Category: Unpresidential

Trump Blocks Bridge After Billionaire Competitor Meets Commerce Secretary

Donald Trump threatened to block Canada’s Gordie Howe International Bridge hours after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick met privately with Detroit billionaire Matthew Moroun, who controls the competing Ambassador Bridge, according to The New York Times. Two officials briefed on the meeting confirmed Lutnick met with Moroun in Washington on Monday, and Lutnick subsequently spoke with Trump by phone about the matter.

The Moroun family has spent decades attempting to prevent the Gordie Howe bridge through litigation and lobbying, including a challenge that reached Canada’s Supreme Court. The family previously urged Trump to halt construction of the $4.7 billion publicly funded bridge, which will compete with the Ambassador Bridge for over $300 million in daily cross-border trade once operational.

Trump posted on Truth Social threatening to block the bridge unless Canada addressed “a long list of grievances,” according to the Times report published Tuesday. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended Trump’s position by claiming he was “putting America’s interest first,” objecting to Canadian control of the bridge and land on both sides, and criticizing insufficient use of American-made materials.

The timing coincides with escalating tension between the nations since Trump’s election, during which he has questioned Canadian sovereignty and imposed tariffs on steel, lumber, and automobiles. The Gordie Howe bridge is fully financed by Canada and will be jointly operated by Canada and Michigan, making Trump’s threat an intervention in a cross-border infrastructure project already under construction.

(Source: https://www.rawstory.com/trump-canada-2675257271/)

Trump Attacks Oklahoma GOP Governor Stitt Over Governors Summit Dispute

President Donald Trump attacked Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt on Truth Social on Wednesday, calling the Republican leader a “RINO” (Republican In Name Only) for claiming Trump excluded all Democratic governors from an upcoming White House meeting scheduled for February 20. Stitt, who chairs the National Governors Association, stated the group was withdrawing from the annual summit because Trump had not invited Democratic members, who hold equal standing in the organization.

Trump denied Stitt’s assertion, posting that invitations went to all governors except two he deemed “not worthy of being there”: Colorado Governor Jared Polis, whom Trump accused of incarcerating a cancer patient in solitary confinement for contesting alleged voter fraud, and Maryland Governor Wes Moore, whom Trump attacked for falsely claiming military medals and mishandling Baltimore’s recovery from the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse. Moore serves as vice chair of the National Governors Association.

Trump stated he had extended invitations to two of his prominent Democratic critics—Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, whom he labeled a “SLOB,” and California Governor Gavin Newsom, whom he called “horrendous” and used his derogatory nickname “Newscum”—despite what he characterized as their poor performance in office. The president concluded by expressing willingness to meet Republican governors and “some of the Democrats Governors who were worthy of being invited.”

In response to the dispute, Stitt wrote that because the NGA’s mission requires representing all 55 governors, the association would no longer facilitate the event or include it in its official program. Trump dismissed this decision as false, reiterating his intent to proceed with the meeting while excluding only Polis and Moore.

(Source: https://www.mediaite.com/politics/trump-attacks-rino-republican-governor-in-bomb-throwing-social-media-post/)

Trump Repeats Debunked Lies on Inflation Immigration Elections

During an NBC interview with anchor Tom Llamas on Wednesday, President Donald Trump repeated debunked falsehoods about inflation, immigration, and elections while Llamas largely declined to challenge the inaccuracies in real time. Trump claimed inflation was “almost no inflation” at 1.2% over three months, but the year-over-year rate in December 2025 was 2.7%—far from negligible—and the monthly figures were 3% in September and 2.7% in November. Trump also falsely claimed he inherited “the worst inflation in the history of our country,” when the year-over-year rate in December 2024 was only 2.9%, compared to historical highs of 23.7% in 1920.

On gas prices, Trump stated the national average reached $1.99 per gallon last week, but AAA data showed the actual national average was approximately $2.89 on Wednesday. GasBuddy found only 18 to 34 stations out of roughly 150,000 tracked nationwide offered gas under $2 during the referenced period—0.018% of all U.S. stations. Trump also claimed “$18 trillion” in foreign investment into the country, a fabrication; the White House’s own website documented “$9.6 trillion” in announced investments, itself an exaggerated figure heavily padded with vague pledges and bilateral trade statements unrelated to direct U.S. investment.

