The Note: The Big Ds - ‘Disheartening’ and ‘Demoralizing’
— -- Trump’s First 100 Days with ABC’s RICK KLEIN and SHUSHANNAH WALSHE
Day No. 21
THE BIG STORY: Are we scared yet? White House warnings around the terrorist threat have grown more dire and urgent in recent days, building to this line from President Trump on Wednesday: “I've learned a lot in the last two weeks, and terrorism is a far greater threat than people understand.” “Believe me,” he pleaded … but how much credibility does he have on the subject? It’s not just the non-existent massacre in Bowling Green and the non-attack in Atlanta (that was really Orlando?), or the typos in the fact sheet about supposedly under-covered terrorist attacks. It’s that the administration has already made clear that “alternative facts” are real, that polls (except those Tweeted by the president) can’t be trusted, and that “fake news” is whatever the president deems it to be. If the threat is more urgent, or becomes more urgent, not even a color-code system can solve things for a White House with a credibility problem.
THE SLEEPER STORY: The White House has put down a new marker in judging the success of military missions, with a hardened stance on the recent Yemen raid that could make it difficult to criticize almost anything US forces do. “It's absolutely a success,” White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said, “and I think anyone who would suggest it's not a success does disservice to the life of Chief Ryan Owens.” Spicer contradicted himself; he previously had said you can’t call the operation a “success, 100 percent” because of that loss of life. More importantly, his latest statement came across as a brush-back aimed at Sen. John McCain, who said this week, “I don't believe you can call it a success.” McCain has had a similar role before: He was as a go-to-guy for reasoned Republican opposition during the Bush years, and he’s fought a Republican White House on torture policy once already. So McCain can take it. But what about all the non-veterans – in Congress and beyond – with a stake in judging military decisions? Can anyone criticize or second-guess a military mission without doing “disservice to the life” of those paid the ultimate price? Does it mean that if people die, the president can’t have been wrong?
THE SHINY STORY: This is a new one. Barely a week since being tapped by President Trump for the Supreme Court, Judge Neil Gorsuch is calling the president’s comments on the judiciary “demoralizing” and “disheartening,” in quotes reported by a Democratic senator and confirmed by a Gorsuch spokesman. This is not normal: Supreme Court nominees typically go out of their way to be uninteresting during their Capitol courtesy calls. They never – ever – distance themselves from the public statements of the president who chose them before confirmation hearings, much less before swearing-in. Shocking as this is, it may be less than meets pundits’ eyes. The Trump team has been forgiving of Cabinet nominees’ breaks with the president. Gorsuch disliking attacks on a federal judge make sense, since he is also a federal judge. More importantly, what Gorsuch is saying now could ease his confirmation, while not binding him to any particular predispositions on the high court. The only person who looks worse for this exchange may be the president. And since he can’t avoid Tweeting about it, he may not like it, of course.
TLDR: The president continues to play with the politics of fear and instead of telling Americans to not be scared and go about their business--as we have seen from recent administrations--saying we should be afraid, very afraid. And Judge Neil Gorsuch called the president’s comments on the judiciary “demoralizing” and “disheartening." It's a shocking distancing from the man who nominated him, but the president has already tweeted he believes Gorsuch's comments are being misrepresented. Of course, Gorsuch's spokesman already confirmed them on the record.
THIS MORNING'S TRUMP TWEETS:
6:57 AM: Sen.Richard Blumenthal, who never fought in Vietnam when he said for years he had (major lie),now misrepresents what Judge Gorsuch told him?8:19 AM: Chris Cuomo, in his interview with Sen. Blumenthal, never asked him about his long-term lie about his brave "service" in Vietnam. FAKE NEWS!8:26 AM: Sen. McCain should not be talking about the success or failure of a mission to the media. Only emboldens the enemy! He's been losing so....8:31 AM: ...long he doesn't know how to win anymore, just look at the mess our country is in - bogged down in conflict all over the place. Our hero..8:52 AM: ..Ryan died on a winning mission ( according to General Mattis), not a "failure." Time for the U.S. to get smart and start winning again!
