Trump’s Entrance at G7 Meeting
President Trump made a late entrance to the G7 meeting on Wednesday morning, boldly announcing himself as the “boss” despite walking into a session that was already underway.
When he arrived, the other G7 leaders were discussing economic matters. President Emmanuel Macron greeted him, saying, “Hello, Mr. President.”
Trump paused as he walked to his seat, declaring, “I’m the boss,” prompting laughter from the room.
After Trump arrived, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent quickly vacated his seat at the American side of the table, allowing the president to sit down.
This busy morning also saw Trump posting on his Truth Social account, where he celebrated the results of Tuesday’s Republican primary and announced a temporary withdrawal of Jay Clayton’s nomination to lead the DNI.
This unexpected move came just hours before Clayton was due to testify before Congress, putting Senate Republicans in a difficult position.
Trump’s interim nominee for the DNI role, Bill Pulte, faced opposition from lawmakers on both sides due to his inexperience in national security.
Additionally, Trump outlined several conditions he wanted met before renominating Clayton, including the Senate’s approval of U.S. Attorney James McDonald as his replacement, as well as passing his voting rights initiative, the Save America Act, alongside FISA reauthorization.
“I will not approve FISA unless the American Rescue Act is enacted,” he posted.
This request left Senate Republican Leader John Thune in a tricky spot as he aims to safeguard a slim majority going into the midterm elections. He noted that there was minimal interest among lawmakers in bringing the bill to a vote, warning the president that attaching it to a critical reauthorization could jeopardize both measures.
Yet Trump pressed on, trying to assert his influence during the G7 morning session, which marked the last day of discussions among the leaders from France, the U.S., Canada, Britain, Germany, Italy, and Japan.
As Macron attempted to open the session, Trump interrupted, asking the media to remain. “Would you mind staying until the meeting? That’s fine,” he remarked, though French officials quickly ushered reporters out.
As they exited, Trump could be heard commenting, “It’s too hot in here.”
Relations between Trump and many G7 leaders had been strained leading up to the summit, but things seemed to have improved over the three-day event. Leaders commended him for his deal with Iran, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz even presented him with a belated birthday gift: a soccer jersey with “Trump” and “47” on it.
On Tuesday, the leaders also gathered to show support for Ukraine amid its conflict with Russia. Trump held a surprise one-on-one meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and agreed to halt arms sales to Kiev.
