Posted on 08/07/2026 8:03:40 AM PDT by Miami Rebel
First of all, you should watch the entire episode of Fly Out Day with President Donald Trump. It was a very interesting 30-plus minutes.
What Trump told us. Trump said GOP voters are “very angry” with congressional Republicans, and he declined to back Senate Majority Leader John Thune for another term as the top Senate Republican.
Trump also said he thinks he could do business with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, an eye-opening remark for top House Republicans.
During his appearance on Fly Out Day – one of our longest and newsiest episodes this season – Trump spoke expansively about Congress, an institution with which he’s had a complicated relationship, to say the least.
The most complex interaction at the moment, perhaps, is with Thune. Trump wants Thune to put the budget resolution to unlock reconciliation on the floor regardless of whether it has the votes to pass or not. And as he has for years, Trump railed against the filibuster.
Trump also wants to see who would vote against the SAVE America Act. This may happen as soon as today.
“I’d like to see the people that want to vote against it,” Trump told us during the interview in the Roosevelt Room. “I want to see the people, both Republican and Democrat, who vote against because mostly it’s Democrats.”
Trump seems likely to get his wish. Thune said late Thursday that he’d hold a vote on the motion to proceed to the budget resolution, which is likely to fail at this juncture.
Most notably, Trump said he didn’t “want to get into” whether Thune should be reelected to another term atop the Senate GOP.
“[The] SAVE America Act is a very important thing,” Trump said. “John’s trying. He’s trying hard. I really believe that. But if he doesn’t get there, it would be unfortunate.”
The midterms. Perhaps the most revealing part of the conversation was Trump’s acknowledgement that Republican voters simply may not come out to vote in the midterms because he’s not on the ballot:
“If I [am not running], will those people go out and vote? And that’s the one thing I can’t do. I’m going to ask them to. … The question is, will they vote? Because a lot of them are very angry at Republicans, to be honest with you. … They’re angry at Republicans, but they’re not angry at me.”
This has been a decade-long challenge for congressional Republicans – how to motivate MAGA voters without Trump on the ballot.
A few more items of note:
— Trump still believes that Republicans will keep control of the House and Senate after the 2026 midterms. He doesn’t have much of a choice but to say that, however.
— Trump said that MAGA Inc. — his super PAC which boasts a $400 million warchest — will spend in the 2026 midterms.
“I could spend it on pretty much anything I want,” Trump said. “I’m going to help Republicans.”
We asked the president if Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh should avoid hiking interest rates before the election. Trump responded: “Well, it’s up to him a little bit, but not completely. He’s got a board that’s very political … It’s not totally up to him. It’s up to a board. I think he’s great. I won’t be criticizing him.”
On Johnson. Trump still has a tremendous soft spot for Speaker Mike Johnson. The president said he would back Johnson even if Republicans lost the House majority.
“I don’t think there’s even a thought of anybody challenging him,” Trump said, a point with which we disagree.
Trump’s GOP enemies. Trump’s agenda has been made much more difficult in recent months because of his own retribution tour. Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) are free agents on nearly every vote.
Trump’s penchant for revenge could come back to bite him again as he tries to install his attorney general nominee. Murkowski and Cassidy currently hold all the power over Todd Blanche’s AG bid.
Yet Trump told us he has no regrets about turning on these Republicans. He saved his harshest words for Murkowski.
“I’m against Murkowski,” Trump said. “I do more for Alaska than any president in history. No president’s done for Alaska what I’ve done. She’s not good.”
Trump added that his “beautiful MAGA base” would “not be happy” if he was supportive of someone who voted to impeach him — like Murkowski.
Trump and Jeffries. If Republicans do lose the House majority in November, Trump will have a foil on Capitol Hill in Jeffries, the New York Democrat and prospective speaker. Trump has only spent significant time with Jeffries once — a meeting during the government shutdown last year.
Still, Trump said he thinks he could do business with Jeffries.
“I think he’s a nice guy. I mean, I did. He was here. Yeah, we had a good meeting,” Trump said.
We asked Trump if Democrats will impeach him again; he said that they’re vicious. We wondered if he considered them to be more vicious than Republicans.
“I think the Republicans are too nice,” Trump said. “Actually, I think the Republicans are much nicer. I think the Republicans are much more gentle than the Democrats.”
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Still, Trump said he thinks he could do business with Jeffries.
“I think he’s a nice guy.”
____________________________________
A bit shocking, but I guess it’s kind of an acknowledgment that the House is lost.
File this interview under “not helpful”.
He knows Jeffries is being targeted by the commies in the dem party. Calling Jeffries a nice guy is a death sentence for his future. Trump trolling at his best.
What was redistricting all about?
Ask one question of your Donkey candidate...”Do you support the policies of the DSA?”
Thune is mentally inept.
He is a democrat posing as a republican
Almost right, but you forget who controls the money in the GOP Senate. Personally, I believe it’s time for a re-election in the Senate GOP. McConnell pulls the strings; he is allowing Thune to do as he wants, period. 1 of the greatest things all politicians love is re-election funds, an McConnel controls that still; Thune is his appointed distributor of the Senate re-election money. Remember 2 things: it is money for re-election and saying what people want to hear. Want an example? The female person elected to be Governor of Maryland ran as a middle-ROAD, got in office, and in 24 hours ends 4 new taxes to the state legislature. A really good democrat liar, and SEVERAL in the GOP ARE PULLING THE SAME TRASH. I WOULD LOVE TO SEE KENNEDY ELECTED SPEAKER OF THE SENATE. imho
Probably not mentally inept but corrupt.
Every time Trump brags about how great the economy is, he loses votes. People know what is happening with their own pocketbooks. When they hear how great the economy is, they believe that the fat cats are just getting fatter. I wish that Trump would stop his bragging about the stock market, at least until after the midterm election.
Republicans are largely disgusted with what Republicans are ( mostly not) doing in Congress and will just stay home.
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