NOTABLES
--SCOTUS PICK NEIL GORSUCH CALLS TRUMP COMMENTS ON JUDICIARY 'DEMORALIZING' AND 'DISHEARTENING:' Donald Trump's nominee for the Supreme Court, Neil Gorsuch, called the president's comments on the judiciary "demoralizing" and "disheartening" during a meeting with Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., a spokesman for Gorsuch confirmed. The spokesman did not say which of Trump's comments Gorsuch was referring to. Trump has spoken out multiple times against a federal judge who blocked his immigration order in Washington state last week. ABC’s JENNIFER HANSLER and BENJAMIN SIEGEL have more: http://abcn.ws/2k4le2E
--SENATE CONFIRMS JEFF SESSIONS AS ATTORNEY GENERAL: Sen. Jeff Sessions has been confirmed as the new attorney general of the United States -- capping a contentious process that involved protests from his Democratic colleagues. The Senate voted last night 52-47 in favor of Sessions' confirmation, ABC’s JENNIFER HANSLER reports. Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia was the lone Democrat to vote for confirmation, while Sessions himself voted present. http://abcn.ws/2llX586
--ANALYSIS: TRUMP WHITE HOUSE PLAYS TERRORISM BLAME GAME: The Trump administration has a blunt message: Be afraid. And if something goes wrong, blame the third branch of government and the fourth estate. That’s the message emanating from the White House, starting with President Trump, just three weeks into his hectic presidency, ABC’s RICK KLEIN writes. The president is arguing that the terrorism threat is far worse than most people imagine -– and that forces, including the judiciary and the news media, are potentially making the United States less safe. http://abcn.ws/2kJKFUb
--TRUMP SUGGESTS THAT SCOTUS NOMINEE NEIL GORSUCH'S CRITICISM OF HIM MISREPRESENTED: President Trump today suggested that his Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch, had been misrepresented in regard to the judge’s comments describing the president's view of the judiciary as "demoralizing" and "disheartening," despite a spokesman for Gorsuch having earlier confirmed the remarks. In an early-morning tweet, Trump lambasted Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who on Wednesday had reported Gorsuch's private remarks expressing concern over Trump's recent attacks on the judiciary. http://abcn.ws/2kSc88S
--SEAN SPICER ON CITING UNKNOWN ATLANTA TERROR ATTACK 3 TIMES: I 'CLEARLY MEANT' ORLANDO: Kellyanne Conway isn't the only member of the Trump administration citing a terror attack that never happened: White House press secretary Sean Spicer is just as guilty, having recently alluded three times to an attack in Atlanta, ABC’s MATTHEW CLAIBORNE writes. Spicer first made an Atlanta reference during a January 29 appearance on ABC's "This Week," telling chief global affairs correspondent Martha Raddatz, "What do we say to the family who loses somebody over a terroristic [sic] -- to whether it's Atlanta or San Bernardino or the Boston bomber? Those people, each of whom had gone out to a country and then come back." In an email to ABC News Wednesday, Spicer finally addressed his repeated reference to an Atlanta terror attack, writing that he "clearly meant Orlando." http://abcn.ws/2kVxUZ5
TODAY AT THE WHITE HOUSE: President Trump starts off his day with an airline industry listening session and breakfast. Then, he attends the swearing-in of Jeff Sessions as attorney general. For lunch, Trump hosts a SCOTUS listening session in the Roosevelt Room. Trump has four separate phone calls scheduled with four world leaders from Afghanistan, Qatar, Kuwait and Iraq over the course of the day.
