Posted on 06/27/2020 9:15:24 AM PDT by Kaslin
In an Oval Office interview with The Federalist's Ben Domenech, President Trump calls on Republicans to stand strong and unite against lawlessness.
In a wide-ranging interview in the Oval Office Friday, President Donald J. Trump said that the country is in the midst of “a political war … where the left will use anything to win, including the culture.”
The president said that to restore order and win in 2020, his Republican allies “need to be stronger” in standing up to rioters and those who would tear down statues. “They’ve got to get much tougher,” Trump said, drawing comparisons to moments when Republicans stood together on impeachment and in battles over judicial nominees. “They have to be stronger, have to come together,” or risk losing politically and worse.
While acknowledging the “horrible” scene that played out in Minnesota with the death of George Floyd, Trump argued that the Floyd-related protest movement has since morphed into an “anti-cop, defund the police, anti-American” movement that puts American communities at risk.
“Police never get the credit they deserve by politicians, who are being weak,” Trump said, positing that fear of criticizing the excesses of rioters and violent protesters is driven by political correctness and the danger of being called “racist.”
Trump referred to the Black Lives Matter political organization as having an “extremist” agenda and criticized New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio for wanting to close Fifth Avenue to paint the group’s titular slogan on the street.
“Republicans need to be fighting,” Trump said, citing the ideology of the more radical agitators in the streets as “vicious” and “seditious.” As the president recognizes, the goals of those sowing the seeds of unrest are clear. “You see their leaders on TV saying ‘give us what we want, or we’ll burn down this system and replace it.’ That’s almost terrorism.”
White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows is coordinating the response to the ongoing violent riots, which includes connecting with the anti-terror task force and the Department of Justice. According to Attorney General Bill Barr, there are over 500 current investigations in process.
“We have, right now, about 500 investigations underway, so it’s picking up pace. We are committed to holding accountable the people who engaged in this,” Barr told Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and host Michael Knowles in a podcast released Thursday. “State and local are not doing their jobs.”
Bill Barr is the Honey Badger ft. Attorney General William Barr
For his part, the president seemed frustrated that he was being called in to deal with problems within Democratic-represented states and Democratic-run cities.
“This should be about the mayor, and then the governor, before it even gets to the president,” Trump said, noting that while he has made the National Guard available to restore order in many cities, “they haven’t called for them.”
“But you look at a place like Seattle, and if I had to go in there, I will,” Trump said, referring to the autonomous zone that has taken over several blocks of the city for weeks.
In response to a question on whether he expects to soon be banned by Twitter — where he has over 82 million followers — Trump said: “Yes, I do.”
The president believes the ban from the popular platform will happen in the fall before the 2020 election, an opinion shared by others in the White House. For Trump and those close to him, Twitter’s reaction to two recent tweets — including one where he warned rioters against breaking the law — are being taken as warning shots.
“Some people say I should join Parler,” Trump said. “Maybe. We do have over 194 million followers, though, across multiple sites.” Trump complimented Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, saying he had been far more open and less biased in his treatment. But as for a Twitter ban: “I expect it will hurt them more than they realize.”
Regarding regulation of the big tech industry, the president raised the prospect of reform of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act as being a potential approach to dealing with frustrations. He offered his complements and support to Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, who has been pushing the issue.
“Section 230 is a double-edged sword,” Trump said, but “would be a much bigger problem for these companies than even just breaking them up … because you would have to be fighting lawsuits all the time. And believe me, I know a little about that.”
“But I want these companies to be successful, and to be based here in America because if you go too far, they end up looking at what is being offered by China instead,” Trump added. “And I don’t want that.”
The president believes the ban from the popular platform will happen in the fall before the 2020 election, an opinion shared by others in the White House. For Trump and those close to him, Twitter’s reaction to two recent tweets — including one where he warned rioters against breaking the law — are being taken as warning shots.
“Some people say I should join Parler,” Trump said. “Maybe. We do have over 194 million followers, though, across multiple sites.” Trump complimented Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, saying he had been far more open and less biased in his treatment. But as for a Twitter ban: “I expect it will hurt them more than they realize.”
