United States."
4. "This was a real-life version of Mel Brooks's The Producers, where the mistaken outcome trusted by everyone in Trump's inner circle -- that they would lose the election -- wound up exposing them for who they really were."
5. "We're going to flood the zone so we have every Cabinet member for the next seven days through their confirmation hearings," (Bannon) said of the business-and-military, 1950s-type Cabinet choices. "Tillerson is two days, Sessions is two days, Mattis is two days … "
6. "Trump did not enjoy his own inauguration. He was angry that A-level stars had snubbed the event, disgruntled with the accommodations at Blair House, and visibly fighting with his wife, who seemed on the verge of tears. Throughout the day, he wore what some around him had taken to calling his golf face: angry and pissed off, shoulders hunched, arms swinging, brow furled, lips pursed."
7. "Bannon?" said the President, jumping on his son-in-law. "That wasn't Bannon's idea. That was my idea. It's the Trump way, not the Bannon way."
8. "Between themselves, (Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner) had made an earnest deal: If sometime in the future the opportunity arose, she'd be the one to run for president. The first woman president, Ivanka entertained, would not be Hillary Clinton; it would be Ivanka Trump."
9. "(Trump) could not really converse, not in the sense of sharing information, or of a balanced back-and-forth conversation. He neither particularly listened to what was said to him nor particularly considered what he said in response. He demanded you pay him attention, then decided you were weak for groveling."
10. "If (Trump) was not having his 6:30 dinner with Steve Bannon, then, more to his liking, he was in bed by that time with a cheeseburger, watching his three screens and making phone calls -- the phone was his true contact point with the world -- to a small group of friends, who charted his rising and falling levels of agitation through the evening and then compared notes with one another."
THE POINT: This book is explosive -- in a number of ways -- for Trumpworld. They will seek to push back on Wolff; White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Wednesday afternoon that the book was filled with falsehoods. But, if past is prologue with these sorts of behind-the-scenes tell-alls, we are just beginning to feel the impact of Wolff's book. | | "Steve Bannon has nothing to do with me or my presidency. When he was fired, he not only lost his job, he lost his mind."
-President Donald Trump in a statement following the release of excerpts from Wolff's new book. | | | Doug Jones of Alabama and Tina Smith of Minnesota were formally sworn in on Wednesday (with three vice presidents present!).
As CNN's MJ Lee points out in her latest story: "Both Democrats may owe their new place in Congress to the #MeToo movement. Smith, Minnesota's lieutenant governor, replaced former Sen. Al Franken, who resigned from the Senate after confronting multiple allegations of inappropriate touching and kissing. And Jones, a former federal prosecutor who had a historic victory against Republican nominee Roy Moore, may not have been able to pull off such an unlikely win had his opponent not been accused of molesting and pursuing young women years ago." | | WOMEN IN THE SENATE REACH RECORD NUMBER | | Speaking of Sen. Smith....
CNN's Ryan Struyk and Will Mullery made an awesome chart (above) highlighting how a record-breaking 22 women are now serving in US Senate. Here are some fast facts from CNN's Adam Levy and Wade Payson-Denney: - Smith became the 22nd woman in the Senate and 17th female Democratic senator in office.
- Smith will be the third female senator from Minnesota, following Marie Humphrey – appointed to fill the seat of her husband, former Vice President Hubert Humphrey – after his death in January 1978.
- Smith will serve alongside current Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar. Klobuchar was elected in 2006. Both will run for re-election next year.
- Minnesota will also become the fourth current state to be represented by two women senators. The others are California, New Hampshire, and Washington. Kansas and Maine are the only other two states to have had two women senators at once, which will make Minnesota number six overall.
For more, read Ryan's full story here. | | | Some food for thought from CNN Senior Political Commentator David Axelrod. He pointed out on Twitter that former Sen. Al Franken's exit is still on his mind: "I can't help thinking that Al Franken was sacrificed by Senate Dems to enhance their changes against Moore in Alabama." | | LET'S TALK ABOUT THAT BUTTON TWEET | | Trump tweeted Tuesday night: "North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the 'Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.' Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!"
BTW: There is no button. There is a red button on the Resolute desk that sits in Trump's Oval Office. But, that button calls a valet to get what a president needs -- which, according to reports, is lots of Diet Coke for Trump.
Here's Chris' take: "If you don't see what Trump is going for there, then we need to have a side conversation about the birds and the bees. This is a measuring contest provoked by the President of the United States against an unstable dictator pursuing a nuclear capacity. It's absolutely stunning given the stakes: Nuclear war/annihilation. At the same time, it's an entirely predictable tactic from Trump, given what he we know about him."
Read more from Chris here and CNN's news story on the tweet here. | | CNN's Eric Bradner outlined his prediction for the 10 Senate seats most likely to flip in 2018. Here's a look:
1. Nevada: Incumbent Republican Sen. Dean Heller
2. Arizona: Open seat, Sen. Jeff Flake retiring
3. Missouri: Incumbent Democrat Sen. Claire McCaskill
4. Indiana: Incumbent Democratic Sen. Joe Donnelly
5. West Virginia: Incumbent Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin
6. North Dakota: Incumbent Democratic Sen. Heidi Heitkamp
7. Ohio: Incumbent Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown
8. Florida: Incumbent Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson
9. Montana: Incumbent Democratic Sen. Jon Tester
10. Minnesota: Incumbent as of midday Tuesday, Democratic Sen. Tina Smith
Read more in Eric's full analysis here. | | | In yesterday's Point, we incorrectly referred to Mitt Romney as the former governor of Utah. He was governor of Massachusetts. We apologize for the error. | | We had to give you Daily Biden fans a Biden-related GIF. This time, featuring current Vice President Mike Pence. The two were in Senate -- alongside former Vice President Walter Mondale -- as two new Democratic senators were sworn in.
Happy hump day! Tell all your friends & family 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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