"THE RECOUNT," JOHN HEILEMANN,
AND NBC NEWS AND MSNBC
CONTRIBUTOR SHAUNA THOMAS.
AND WILLIE, CAN’T HAVE A RALLY?
BRING THE RALLY TO THE ROSE
GARDEN WITH A CAPTIVE AUDIENCE.
>> YES, HE DID.
FOR 63 MINUTES, ONLY SIX OF
WHICH WERE SPENT ANSWERING
QUESTIONS FROM REPORTERS.
IT WAS HAILED AS A NEWS
CONFERENCE.
IT WAS NOT THAT.
CHIEF CORRESPONDENT FOR "THE NEW
YORK TIMES," PETER BAKER,
DESCRIBES THE NEWS CONFERENCE
THIS WAY IN HIS LEAD PIECE FOR
THE PAPER -- "IN THEORY,
PRESIDENT TRUMP SUMMONED
TELEVISION CAMERAS TO THE
HEAT-BAKED ROSE GARDEN EARLY
TUESDAY EVENING TO ANNOUNCE NEW
MEASURES AGAINST CHINA TO PUNISH
IT FOR ITS OPPRESSION OF HONG
KONG, BUT THAT DID NOT LAST
LONG."
PETER CONTINUES, "WHAT FOLLOWED
INSTEAD WAS AN HOUR OF
PRESIDENTIAL STREAM OF
CONSCIOUSNESS AS MR. TRUMP
DRIFTED SEEMINGLY AT RANDOM FROM
ONE TOPIC TO ANOTHER, OFTEN IN
THE SAME RUN-ON SENTENCE.
EVEN FOR A PRESIDENT WHO RARELY
STICKS TO THE SCRIPT AND WANDERS
FROM THOUGHT TO THOUGHT, IT WAS
ONE OF THE MOST RAMBLING
PERFORMANCES OF HIS PRESIDENCY."
PETER CONTINUES, "HE WEIGHED IN
ON CHINA AND THE CORONAVIRUS AND
THE PARIS CLIMATE CHANGE ACCORD
AND CRUMBLING HIGHWAYS, AND THEN
CHINA AGAIN, AT MILITARY
SPENDING, AND THEN CHINA AGAIN
AND THEN THE CORONAVIRUS AGAIN,
AND THE ECONOMY AND ENERGY,
TAXES AND TRADE WITH EUROPE,
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION AND HIS
FRIENDSHIP WITH MEXICO’S
PRESIDENT AND THE CORONAVIRUS
AGAIN AND THEN IMMIGRATION AGAIN
AND CRIME IN CHICAGO AND THE
DEATH PENALTY AND BACK TO
CLIMATE CHANGE AND EDUCATION AND
HISTORICAL STATUES AND MORE.
HE COULD GO ON FOR DAYS, THE
PRESIDENT SAID AT ONE POINT, AND
IT SOUNDED PLAUSIBLE," WRITES
PETER BAKER.
"AT TIMES, IT WAS HARD TO
UNDERSTAND WHAT HE MEANT.
HE SEEMED TO SUGGEST THAT HIS
PRESUMPTIVE DEMOCRATIC
CHALLENGER, FORMER VICE
PRESIDENT JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.,
WOULD GET RID OF WINDOWS, IF
ELECTED, AND LATER SAID
MR. BIDEN WOULD, QUOTE, ABOLISH
THE SUBURBS.
HE CLAIMED THAT MR. BIDEN HAD
GONE SO FAR RIGHT -- HE MEANT
LEFT.
EVEN FOR THOSE WHO FOLLOW
PRESIDENT TRUMP AND HIS
SHORTHAND, IT BECAME CHALLENGING
TO FOLLOW HIS TRAIN OF THOUGHT
TO PUT IT MILDLY."
HERE’S WHAT WE HEARD YESTERDAY
FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES.
>> JOE BIDEN’S ENTIRE CAREER HAS
BEEN A GIFT TO THE CHINESE
COMMUNIST PARTY.
JOE BIDEN SUPPORTED CHINA’S
ENTRY INTO THE WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATION, ONE OF THE
GREATEST GEOPOLITICAL AND
ECONOMIC DISASTERS IN WORLD
HISTORY.
AS VICE PRESIDENT, BIDEN WAS A
LEADING ADVOCATE OF THE PARIS
CLIMATE ACCORD, WHICH WAS
UNBELIEVABLY EXPENSIVE TO OUR
COUNTRY.
AMERICA LOST NEARLY 10,000
FACTORIES WHILE JOE BIDEN WAS
VICE PRESIDENT.
THIS IS WHAT HE WROTE --
"HIGH-SPEED BROADBAND."
WE WANT HIGH-SPEED BROADBAND.
WELL, WHY DIDN’T HE GET IT?
THREE YEARS AGO IS NOT A LONG
TIME.
AND HE DIDN’T DO ANY OF THE
THINGS.
BUT NOW HE SAYS HE’S GOING TO BE
PRESIDENT.
AS PRESIDENT, HE’S GOING TO DO
ALL OF THE THINGS THAT HE DIDN’T
DO, NEVER DID.
NEVER DID ANYTHING, EXCEPT MAKE
VERY BAD DECISIONS, ESPECIALLY
ON FOREIGN POLICY.
WE SAVED TENS OF THOUSANDS OF
LIVES, BUT WE ACTUALLY SAVED
MILLIONS OF LIVES BY CLOSING.
IF WE HAD LISTENED TO JOE BIDEN,
HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF
ADDITIONAL LIVES WOULD HAVE BEEN
LOST.
HE SAID THAT THE IDEA THAT CHINA
IS OUR COMPETITION IS REALLY
BIZARRE.