Trump falsely asserted he won the 2020 election, claiming “I won three times” when he won in 2016 and 2024 but lost in 2020. He denied suggesting he wanted to nationalize elections despite stating in a separate Monday interview: “The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting.” Trump also repeated unsubstantiated claims that elections in Detroit, Philadelphia, and Atlanta are “extremely corrupt” without presenting evidence, and falsely alleged cheating occurred in Fulton County, Georgia during 2020—claims debunked years ago by Georgia’s Republican elections chief and Trump’s own first-term Justice Department appointees.

On immigration, Trump claimed Biden “allowed in our country…25 million people,” a fabrication; federal records documented under 11 million “encounters” through December 2024, with estimates of roughly 2.2 million additional “gotaways.” Trump also repeated an unsubstantiated claim about “11,888 murderers” Biden allegedly allowed into the country, mischaracterizing Department of Homeland Security data. Trump stated foreign governments “emptied” jails into America, particularly naming Venezuela and “the Congo,” claims experts from those nations and global prison scholars have told CNN are baseless.

Llamas responded to most false statements with minimal acknowledgment—saying “right,” “yeah,” or offering no pushback—allowing misinformation to circulate unchallenged on air. Trump also denied knowing why Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard attended an FBI raid on Georgia’s election hub, contradicting Gabbard’s own written statement. NBC published a separate fact-check article but failed to correct Trump’s falsehoods during the live interview itself, leaving viewers without immediate corrective information on critical policy matters.

(Source: https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/05/politics/fact-check-trump-nbc-interview)

NSA Detected Foreign Call About Trump Associate Gabbard Blocked

Last spring, the National Security Agency detected a phone call between two foreign intelligence operatives discussing a person close to Donald Trump. Rather than following standard protocol to distribute the intelligence report, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard delivered a paper copy directly to White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and subsequently instructed the NSA to transmit the classified details to her office instead of publishing the report.

On April 17, a whistleblower contacted the inspector general alleging that Gabbard blocked the classified intelligence from routine distribution. The whistleblower filed a formal complaint on May 21 detailing Gabbard’s actions. The NSA does not monitor individuals without justification, and the person discussed in the call is not understood to be an administration official or special government employee, according to sources familiar with the matter.

The intelligence community inspector general dismissed the complaint after a 14-day review on June 6, stating the office “could not determine if the allegations appear credible.” The watchdog’s independence may be compromised after Gabbard assigned one of her top advisers, Dennis Kirk—a co-author of Project 2025 and a first Trump administration official—to work in the inspector general’s office on May 9, two weeks after the whistleblower’s initial contact.

For eight months, the complaint remained classified and withheld from congressional intelligence committees, violating the law requiring agencies to relay whistleblower complaints to Congress within 21 days. Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Mark Warner stated the months-long delay reflected an effort to “bury the complaint.” Members of the “gang of eight” received a heavily redacted version on Tuesday night, with much of the complaint withheld under claims of executive privilege—a move Gabbard’s attorney said flags presidential involvement in the underlying intelligence concerns.

Gabbard’s office denied all allegations, stating “every single action taken by DNI Gabbard was fully within her legal and statutory authority.” House Oversight Committee Democrat Stephen Lynch warned that Kirk’s appointment raised “troubling questions about the independence” of the intelligence community inspector general’s office, compromising the agency’s ability to serve as an independent watchdog against weaponization of intelligence for political purposes.

(Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/07/nsa-foreign-intelligence-trump-whistleblower)

Trump Threatens Trevor Noah Lawsuit Over Epstein Grammy Joke

President Donald Trump threatened legal action against comedian Trevor Noah on Monday after Noah joked during the Grammy Awards that Trump spent time on Jeffrey Epstein’s island. Trump denied any connection to Epstein, calling Noah’s performance “lousy” and asserting he has “nothing to do with Jeffrey Epstein.” Trump also attacked author Michael Wolff, describing him as a “sleaze bag” who conspired with Epstein to damage his presidency.

The president claimed that newly released Justice Department files containing 3.5 million Epstein-related documents “absolve” him of improper conduct. Trump stated the DOJ should move on from the Epstein matter and asserted the files instead reveal misconduct by Democrats, Bill Clinton, and Bill Gates, but not him. When asked directly by ABC News correspondent Rachel Scott whether he planned to sue Noah, Trump confirmed his intention and elaborated on his grievances.