SPEED READ with ABC’s ADAM KELSEY
WHAT'S NEXT IN THE LEGAL BATTLE OVER PRESIDENT TRUMP'S EXECUTIVE ORDER. A decision is expected shortly from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in the ongoing legal battle over President Donald Trump’s executive order limiting travel and immigration from seven countries. On Tuesday, judges heard arguments from lawyers representing the Department of Justice seeking to overturn an earlier temporary restraining order (TRO), which put the action on hold. ABC’s JAMES HILL takes a look at three possible outcomes of the case: http://abcn.ws/2lrKyfp
TRUMP HOSTING JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER AT MAR-A-LAGO 'AS A GIFT.’ President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump are set to host Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his wife, first aboard Air Force One and then at the president's south Florida retreat, ABC’s MATTHEW CLAIBORNE notes.The visit marks the first time the president has hosted a foreign leader at his resort while in office. After ethical questions arose about how the Japanese leader’s visit will be funded, a White House spokesperson tells ABC News that Abe and his wife will stay at the exclusive golf resort "as a personal gift." Membership at Mar-a-Lago can cost up to $200,000. http://abcn.ws/2kJAI9x
SPICER SAYS TRUMP HAD 'EVERY RIGHT' TO DEFEND IVANKA ABOUT NORDSTROM. White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer defended President Donald Trump's tweet against Nordstrom in a briefing Wednesday, saying Trump has "every right" to stand up for his daughter, whose clothing line was pulled from the department store. Spicer said he believes Trump's daughter was "targeted" and that there are clear efforts to "undermine" her name due to Trump's policies, write ABC’s JULIA JACOBO, JORDYN PHELPS and EMILY SHAPIRO. http://abcn.ws/2lpCyLI
WHITE HOUSE CALLS YEMEN RAID A 'HUGE SUCCESS'; CRITICISM 'DISSERVICE.' The Trump administration's top spokesperson called a raid in Yemen that resulted in the death of one Navy SEAL and the likely deaths of civilians a "huge success," and rebuked any criticism of the operation as a "disservice" to the fallen SEAL. Sen. John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, earlier called the operation a "failure." ABC’s VERONICA STRACQUALURSI has more: http://abcn.ws/2lt13s5
NO, TRUMP'S EXECUTIVE ORDER DIDN'T LEAD TO CAPTURE OF ISIS LEADER. This fake news story has gone viral in the past week, but it isn’t true. The false article claims that an ISIS leader named Rasheed Muhammad was arrested on arrival at a New York airport just after President Trump signed his immigration ban last month. The Jan. 31 story was published on several websites but seems to have originated from a site called “The Times.” The website, which is not connected with The New York Times, Los Angeles Times or Chicago Sun-Times, did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment. ABC’s RYAN STRUYK and RILEY BEGGIN have more: http://abcn.ws/2llXoQl
SUPPORTERS TWEET #LETLIZSPEAK AFTER ELIZABETH WARREN SILENCED ON SENATE FLOOR. Democrats rushed to Twitter Wednesday in defense of Sen. Elizabeth Warren after Republicans rebuked her on the Senate floor Tuesday night for quoting 30-year-old criticisms of attorney general nominee Jeff Sessions, a U.S. senator from Alabama, notes ABC’s STEPHANIE EBBS. The Massachusetts senator had referenced comments that the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., and the late Coretta Scott King, wife of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., made in 1986 when Sessions, then a U.S. attorney, was under consideration for a federal judgeship. http://abcn.ws/2k4679o
THE STORY BEHIND THE ARCANE SENATE RULE USED TO SILENCE ELIZABETH WARREN. The dramatic episode Tuesday night, during which Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell silenced Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s speech against attorney general nominee Jeff Sessions, shone a light on an arcane Senate statute: Rule 19. McConnell, R-Ky., accused the Massachusetts senator of violating a provision in the rule that states “no Senator in debate shall, directly or indirectly, by any form of words impute to another Senator or to other Senators any conduct or motive unworthy or unbecoming a Senator,” explains ABC’s ALI ROGIN. http://abcn.ws/2kJ8QC8
WHAT WE’RE READING
“THE RESISTANCE IS NOT FUTILE,” a Huffington Post Op-Ed by Jesse Ferguson. “Democrats don’t control the White House, the Senate, or the House of Representatives. Some feel we are therefore powerless to stop the damage the Trump agenda will do. The majority of Americans didn’t want Donald Trump to be president, but, thanks to the Electoral College - with an assist from the Russian government - he is. In the science fiction series Star Trek: The Next Generation, the most unrelenting nemesis for the crew of the starship U.S.S. Enterprise is the cybernetic hive-minded Borg. The Borg intone one threat: “Resistance is Futile.” In our battles against the Trump administration, the American people are now wondering, is it?” http://huff.to/2k6Z5kr
WHO’S TWEETING?
@DavidWright_CNN: Kellaynne Conway on Fox: "Go buy Ivanka's stuff, is what I would tell you"..."I'm going to give it a free commercial here, go buy it today."
@KFILE: Sean Spicer cites Atlanta terror attack that never happened http://cnn.it/2kJjV6p
@IngrahamAngle: Judge Gorsuch's comments abt @realdonaldTrump's tweets are concerning. Judges Pryor or Hardiman know better. Doesn't bode well
@jonfavs: Gorsuch has zero incentive to refrain from criticizing Trump. Only helps his nomination.
@bethreinhard: More .@SenBlumenthal on CNN: "I am not about to try to explain the president’s tweets."