If you take a step back, and I mean take a few steps back, it becomes easier to understand what Donald Trump is doing.
Why did he intentionally create media firestorms about controversial candidates like Matt Gaetz and Pete Hegseth, and to a lesser extent Tulsi Gabbard and RFK Jr.?
The short answer is that the next president cannot run again, and these candidates hope to disrupt and even blow up the departments they are responsible for running. And he doesn't care if they don't have the usual qualifications or have never run a large organization.
But wouldn't it serve his purpose better to appoint an equally destructive Cabinet member without the baggage of Matt Gaetz? But do they have unquestioning loyalty?
Trump ignores media expectations and nominates Capitol Hill veterans such as Marco Rubio
President-elect Trump supports the nomination of Pete Hegseth and Matt Gaetz to top Cabinet positions. (Roy Rochlin/Getty Images | Aaron Schwartz/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Even the skeptics in his inner circle have no choice but to accept Trump as Trump.
For example, if Gaetz becomes attorney general, he could fire FBI Director Chris Wray instead of making Trump the bad guy.
It is believed in Trump World that the Senate will not be able to reject more than one of his nominees. So even if Gaetz, who doesn't seem to have the votes, is rejected and perhaps Hegseth is rejected as well, everyone else will pass, including Kennedy and Gabbard.
And given the magnitude of Mr. Trump's victory, wouldn't it be difficult for the Republican Senate to be effectively obligated to approve a replacement nominee following such a rejection? Is this 4D chess?
Gaetz was on the plane when President Trump offered his chief of staff, Susie Wiles, a job as chief of staff. Whether Wiles, who was running a tightly organized campaign, knew it or not, she was powerless to stop it.
Some of President Trump's advisers privately oppose the most radioactive pick, but they, too, know the boss gets what he wants.
Podcast campaigns: A curtain for mainstream media?
Incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who is not a fan of Trump and who opposes him, is unlikely to accept the recess appointment, and is unlikely to comply with Congress' constitutional recommendation-and-consent rule. You will be giving up your role.
The new report complicates matters for Gaetz and Hegseth, a decorated Army veteran and former Fox weekend host who was tapped to run the Pentagon.
Washington Post scoop that Hegseth's lawyer said he paid a female accuser who claims he raped her in 2017 as part of a non-disclosure agreement would sink the candidate under any other president That's going to happen. Hegseth, who was clearly inebriated, said the encounter in the hotel room was consensual. The 30-year-old woman was attending a conservative conference with her husband and young children.
House Speaker Johnson has pushed back against pressure to release the Ethics Committee's report on Gates. (Stephanie Keith/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
In Gaetz's case, House Speaker Mike Johnson does not want the ethics committee's report released because Gaetz has resigned from Congress. Does anyone doubt that if this were a Democrat, he would take the opposite position and denounce this candidate as a pervert?
In any case, a lawyer for several women accusing them of sexual misconduct told ABC that two of his clients claim Gaetz paid them for sex. And he plans more interviews.
Attorney Joel Leppard said in House ethics testimony that the employees “basically put a Venmo payment on a screen and asked questions about it. And my client said, 'What was this payment for?' He testified repeatedly.” “That was for sex.”
Media liberals attack Kamala as experienced hardliner becomes Trump's candidate
Leppard previously said one of his clients had seen Gaetz having sex with a minor.
John Clune, another attorney for a woman who claims Gates had sex with a minor who was in high school at the time, called Gates' nomination “a perverse turn of events in a really dark series.” .
And, as CNN noted, one of the underage girls said she had sex with Gates on an air hockey table, according to her testimony.
Reports about Mr. Gates' alleged past greatly complicated what was already a likely candidate for attorney general. (Photo provided by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
One thing is certain: Trump continues to support both candidates. He has no intention of backing down.
By the way, if Kamala Harris had won the election, I would have given her candidacy the same scrutiny. Many pro-Trumpers online accused me of Trump Derangement Syndrome for covering the most controversial candidate. That's because the president-elect granted two interviews in 10 months, including one just weeks before the election. Both were fair.
On the other hand, Trump's decision to meet with Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, who have been relentlessly bashing Trump for the past seven years, was a great move. Both made requests, and President Trump generously granted them an audience at Mar-a-Lago. This was a truly surprising development.
As they explained on yesterday's “Morning Joe”:
“We talked about a lot of issues, including abortion, mass deportation, the threat of political retribution against political opponents and the press. We talked about it a lot,” Scarborough said.
“If you've been watching this show, if you've been watching this show over the past year, or even the past 10 years, it's amazing that we disagree on so many issues and that we told him that. Probably not.”
'Morning Joe' co-host speaks directly with President Trump for first time in 7 years
What they agreed to, Brzezinski said, was “to resume communications.”
She said her father, the late Zbigniew Brzezinski, “frequently spoke with world leaders whose opinions differed greatly between him and the United States. It's a mission shared by reporters and commentators alike. “I have not spoken to President Trump since March,” he said. More than a personal phone call Joe made after an attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania. ”
Trump was “upbeat and optimistic” and “seemed interested in finding common ground with Democrats on some of the most divisive issues.”
“Morning Joe” co-hosts Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough lashed out at liberals on social media after their meeting with President-elect Donald Trump. (Getty Images)
As for the expected liberal backlash from meeting with someone they described as a fascist, Micah turned it on its head. “Why don't we meet?”
“A lot of things were discussed, but I really appreciated that they wanted open communication,” Trump later told Fox's Brooke Singman. It's a shame that he wasn't able to do it…” he said.
“Having a free, fair and open media and press is critical, if not essential, to making America great again.”
MSNBC's “Morning Joe” co-host reveals he met with President-elect Trump at Mar-a-Lago
President Trump also said this about himself. meeting The MSNBC host and his wife congratulated us on running an “amazing, perfect campaign that will go down in history.'' I truly believe it was, but it was also a campaign for which I worked long and hard. “-'' he said. It's probably the longest and toughest presidential campaign of any presidential candidate in history. ”
“We talked about the various ministers, the ones that have been announced and the ones that are going to be announced. As expected, they like some of them very much, but not all of them. The talks are very positive. “And here's the olive branch: “I expect this to be done to other media, even very hostile ones.'' .”
President Trump said he has a “duty to be open and informed to the press.”
“But if you're not treated fairly, it's over.”
President-elect Trump was quick to trap the media in a carrot-and-stick situation. I hope they treat him fairly this time. Otherwise, his tolerance for media coverage may soon come to an end. (Giovany Hernandez/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
The carrot and the stick are now complete.
The condemnation was swift and ferocious.
Subscribe to Howie's Media Buzzmeter Podcast for the hottest stories of the day
“Byron York – Shameless Record: They call Trump a fascist etc., then fly to Florida for audience from Trump’s ‘Nazi-like’ rally just 22 days later. Afterwards, they say, “we'' disagreed on many issues,'' but they would like to “resume communication.'' what? “
Steve Cortes – “It’s hard to overstate how dishonest these two are. Mika and Joe have been screaming for months that Trump is a “fascist” who will “end democracy.” Now that he’s elected and so popular, they come to him as if they were going to have coffee with an opposing politician???”
I couldn't agree more. The meeting may not have anything to do with ratings, but it does mean they have some access to their former friend and will criticize him if they think he's wrong.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Who wants to hear four more years of ineffective Trump bashing? That way, they can report what the president-elect says and then take a stance. And since President Trump has vowed to reach out to other adversaries, I hope the ceasefire lasts.
footnote: President Trump has nominated former Congressman Sean Duffy, co-host of the Fox business show “The Bottom Line,” to be Secretary of Transportation.
