Politics
President Trump's 35 most eye-popping quotes in his interview with the New York Times
<b>(CNN) —</b> President Donald Trump sat down for a nearly hour-long interview with The New York Times -- you know, the one he has repeatedly called "failing" -- on Wednesday. And he went off on, well, everything.<p>While his comments about Attorney General Jeff Sessions drew the most attention, there are …
Donald TrumpYes, Trump’s Attacks on His Justice Department Are a Huge Problem
<i>First Read is your briefing from Meet the Press and the NBC Political Unit on the day's most important political stories and why they matter.</i><p>If you were outraged — legitimately so — by Bill Clinton’s tarmac meeting with former Obama Attorney General Loretta Lynch, then your jaw must be on the floor …
John McCainThe latest Trump interview once again reveals total disregard for the rule of law
He can’t see anything other than naked self-interest.<p>At his confirmation hearings, Christopher Wray promised over and over again that he would run the FBI independently from the White House — just the way it’s always been run. But in a breathtaking new interview with the New York Times, Donald …
Donald TrumpAnything They Can Do, Trump Can Do Better
No matter what the subject, the president finds someone to compare himself to. And in every comparison, he comes out the winner.<p>The transcript of Donald Trump’s interview yesterday with the <i>New York Times</i> runs over 7,000 words. But you can boil down its essence to two words: I’m better. No matter …
Donald Trump JrTrump said he left his seat at G-20 dinner because the Japanese first lady spoke no English. She's pretty fluent
It’s yet another element of mystery concerning President Trump and Vladimir Putin — this one centering on the quality of dinner-party chitchat.<p>Trump says he went over to speak with the Russian president during a dinner in Germany earlier this month because he was unable to speak to his seat mate, …
Donald TrumpGOP senators dismayed at Trump's criticism of DOJ officials
<b>Washington (CNN) —</b> A group of Republican senators criticized President Donald Trump on Thursday, a day after the President rebuked top law enforcement officials in an interview with The New York Times.<p>"The attorney general is America's top law enforcement official," one GOP senator said. "It's …
Jeff SessionsTrump comments about Sessions show penchant for humiliation
WASHINGTON (AP) — The art of humiliation appears to be a key operating principle for President Donald Trump.<p>Trump blasted Attorney General Jeff Sessions in an interview Wednesday with The New York Times. Trump sharply criticized the former U.S. senator over his decision to recuse himself from the …
Donald TrumpCongress Warns Donald Trump That It Will Be Toxic If He Fires Bob Mueller
Members of Congress say they’re powerless to prevent Trump from firing Robert Mueller. But they pledged to make it politically painful if he drops the axe.<p>Members of Congress were aghast on Thursday after President Donald Trump suggested that he would move to fire special counsel Robert Mueller if …
Donald TrumpThe Inadvisable President
Donald Trump is an impossible boss, demanding absolute personal loyalty—even when it conflicts with the law or other key principles—and offering little faithfulness in return.<p>Maybe it should come as little surprise that a man who, until summer of 2015, was most famous for firing people, is not a …
Jeff SessionsThe absolutely remarkable life of John McCain
<b>Washington (CNN) —</b> John McCain has brain cancer.<p>First, let's hope the senator makes a full recovery. But the American body politic should pause and reflect on the remarkable life of the Arizona Republican.<p>McCain has been part of collective national consciousness for the better part of the last five …
ElectionsWashington braces for fallout after Trump's extraordinary attacks on Jeff Sessions, special counsel Mueller
WASHINGTON – After President Trump's extraordinary attack on Jeff Sessions, the political world began to speculate about the fate of the attorney general – and Robert Mueller, the special counsel leading the Russia investigation.<p>Slamming Sessions once again for recusing himself from the …
Andrews Air Force BaseA new interview reveals Trump’s ignorance to be surprisingly wide-ranging
He doesn’t know what he doesn’t know.<p>Nobody knows everything, and certainly nobody who’s ever sat in the Oval Office has entered with a complete mastery of all the varied issues that land on the desk of the president of the United States.<p>But reading the transcript of Donald Trump’s recent interview …
U.S. PoliticsTrump's Latest Interview Highlights Four of His Greatest Flaws
The transcript of the president’s conversation with The New York Times throws his shortcomings into greater relief than ever before.<p>“Now Donald Trump has finally done it” is a sentence many people have said or written, but which has never yet proven true. As Trump gained momentum during the …
Donald TrumpWhy Trump gave the Jeff Sessions scoop to the ‘failing’ New York Times
The New York Times's latest scoop reads, at first, like the product of yet another leaked account of a private conversation involving President Trump. Here's the lead:<p>President Trump said on Wednesday that he never would have appointed Attorney General Jeff Sessions had he known Mr. Sessions would …
Donald TrumpCancer isn't silencing McCain in career's latest chapter
WASHINGTON (AP) — John McCain couldn't bring himself to vote for Donald Trump — so he talked about writing in his best friend's name for president. After the election, he's been the leading Senate Republican critic of Trump's posture toward Russia. And from his Arizona home, where he's battling …
John McCainTrump doesn’t think Mueller should look into his business transactions. Too late.