Trump accused Democrats of weaponizing Epstein allegations against him politically. He stated that Democrats only pushed Epstein-related claims as a strategy to undermine his election chances, saying “The Democrats are pushing it” and “it’s turning out to be the Democrats that were with — and conspired with — Epstein.” Trump referenced emails between Wolff and Epstein obtained from the released files, including a 2016 message in which Wolff offered to “help finish” Trump before the election.

Released Epstein correspondence documented Wolff’s discussions with the deceased sex offender about targeting Trump, with Wolff writing in 2015 that Trump’s denial of visiting Epstein’s properties would give Epstein “valuable PR and political currency” to use against him. Trump claimed this email exchange demonstrated a coordinated effort to harm his political standing. He announced over the weekend his intention to sue Wolff based on these communications.

Trump ended his remarks by celebrating his return to the presidency despite what he characterized as a Democratic conspiracy to prevent his election. He said the released files proved Democrats “were working together to try and help me lose the election,” but acknowledged his presence in the Oval Office indicated that conspiracy ultimately failed.

(Source: https://www.mediaite.com/politics/trump-thrashes-lightweight-trevor-noah-and-democrats-pushing-epstein-claims-in-oval-office-rant/)

Trump Launches TrumpRx Website, Exaggerates Drug Savings

President Trump unveiled TrumpRx.gov on Thursday at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, a website designed to direct consumers to purchase prescription drugs at reduced prices. The site itself does not sell medications but serves as a search portal linking users to pharmacies and manufacturer websites where they can buy drugs directly. Trump claimed the platform would help Americans save money and improve their health.

Dr. Mehmet Oz, who oversees Medicare and Medicaid, stated at the event that offering fertility drugs through the site would result in a surge of “Trump babies.” Trump negotiated deals with major pharmaceutical manufacturers to reduce certain drug prices and increase domestic production in exchange for exempting the companies from threatened tariffs on foreign-made medications. The administration framed these agreements as a victory in controlling drug costs ahead of midterm elections, positioning affordability as a campaign issue.

Researchers specializing in drug pricing analysis issued warnings that TrumpRx would not deliver the savings Trump promised, projecting that many consumers would still pay excessive amounts for medications obtained through the platform. The site represents Trump’s attempt to claim credit for drug price reductions while relying on voluntary corporate participation rather than regulatory enforcement or government price negotiations that have historically achieved more significant savings for patients.

(Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/05/health/trumprx-online-drugstore-prices.html)

Trump Posts Racist Video Depicting Obamas as Apes

President Donald Trump posted a 62-second video to Truth Social on Thursday night containing racist imagery depicting former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes, with their faces superimposed on animal bodies for approximately one second. The video, which also promoted a debunked 2020 election conspiracy theory about manipulated vote-counting machines, was shared at 11:44 p.m. ET and included a watermark linked to a pro-Trump account on X with tens of thousands of followers.

Trump posted the video minutes after sharing content about the Black conservative movement, as part of a late-night social media spree that also featured reshared posts on Jeffrey Epstein, upcoming midterm elections, and unsubstantiated claims about manipulated elections while attacking Democratic opponents. The longer version of the video, first published online in October, portrays Trump as a lion while depicting prominent Democrats and liberals as animal characters from Disney's The Lion King, including Hillary Clinton as a warthog and New York mayor Zohran Mamdani as a hyena.

Democrats and anti-Trump Republicans immediately condemned the post as amplifying racist imagery. California Governor Gavin Newsom's office stated "Disgusting behavior by the President" and called for every Republican to denounce it, while the account Republicans Against Trump declared "Trump just posted a video on Truth Social that includes a racist image of Barack and Michelle Obama as monkeys. There's no bottom." The Bulwark, a Never Trump conservative outlet, also criticized the post.

Trump's spokesperson Karoline Leavitt defended the post on Friday, dismissing the backlash as "fake outrage" by the media and claiming the controversial clip came from a meme originally depicting Trump as "King of the Jungle." Despite these claims, Mediaite confirmed the post remained on Trump's feed as of Friday morning, with records preserved by the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine confirming its existence.

