Donald Trump’s Dream Palace of Puffery
The president then interrupted him. “Did you ever think I was going to be called the peacemaker?”
Glenn replied, “Actually, I did.”
His question, when he addressed it, was about Alyssa Farah, a former aide from Trump’s first term in the White House who is now co-host of the popular ABC daytime show “The View” and an outspoken critic of Trump. According to Glenn, Farah had promised to wear the Make America Great Again hat on television if he actually succeeded in securing the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, but she had yet to do so. After explaining all this to the president, his question to Trump was limited to two words: “Your answer?
A day later, Glenn was back in front of Trump, at a press conference featuring the president and FBI Director Kash Patel. The news of the event, among other things, was Trump complaining that law enforcement should further investigate and prosecute his political enemies and confirm that he had secretly ordered the CIA to conduct operations inside Venezuela. Glenn, however, wanted to highlight one of Trump’s long-standing concerns — what the president calls the “rigged election” of 2020. “By the way, you won Georgia three times,” Glenn shouted at other reporters who tried to ask questions. CBS News’ Ed O’Keefe could be seen standing in front of Glenn, shaking his head in what appeared to be exasperation. But it was the last part of the exchange that really stood out. In response to Glenn, Trump replied: “Yes, I agree. Do you agree with me?” After Glenn responded, “Yes,” the president quickly retorted, “And it’s the media!” It’s the media!
I can’t think of a more perfect description of why the Trump administration did what it had to do to eviscerate the White House’s century-old tradition of independent reporting. During his second term, it was no longer enough to call real news fake; now it’s fake news replacing real journalists in order to play the role of the real thing. And when Trump wants confirmation, whether for his false claims of election fraud or any other lie, he can now claim that “the media” gave it to him. How long will it take until there’s just Brian Glenns in this room?
One might think that the Kremlinization of the White House press pool doesn’t really matter at a time when there are so many other Trump-generated crises in the country. Or that journalists simply have an interest in complaining about the withdrawal of their own advantages. Or that the president has no obligation, legal or otherwise, to answer anyone’s questions. These are all fair points.
But the reason to pay attention to what’s happening with media coverage of the presidency is because Trump cares about it perhaps more than anything else. There has never been a president more obsessed with the media, nor for whom respect for others, even if it is bullshit in its crudest form, matters more. He is known for spending hours a day watching cable reports about himself. There is no detail of his public performance that does not concern him. In a lengthy social media post this week, he chastised Time for a cover story on his Middle East diplomacy that was so laudatory it was titled “His Triumph.” Trump’s problem was accompanied by the photo of himself, which he considered “the worst ever.” The fact is, there’s no way to please a leader whose need for affirmation is so bottomless.
The model of Trump’s second term so far has been to remake the White House as a place increasingly free of constraints or criticism. Gone are the first-term advisers, such as John Kelly or Jim Mattis, who saw themselves as checks on Trump’s tendency to go rogue. Only the yes-men and the flatterers need apply, and they seem to be increasingly competing with each other to offer the most exaggerated compliments possible to the boss. Last weekend, at a rally in Tel Aviv to celebrate the Trump-brokered deal for the release of Israeli hostages, Trump’s Middle East negotiator Steve Witkoff proclaimed him “the greatest president in American history.” It doesn’t take much imagination to imagine what such comments from his advisers might do to a man with Trump’s ego. These questions from reporters may soon be the last thing tying the president to at least some form of reality.
This is why it is not difficult to anticipate where all this will lead us. Trump, it seems, is building himself a dream palace filled with endless boasting, a golden, safe space where there will be no more tough questions, no more pesky reporters or impertinent requests for information he doesn’t want to give. And imagine how powerful the president, who already believes the Constitution gives him the power to “do whatever I want,” will then feel. The Pentagon’s decision to effectively ban journalism on its premises this week was not an exception: it was a preview. ♦