HE’S REALLY BIZARRE.
BUT HUNTER, WHERE’S HUNTER?
WHERE IS HUNTER, BY THE WAY?
>> JOHN HEILEMANN, WE’LL GIVE
YOU THE FIRST CRACK AT THIS, AND
GOOD LUCK TO YOU, SIR.
LET ME SAY, FIRST OF ALL, THIS
VIOLATES NOT LAW, BUT TRADITION
OF PRESIDENTS USING THE WHITE
HOUSE, PARTICULARLY THE ROSE
GARDEN, TO GIVE CAMPAIGN
SPEECHES AND TO ATTACK THEIR
POLITICAL OPPONENTS DURING A
PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN OR AT ANY
TIME.
BUT ALSO, THERE IS A BURNING
CRISIS GOING ON IN THE COUNTRY
RIGHT NOW, AND NONE OF THOSE 63
MINUTES GOT US ANY CLOSER TO
SOLUTIONS ABOUT CORONAVIRUS,
ABOUT WHAT’S HAPPENING IN
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, IN HOUSTON
AND GEORGIA AND FLORIDA AND
ARIZONA, ACROSS THE COUNTRY
RIGHT NOW, OR ADDRESS CONCERNS
ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT KIDS WILL
GET BACK TO SCHOOL.
THAT’S WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE
COUNTRY RIGHT NOW.
INSTEAD, THE PRESIDENT SPENT
THOSE 63 MINUTES ATTACKING JOE
BIDEN, OFTEN WITH LIES.
>> RIGHT.
SO, GOOD MORNING, WILLIE.
GOOD MORNING, MIKA.
>> GOOD MORNING, JOHN.
>> TO GO BACK TO THE TOPIC OF
YOUR QUESTION -- TO GO BACK TO
THE TOP OF YOUR QUESTION, YOU
KNOW, YES.
SO, THE TRADITION IS, YOU KNOW,
WE’VE ALL HEARD OF THE NOTION OF
ROSE GARDEN CAMPAIGN, RIGHT?
PRESIDENTS, INCUMBENT PRESIDENTS
WHO USE THE POWER OF THE OFFICE
TO ADVANCE BOTH THE COUNTRY’S
INTERESTS AND THEIR POLITICAL
INTERESTS.
THAT’S ONE OF THE THINGS, POWER
OF INCUMBENCY.
THAT’S WHAT YOU GET WHEN YOU’RE
A SITTING PRESIDENT.
SO, THIS NOTION THAT POLITICS
AND GOVERNMENT DON’T COME
TOGETHER IS, OF COURSE, FALSE.
BUT WHAT THE PRESIDENT’S DONE
HERE IS, RATHER THAN DOING WHAT
NORMAL INCUMBENT PRESIDENTS DO,
WHICH IS TO USE THE POWER OF THE
OFFICE IN THAT WAY, BY USING
THEIR KIND OF POLICY POWER TO
ENHANCE THEIR STANDING WITH THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE AS OPPOSED TO
JUST USING THE ROSE GARDEN TO
ATTACK A RIVAL, THE PRESIDENT
SEEMS TO BE KIND OF DOING
EXACTLY THE OPPOSITE.
NOT ONLY IS HE VIOLATING
TRADITION BY LAUNCHING THIS KIND
OF PERSONAL INVECTIVE AND
NEGATIVE CAMPAIGNING AGAINST HIS
RIVAL, SOMETHING THAT GENERALLY
PRESIDENTS DON’T DO FROM THE
WHITE HOUSE GROUNDS, LET ALONE
THE ROSE GARDEN, THE EAST ROOM,
THE PRESS BRIEFING ROOM.
PRESIDENT TRUMP’S USED ALL OF
THOSE STAUJS TO ATTACK JOE
BIDEN, BUT THIS IS THE MOST
GLARING EXAMPLE.
BUT HE’S ALSO FAILING TO DO WHAT
NORMAL INCUMBENT PRESIDENTS
WOULD DO, RIGHT?
WHICH IS, TO YOUR POINT, WILLIE,
WHICH IS TO SAY, YOU KNOW,
THERE’S A CRISIS IN THE COUNTRY.
FOR MOST INCUMBENT PRESIDENTS, A
CRISIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE
SEEN AS ADDRESSING IT IN A WAY
THAT MAKES PEOPLE FEEL MORE
SECURE, THAT ACTUALLY MAKES THE
PROBLEM -- REDUCES THE PROBLEM
THAT PEOPLE ARE FACING.
LISTENING TO WHAT THE VOTERS ARE
SAYING.
WE HAD POLLING YESTERDAY THAT
SHOWED THAT 70% OF AMERICAN
PARENTS ARE CONCERNED ABOUT
SENDING THEIR KIDS BACK TO
SCHOOL THIS FALL.
THE PRESIDENT YESTERDAY NOT ONLY
DID NOT ADDRESS THAT IN A KIND
OF WAY THAT WOULD MAKE THEM FEEL
BETTER OR DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT
IN A WAY THAT WOULD MAKE THEM
FEEL BETTER, BUT SORT OF MOCKED
THE NOTION THAT PARENTS -- DID
AN INTERVIEW ON CBS WHERE HE
MOCKED THE NOTION THAT PARENTS
WOULD HAVE THESE CONCERNS.
HE WAS ASKED ABOUT IT AND SAID
SOMETHING LIKE, WELL, IF YOU’RE
A PARENT WHO THINKS THAT,
SOMEBODY ELSE SHOULD BE TAKING
CARE OF YOUR KIDS.
THE PRESIDENT SHOULD NOT -- HE’S
BEHAVING IN NOT JUST A WAY THAT
VIOLATES TRADITION, BUT IN A WAY