Trump’s high pressure week : NPR

Ari Shapiro, host:

For President Trump, he was – to borrow a sentence – a big and good week.

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President Donald Trump: It’s a great day. We had a big week. You know, we had a big week. We have won a lot of victories this week.

Shapiro: These remarks came at a press conference where Trump congratulated the Supreme Court for a decision that will make judges more difficult to put radical legal blocks on his actions. This takes place a week with high issues in the presidency of Trump where several questions are not resolved. Here to talk about some of the pressures that the president is confronted is the main correspondent for the White House of NPR, Tamara Keith. Delighted to have you in the studio.

Tamara Keith, Byline: delighted to be here.

Shapiro: To start with the decision today, what did Trump have to say about the decision of the Supreme Court?

Keith: Oh, he is very happy with it.

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Trump: This morning, the Supreme Court won a monumental victory for the Constitution, the separation of powers and the rule of law.

Keith: Really, it’s a victory for his powers, his executive authority. It makes much more difficult for opponents to quickly end executive actions which, they believe, are illegal. President Trump has faced numerous injunctions on a national scale, interrupting the actions of leaders over everything, from the end of the citizenship of the birth right to stop the resettlement of refugees, to the freezing of the federal funds, more than two dozen. Now, he said, the way has been eliminated for his administration to advance. Trump and other members of his administration argue that the judges of the lower courts have wrongly blocked the president and therefore the will of the American people. With this decision, the balance of powers is now tilted in favor of the president, the latter and the following.

Shapiro: And what else is the president on his list of victories this week?

Keith: Well, strikes during the weekend on Iranian nuclear sites and the ceasefire between Iran and Israel that followed. He does not move his first statement that Iran’s nuclear program was completely erased. And today he said that he did not believe that Iran will start trying to build nuclear weapons. However, this is far from certain. Evaluations of what has been really destroyed is still in progress.

A more unreserved victory is what happened at the NATO summit, which Trump attended The Hague earlier this week. It was a big week. The member countries there have agreed to spend more money on defense. This is something that Trump has been pushing for a long time. And all of a sudden, his skepticism about the alliance seemed simply to melt. It also does not harm at one point, the secretary general of NATO seemed awkwardly and perhaps accidentally refer to Trump as a dad.

Shapiro: No comment on this subject.

Keith: No.

Shapiro: If the White House puts them in the Win column, what is in the other column?

Keith: Yeah. It’s so a pivotal time. What is happening in the next 10 days could really define his presidency. First of all, there is trade. When President Trump attacked his so-called reciprocal rates, he set a deadline of July 8 to conclude dozens of commercial transactions. Until now, a single agreement has been signed, sealed and delivered, and many others are in limbo. Today, he announced angry that he interrupted commercial negotiations with Canada. Members of his cabinet said agreements with other countries like India, South Korea and Japan have been fasting for months now.

Thus, on July 8, Trump vacillates. You know, this traffic jam is a problem he has created. And with his pen, he could change it. And this is one of those moments when it is really difficult to say if it is a strategic uncertainty or simply an old uncertainty.

Shapiro: The deadline of July 8 is one thing. There is a deadline of July 4 for the congress to adopt this bill which is so important for its program. What’s going on with that?

Keith: Yes, there seem to be slowdowers in the Senate. The last one is that they should start the debate process of the bill tomorrow. Once they have started, it will be a long process, and it is not clear if it will pass or if this version can pass the house. Trump wants an invoice signature celebration to coincide with independence day on July 4. Chamber Mike Johnson said it would be epic. But planning marriage before commitment can be risky.

Shapiro: right.

Keith: Yeah. And it is difficult to say right now, that President Trump obtains the party he wants on the date he wants. As a reminder, he calls this the only big and beautiful bill because he essentially combines his entire legislative program in one bill. So, Trump has a lot to drive on this legislation, not only tax cuts – like no tax on advice – but also financing the application of immigration that he needs to maintain his mass deportation commitment. He was supposed to go to his golf club in New Jersey this weekend. Instead, it remains at DC to monitor the action on Capitol Hill and probably twist certain arms.

Shapiro: Tamara Keith of NPR. Delighted to have you here. THANKS.

Keith: You are welcome.

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