Nancy Pelosi Says Shutdown Meeting Was Set Up For Trump To Walk Out

[left-of-center2012]

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Thursday that she believes President Donald Trump staged the high drama at Wednesday’s meeting between party leaders over the partial government shutdown. Trump met with Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) for just a few minutes before walking out after the House speaker said her party would not agree to spend billions on a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

“Not only was the president unpresidential ― surprise, surprise ― yesterday in his behavior, I think the meeting was a setup so he could walk out,” Pelosi told reporters on Capitol Hill.

Pelosi said that she believed the president was using the debate over the wall as “a distraction” from “his other problems,” which she called “unfortunate.”
“I don’t even know if the president wants the wall, he just wants the debate,” Pelosi said.

The House speaker also criticized the president’s threat to withhold disaster aid funding from wildfire-ravaged California communities. “You’re punishing your own voters,” she said, before turning her attention to Republican lawmakers in California. “People died, communities were wiped out and (Trump's) just cavalier about it."

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/nancy-pelosi-shutdown-trump_us_5c376d48e4b0c469d76bdc1e

[madaboutharry]

1. He is so deluded he thinks he lives in a reality tv show.

I am just so sick of him and his antics and all of those who enable him.

[kimbutgar]

11. My thought exactly

He probably thought he was filming an episode of the apprentice and needed dramatic flare. I really think he is so deluded in his mind he is appearing on a tv reality show.

[tblue37]

23. He actually told his aides to view his presidency as a reality show:

https://www.businessinsider.com.au/trump-watches-4-hours-tv-every-day-fox-cnn-2017-12

Trump reportedly told aides to think of his presidency as a TV show where he 'vanquishes' rivals

snip

But in a report published Saturday, The New York Times revealed just how much cable news influences Trump’s day-to-day schedule.

Before entering the White House, Trump reportedly told aides to think of each day as an episode in a TV show in which he “vanquishes rivals,” according to the report.

snip

[Freethinker65]

2. Ala Mike Pence at the Football game. (Un)Reality TV

[dalton99a]

4. +1. Same shit

[Wounded Bear]

16. GMTA...

After so many years on reality TV, Trump & Co thinks he can stage this bullshit and people will believe him.

Not this guy.

[Crutchez_CuiBono]

3. 86 people from a more repub area of CA were burned to death. Not just killed.

That's a very very VERY ugly way to go. The news just does'nt have time to talk about it. Maybe Chuck todd will.......phtphtphthahahahahahaha.
i smell a back-channel to cheney and karl rove. Someone....Get the spray.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. I think that's exactly what happened. It was a setup, like when Pence went to the football game

for the pre-planned purpose of walking out in order to show his patriotic fury at football players protesting racial inequality by kneeling during the national anthem. It's all just Kabuki theatre. They should turn down any further fake invitations; if he really wants to negotiate he should have to go to them for a meeting on their turf.

[durablend]

6. It absolutely burns him up that a woman isn't bowing down to him

and kissing the ground he walks on.

He can't stand it.

[littlemissmartypants]

14. +1000 nt

[Wounded Bear]

17. Even worse, he can't pay her to do it either...

or to pretend she will bow down to him.

[MyOwnPeace]

20. So true!

You KNOW that little pea-brain (or is it pee-brain?) is really pizzed because it is a WOMAN that is twisting him up like a pretzel!

[liberal N proud]

7. I believe her

[littlemissmartypants]

18. That's why it was scheduled for the situation room.

High security, no cameras or recording allowed. Not because of the highly sensitive information, it's not classified. Everyone knows most of the lies he's told by memory. He isn't able to hide his ignorant petulance. Couldn't if he tried.

He just wanted a safe room to play the mogul in and I say him but I really think that it was someone else who came up with the idea. To create confusion and uncertainty thereby allowing for distortion of the meeting outcome.

He, I believe, is an idiot of the first magnitude.

He's trying to "play" the American people constantly but most of the mighty citizens of this country aren't that easily fooled. That's why I have been calling him pres-tidigitation. It's all about the showy drama, his forte.

