The last days of Trump’s presidency inspire hour-by-hour counts

The last days of Trump’s presidency inspire hour-by-hour counts

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Were there hour-by-hour counts down to the end of the Bush presidency? The end of the Obama years? No, certainly not to this extent. Trump’s term ends in a bad way. There are countdowns to Wednesday afternoon as Trump leaves in disgrace – the first president to do so since Richard Nixon. Trump “long ago stopped ruling, but he walks away with a reputation that is now sealed: that of one of the worst presidents in the history of the United States and certainly the most dangerous,” David Gergen said. on CNN Sunday night.

Even at this late hour, Trump is misleading about his loss of elections, or is he still in deep denial, or a combination of them. He is “still, and I think it’s important to tell people I’ve talked to that he’s still telling people he’s won,” Maggie Haberman reported Sunday morning on “Reliable Resources.” “You know, he still maintains it. The idea that he accepted the loss, he is not there yet if he ever goes there. ‘

Trump’s inability to face the truth of his loss to Biden may explain why he has barely faced reporters in the final weeks of his presidency. Even more remarkable, he rarely ever used his favorite TV shows. Aside from a few chats with Maria Bartiromo and Brian Kilmeade and a few videos produced by WH, he was invisible.

“I think the feeling is that if he goes out to talk more, he’s just going to add fuel,” Haberman said. “That’s part of the reason we do not hear him, because people are afraid of what he will say – people who mean his advisers – what he will say in an interview with the cuff.”

A farewell speech?

US presidents usually deliver a thoughtful farewell speech to the country. Will Trump? We know he wants a TV show on Wednesday, but it’s unclear if he wants to talk about his legacy. CBS News reports that he will talk “during a farewell event on the tarred road of Joint Base Andrews.” It is also unclear how TV networks will handle such a speech, given its deception and incitement from the past.

>> I’m not raising these questions because I want to hear from Trump per se. I raise the Qs because what leaders do not say is often more public than they do say. Trump scrapes norms until the last moment of his presidency by leaving the city before Biden takes the oath …

Pennies fill in as prez?

VP Mike Pence attended briefings and held events and tried to project US leadership as Trump could not do so. Speaking to sailors in California on Saturday, Pence said he was proud that “this is the first government in decades that has not landed America in a new war.” I appreciate what he meant about foreign developments, but America is not at peace. The war came home. Here is my ‘reliable’ monologue.

Pence – who in a history of the Trump era, would have become president if Trump had been convicted by the Senate or deemed incompetent by the cabinet, returned to DC on Sunday night after his last official trip. Per the press bath, he stepped off Air Force Two and stood for a moment to look around and take in everything. ‘As he climbed the stairs, the pool reporter shouted questions: “Sir, are you worried about violence on Wednesday?” And: “Will you greet the elected president in the White House on Wednesday?” Pence did not respond.

Coming soon: A “slow news day?”

Haberman told me that one of the constants of the Trump era was the ‘constant sense of income’, a feeling largely driven by his Twitter feed.
His Twitter feed is now gone, but the duck-and-cover feeling hasn’t quite disappeared yet. Years of history happen in days. “We thought with 2020 behind us, things might slow down,” but so much for that, USA Today editor Nicole Carroll said on Sunday’s program.
John Dickerson put it in a piece for “CBS Sunday Morning.” He said ‘the new Biden administration could benefit from it simply by providing a steady stream of useful information – which could potentially revive the long-forgotten’ slow news day ‘.

He interviewed Jill Lepore, who said: “You really just have to show up, have real information, bring in people who do their job and answer the questions that the press and the public have.” Sounds simple – and refreshing …

Do you remember how presidents spoke earlier?

With Biden taking over, it’s a great day to read or re-read inaugural speeches and other compelling speeches from previous presidents. I re-read John F. Kennedy’s 1961 speech to newspaper publishers, which contains much wisdom about democracy, national security, and the power of the press. Kennedy spoke of ‘our duty’ – both she and the news media – to inform and warn the American people, to make sure they have all the facts they need, and to understand them – the dangers , the prospects, the purpose of our program and the choices we face. ‘Read or listen to the speech here …

FOR THE RECORD

On Sunday night, the NYT homepage led with the failure of America’s Covid-19, pointing out that ‘the country towards 400,000 total deaths …’ (NYT)

We must all remember that Trump said that 100,000 to 200,000 total deaths would count as a ‘very good job’. The death toll will exceed 400,000 by the time he leaves the WH …

On ‘Face the Nation’, the incoming CDC director, dr. Rochelle Walensky, in mid-February said ‘we expect half a million deaths in this country’ … (CBS)

Walensky was part of a coordinated push by the Biden transition team to have representatives at all five of the biggest Sunday morning performances …

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