According to a new report, investigators are already looking into several Trump business transactions with Russians.<p>Just yesterday, President Donald Trump told a trio of New York Times reporters that if special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation turned to his finances, he’d view it as a …
Donald TrumpTrump’s deeply worrisome New York Times interview reveals a lawless president
<b>THE MORNING PLUM:</b><p>President Trump’s extended, rambling new interview with the New York Times provides perhaps the clearest picture yet of his conviction that he is above the law — a conviction, crucially, that appears to be deeply felt on an instinctual level — and of his total lack of any clear …
Donald TrumpTrump's blast of Sessions has 'chilling' effect inside West Wing
<b>Washington (CNN) —</b> For President Donald Trump, loyalty in Washington is a one-way street.<p>Trump's trashing of several of his administration's top justice officials in an interview with The New York Times on Wednesday, including Attorney General Jeff Sessions, is causing deep alarm inside the West …
Donald TrumpMcCain's absence leaves GOP with thin Senate majority, complicating Obamacare repeal and wider agenda
To Senate Republicans, John McCain is a real-life hero, a leader and a trusted voice who speaks his mind in the often muddled milieu of Washington politics.<p>He is also a crucial vote in their slim 52-seat majority.<p>McCain’s sudden absence from the Senate as he battles brain cancer complicates the …
U.S. CongressWhy Trump lacks leverage on Sessions
President Trump blasted his Attorney General Jeff Sessions in the NYT yesterday. Republicans are speculating about whether Trump is laying the ground …
Jeff SessionsSon-in-Law Jared Kushner’s Position at Center of Trump’s New World Doesn’t Sit Well with Don Jr. and Eric
<i>Donald Trump taught his children to fight dirty and win, no matter the cost.</i> <i>Subscribe now</i> <i>for a look at how the ruthless family culture has shaped Don</i> …
Donald TrumpMore shoes to drop: Russia investigation escalates
Katy Tur breaks down the latest on President Trump’s comments on Department of Justice officials, saying he can no longer trust them.<p>Up next in:<p>MTP …
Donald TrumpBetsy DeVos Speech Greeted By Protestors She Calls "Defenders Of The Status Quo"
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos spoke to the annual meeting of the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, on Thursday in Denver, but protests from left-wing activists and teacher groups started Wednesday.<p>Hundreds marched from the state Capitol in Denver to the Hyatt Regency, the site of …
EducationPresident Trump’s first six months: The fact-check tally
Shortly before reaching the six-month mark of his presidency, President Trump made an assertion and then paused that perhaps he should not be so definitive. “I better say ‘think,’ otherwise they’ll give you a Pinocchio. And I don’t like those — I don’t like Pinocchios.”<p>As it turned out, the …
U.S. PoliticsMcCain Diagnosis Puts Health Care Effort in More Jeopardy
Corker: ‘Obviously, it makes things difficult’<p><b>By MARY ELLEN McINTIRE and JOE WILLIAMS</b><p>Abrupt news that Arizona Sen. John McCain was diagnosed with …
U.S. CongressTrump Humiliates Sessions, and Sessions Piles on Himself
The only thing worse than Trump’s abject humiliation of his attorney general? His attorney general’s self-humiliation by failing to resign.<p>Just when you think it’s safe to talk about health care, Donald Trump offers up a more salacious topic. In an interview with The New York Times on Wednesday, …
Donald TrumpTrump has no idea how much health insurance costs
“I know a lot about health care,” President Donald Trump declared in a Wednesday interview with the New York Times.<p>But Trump’s answers to other questions betrayed how little he knows about health policy. As Ezra Klein wrote yesterday, this has become a major stumbling block in Republican efforts to …
InsuranceWith So Many Obamacare Repeal Options In Play, Confusion Reigns
On Thursday, the Senate unleashed yet another iteration of its effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, and with it came another analysis from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office. If your head is spinning, you've got plenty of company, us here at Shots included.<p>Here are the …
Health CareOfficials fired by Trump blast his Sessions interview
Two of the three most noteworthy officials fired by President Trump criticized his comments about Attorney General Jeff Sessions to The New York …
Jeff SessionsDonald Trump Jr faces Russia grilling live on TV, but what will they ask?
Senate judiciary committee will want to know what happened when the president’s son met Russian individuals with dirt to dish on Hillary Clinton<p>The investigation into possible Russian collaboration with the Trump campaign to skew the outcome of the 2016 US presidential election moves another step …
Donald Trump