Regarding regulation of the big tech industry, the president raised the prospect of reform of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act as being a potential approach to dealing with frustrations. He offered his complements and support to Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, who has been pushing the issue.
“Section 230 is a double-edged sword,” Trump said, but “would be a much bigger problem for these companies than even just breaking them up … because you would have to be fighting lawsuits all the time. And believe me, I know a little about that.”
“But I want these companies to be successful, and to be based here in America because if you go too far, they end up looking at what is being offered by China instead,” Trump added. “And I don’t want that.”
Describing the media as “worse than fake news”, Trump expressed derision for prize-winning journalism which ultimately proved false.
“The Pulitzer Prize is a joke,” Trump said. “Giving the Pulitzer to the New York Times, the Washington Post for wrong coverage, false coverage? Years of it on Russia? They should all have to give them back.”
Trump expressed particular disdain for New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman. “She likes to pretend as if she’s on the inside,” Trump said, “she has a picture with me like so many people do, but I haven’t talked to her in over a year, maybe even longer.”
Despite facing serious political headwinds as well as some cautionary recent polling data, Trump’s mood was confident and relaxed. Acknowledging the challenge of proving he can lead the country out of a global pandemic and an economic funk, he said that re-election looked easy “as recently as three, four months ago” before the coronavirus pandemic hit.
“We proved what we could do, cutting taxes, cutting regulations, job numbers like nothing before,” Trump said. The key, he acknowledged, was to convince voters he can repeat that success.
Trump emphasized the importance of judicial appointments and the Supreme Court as central to his appeal in 2020. “It’s maybe not the majority we thought it was,” Trump said, raising the court’s decisions on DACA and the census among other examples. “We’re just one justice away from losing the court, and the next four years, you get two, maybe three, maybe even four. You just need one, and then we lose the court and the country as we know it.”
Referring to Joe Biden as “a Trojan Horse” for leftist policy, Trump said that he fully expects the left flank of the Democratic Party, represented by New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, to push Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer to deploy the “nuclear option,” banning the filibuster to jam radical, far-left policies through the Senate.
“Schumer will go ‘nuclear option’ on day one if we lose,” Trump said.
Despite the current political challenges, Trump’s enduring popularity among Republicans is still a source of strength for the president. Touting his success in primary endorsements, Trump mildly tweaked Meadows, who the president said had advised backing the eventual loser in the Congressman’s former seat, where newcomer 24-year-old Madison Cawthorn beat out Lynda Bennett.
“I told Mark I’ve gone 80-something and 1 with endorsements, and that’s the one,” Trump said with a smile.
Trump plans to head to Mount Rushmore in the coming week to deliver remarks and take in the first fireworks display held at the famed destination in a decade, on July 3rd.
A survey released this week by academic Eric Kaufmann, author of Whiteshift, found that 44 percent of liberal respondents and 58 percent of very liberal respondents agreed that Mount Rushmore should be eliminated.
“I do wonder sometimes if Democrats love our country,” Trump said in response to the figures. “That maybe 44 percent of liberals, but I assure you there’s a lot more the other way.”
No, Tucker is a stage prop for the deep state.
He says things to position himself as a conservative, but then spews discouragement for Trump supporters and passive-aggressive criticism against Trump.
Tucker is the best person in media only if you’re a deep state supporter who believes Trump can be separated from his supporters by means of subtle Alinsky tactics.
Notice how Carlson always says things like Trump isn’t articulate.
Carlson shows his hand by exposing his fundamental worldview. He believes if you can speak like a professor then you really understand the world, but if you’re Trump you’re lower down on the ladder and can’t really understand what’s going on.
He equates language ability with real world competence. But Trump has proven the contrary, and Tucker—along with anti-Trumpers in general—is in fact the one who doesn’t understand.
Amazing how this thread, as most, gets hijacked and flame wars started over something that wasn’t even in the article.
Case in point; the back and fourth about Tucker Carlson.
Thanks for the posting. Just for the record “I” believe “we” are in much more than a political war. Armed terrorists, in the guise of caring Americans, are rioting in the streets and nothing is being done about it, from any level of government.
