Trump 101 (and 102)
For the past week, you’ve been inundated by stories about Trump’s first hundred days as president. It turns out that, in a pretty notable twist, the top story of days 101 and 102 was more about Trump’s absence. Congress has passed a budget deal that will keep the government’s doors open through September. The National Endowments for the Arts and Humanities, getting a boost. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, no cuts. NASA, more money. EPA, about the same. Planned Parenthood, same. And for the wall, nada.
+ Trump still managed to dominate the post-100 headlines. First, there was his “very friendly conversation” with Rodrigo Duterte, which included an invitation to the White House (update: Duterte hinted he might be too busy.) Next, there was an uncomfortable exchange about his wiretapping claims on Face the Nation, during which he explained, “I don’t stand by anything,” before ending the discussion and sitting down at his desk. And finally, during a radio interview, Trump mused on Andrew Jackson and the Civil War: “People don’t realize, you know, the Civil War, if you think about it, why? People don’t ask that question, but why was there a Civil War? Why could that one not have been worked out?” (The essay-length answer is provided by the Ken Burns documentary. The multiple choice answer: Slavery.)
+ “Day 3: Kelly Anne Conway introduces the world to the phrase alternate facts. My shrink and I decide that we should go from meeting four days a week, to meeting 5 days a week.”
As you know, I’ve been buried in Trump news for months. Here’s my own unique look at the first million billion days of the Trump era…This is 100. (This post should have been sponsored by Xanax.)