There are more and more people starting to pay closer attention to this black comedy, as the domino effects expand exponentially and they won't like it either.

He's in WAY over his head.

Keep pounding, Madame Speaker! Keep Pounding!

[Wellstone ruled]

8. Sure as heck appears to be the story.

Talk about poisoning the well. Trump knows the funding issue will slow down Team Mueller and he could care less about all the People without Paychecks.

He has operated in this manner his whole life. Fuck over anyone that does not kiss hiss ring.

[MoonRiver]

9. Did Idiot think that would score him some political points?

What a fool!

[LiberalFighter]

10. Betcha Clint Eastwood is still talking to his empty chair in California.

[spanone]

12. with don, it's all showbiz

[Gothmog]

13. Storming out of meetings is Trump's signature move

Link to tweet

[Caliman73]

24. Except he isn't negotiating alimony or a hotel deal.

This is about people's lives, the environment, the economy, and many other things that Trump does not understand. When he stormed out of those meetings in private proceedings with lawyers and a family court judge, he could do it as a negotiating strategy. Here, with co-equal branches of government, he has no leverage. He is an idiot. He is not getting "better terms".

He was already given billions for border security and has spent less than 10%. The wall is seem by most as useless. Trump is being seen as increasingly erratic. He is probably wondering to himself why his tactics are not working.

Because they are stupid tactics when dealing with government you idiot, which is why they say running a government is NOT like running a business. Plus you can't even run businesses correctly since you bankrupted at least 4.

[Moostache]

15. Regardless of the reasons, it is working...

How many people are even aware of the Deripaska sanctions stunt pulled on December 19th? Trying to slip this past Congress without so much as an explanation or hearing...now I understand Mnuchin has been called before the new Congress to explain this, but the original intent was to run out the clock on Congress and surreptitiously ease the sanctions on this monster because Trump was told to do so by Putin.

I assume there is a much higher percentage here at DU that are aware of this issue than in the general public; but it should be front page news on every network and dominating the national conversation...we have a "president" in office that finished second in the voting totals, who is under heavy investigation and suspicion of conspiring with a foreign power (Russia) to rig an election. One of the persons most closely associated with both the Trump campaign and Vladimir Putin is Deripaska (aluminum magnate and Russian oligarch is the target of massive sanctions to curtain his business interests and punish his behaviors. Easing those sanctions would make this a very profitable move for Deripaska and also a potential quid pro quo for Trump to pay off debts - either personal or campaign-related.

But...there is a nonsensical argument being made about walls in deserts and shutdowns and pointing of blame fingers in all directions...the whole charade makes me nauseous.

[duforsure]

19. It was just another PR stunt

But it only made him look worse. Nancy should ask him how many illegals does he actually have working for him on his properties, and what kind of background checks he's paid to have done on them.

[lpbk2713]

21. Mr. Phoney Baloney

Trump is so juvenile and so easy to see through it's laughable.

[spike jones]

22. Trump wants a "reason" to declare a national emergency and

the power that might give him. When the Fascists start rounding up people on a truly large scale, that wall will work both ways. It will keep Them out and Us in.



On edit: but I am not paranoid or anything.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

25. Donald Trump the drama queen

[Achilleaze]

26. Because the republican Draft-Ddoger-in-Chief is a reliable sleazebag,

I stand with truth, justice, America, and Speaker Pelosi.

[DeminPennswoods]

27. The best part: Dems are now controlling the media narrative

It is similar to this:

Ralphie: Oh no, it was the classic mother BB gun block! Heh, heh. “You’ll shoot your eye out!” That deadly phrase uttered many times before by hundreds of mothers was not surmountable by any means known to kiddom.

[dameatball]

28. Pelosi and Schumer did their duty and showed up. I am glad they did. Next time I hope they don't.

It would have been wrong to not make at least one effort to resolve this situation. I doubt that Pelosi and Schumer really expected much anyway.

[customerserviceguy]

29. Yes, a performance for the base

But, what resolves this? He's still got two more years in office, and if the Senate GOP'ers will not give in on this, they sure won't vote to remove him from office.

[Cha]

30. Of course it was.