You are going to need to stop spewing out garbage and make sense for a change.
Get off the alternative reality world and get into the real world.
I have always felt Democrats were mostly all communist sympathizing traitors since I was a teenager in the early 80’s. I cannot figure out Republicans other than a group of the most tone deaf naive morons ever.
Probably because those "Republicans" are fellow travelers, who are part of the illusion.
Since Dems love destroying and re-writing history, Republicans and Trump need to making videos of Republicans and slavery and voting history. We have allowed the Dems to steal the work of the Republicans for hundreds of years.
We need the black Republican Party to be speaking at rallies and other Republican events.
PARLER IS NEW ALTERNATIVE TO TWITTER AND IT’S FOR CONVSERVATIVES.
Except everything you said in there is false.
Notice how Carlson always says things like Trump isn’t articulate.
He isn't. Trump is not a great orator. Everybody knows that. What is the problem here?
Republicans are the “STUPID PARTY”, with only a few exceptions(very few)!!!!!
*************
Weak and Stupid Party.
Pretty much.
Tucker had exactly NOTHING to do with this article. But then the BLM/Antifa trolls on FR do a classic far left hijacking tactic to use this thread to attack Tucker. It shows you how effective Tucker is.
The truth:
https://i0.wp.com/www.powerlineblog.com/ed-assets/2020/06/Untitled-2-copy.jpg?w=779&ssl=1
We should send 25 ‘protestors’ to desecrate the Statue of Liberty - based on our disgust with out of control immigration.
Let’s see if the thugs in the FBI, New York Times, DOJ and Washington Post would call us ‘nonviolent’... if ONE of us threw red paint on the Statue of Liberty? They would not..
Our culture thugs would arrest all of us. There wouldn’t be any of that crap about 24 of us being ‘non-violent’... they would condemn each of us. And they’d move quickly to label us terrorists.
That’s the bias and hatred of the thugs running our culture. That’s the evil of the democrat party.
Again, it’s time to use the military to round of ANTIFA and every last one of its on-the-record supporters.
Nothing less will solve this problem. They are not going to un-brainwash themselves.
Tucker Carlson has been spot on with everyone of his shows!! Tucker is trying to get the message out to Trump about the people advising him being pussys!! Tucker is trying to let Trump know he is standing alone but that that the people WANT law and order what ever in the hell it takes to get it!!
Ever heard of a rhetorical question?
go peddle anti Trump bullshit somewhere else. He’s the only one who gets it and he’s been in DC less than 4 yrs.
“What did Tucker Carlson do? I thought he was pro-Trump.”
I think he is pro-Trump. Some of his monologues are harsh, mostly because he’s trying to light a fire under PDJT to take more action.
But then a day or so ago he had Dana Perino as his guest for this subject, and then I had to wonder. Perino is NOT pro-Trump; she’s pro-Bush and his globalist cronies. Plus, she’s as dumb as a bag full of hammers, and who gives a sh!t about her liberal two cents. Tucker might’ve lost me then.
Since Dems love destroying and re-writing history, Republicans and Trump need to making videos of Republicans and slavery and voting history. We have allowed the Dems to steal the work of the Republicans for hundreds of years.
We need the black Republican Party to be speaking at rallies and other Republican events.
/
/
/
I see this on FR all of the time, but we know political parties change all of the time. Talking about Lincoln is good and all but doesn’t address the problem being talked about in this article with Republicans not standing up against the violent mob which is a POLITICAL and SOCIAL movement not just a protest about police brutality.
When the Republicans to open their mouths they come down on the other side pandering, as you want them to do more according to your post, instead of being tough on BLM or ANTIFA.
The Leftists just want to put up “their” statues: Marx,Lenin, etc
“....You got that right. The GOP is useless.....”
No. They’re actually quite useful idiots.
UniParty = DNC = GOPe = DS = Communists
They may all talk a different tune and wear different hats, but they ALL have the same goals and it sure as hell isn’t MAGA.
It’s a Gift Trump
has of weeding out
Haters and
It Works!
Yeah....Tucker Carlson is deep-state and anti-Trump?
Go on.
So very wrong.
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