This incident represents an escalation in Trump's pattern of attacks on Obama during his second term, which has included posting discredited conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and accusing the former president of "treason" over intelligence assessments related to Russian interference allegations. Trump has also previously shared AI-generated videos depicting Obama's arrest and incarceration.

(Source: https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/trump-posts-video-depicting-barack-115427661.html)

Trump Demands Penn Station Rename for Tunnel Funding

President Donald Trump demanded that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer agree to rename Penn Station in New York and Dulles International Airport in Washington after himself in exchange for unfreezing $16 billion in federal funding for a rail tunnel project connecting New York and New Jersey, according to Punchbowl News. The Trump administration had frozen the funds during a government shutdown in the fall, and construction on the tunnel project faced potential shutdown as early as Friday due to lack of resources.

Schumer rejected Trump’s demand and told the president he lacked the legal authority to unfreeze the funds in exchange for renaming public infrastructure. A source close to Schumer stated that Trump could restart the funding unilaterally and that “there’s nothing to trade,” indicating the demand was a purely self-serving condition with no legitimate policy basis.

This episode reflects Trump’s pattern of using federal resources and public assets to promote his personal brand. In December, Trump announced the renaming of the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center, though the venue’s official name is codified in law and cannot be changed without legislation; several artists subsequently canceled shows in protest, and Trump announced the Kennedy Center would close for “renovations” lasting approximately two years.

Additional recent examples include the State Department adding Trump’s name to the U.S. Institute of Peace and Trump unveiling a new “Trump-class” of battleships he claimed he would personally help design. These actions demonstrate Trump’s repeated attempt to repurpose federal institutions and taxpayer-funded infrastructure for self-aggrandizement.

The White House did not respond to requests for comment regarding the Penn Station and Dulles renaming demand. The lawsuit filed by New York and New Jersey against the Trump administration remains ongoing in federal court in Manhattan.

(Source: https://www.mediaite.com/politics/trump/trump-reportedly-demanded-his-name-on-penn-station-in-exchange-for-unfreezing-tunnel-project-funds/)

Trump Denies Sending Gabbard to Georgia FBI Raid

President Donald Trump told NBC Nightly News anchor Tom Llamas he did not know why Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard was present during an FBI raid on the Fulton County Election Hub in Georgia on January 28, stating only that “a lot of the cheating comes from, it’s international cheating.” This claim directly contradicts Gabbard’s own written statement to senators, in which she asserted that her presence was requested by Trump himself and executed under her statutory authority to coordinate intelligence related to election security.

Gabbard wrote to Senator Mark Warner and Representative Jim Himes that her role as Director of National Intelligence authorized her to investigate foreign and malign influence on elections. However, Trump’s disavowal of knowledge about her presence during the raid creates an explicit factual contradiction with her account. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche attempted to clarify the situation, stating that Gabbard was “in the area where the search took place” but “not part of this investigation,” while also calling her an “expert” on election integrity without explanation.

Trump has offered multiple conflicting explanations for Gabbard’s presence at the Georgia location. At a Kennedy Center screening on January 29, Trump said Gabbard was “working very hard” to investigate 2020 election fraud. At the National Prayer Breakfast on February 5, Trump claimed it was Attorney General Pam Bondi who sent Gabbard to Georgia, stating that “she went in at Pam’s insistence” to examine votes from the state.

The contradictions among Trump, Gabbard, Blanche, and Bondi reflect the absence of a coherent official account regarding the purpose of Gabbard’s involvement in the Georgia operation. Gabbard now faces intense scrutiny as whistleblowers have raised concerns about her conduct as DNI director, including allegations that she has obstructed efforts to provide reports to Congress.

The discrepancies underscore Trump’s pattern of using intelligence officials to investigate claims of election fraud that lack substantiation, while simultaneously denying direct involvement in those same operations when questioned by press outlets.

(Source: https://www.mediaite.com/media/news/trump-tells-tom-llamas-he-doesnt-know-why-tulsi-gabbard-was-in-georgia-for-fbi-raid-she-claims-he-sent-her/)

Trump Deflects on Minneapolis Killings with Incoherent Water Response

During a Wednesday interview with NBC Nightly News anchor Tom Llamas at the White House, Trump responded incoherently to questions about the fatal shootings of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. Trump stated he was “not happy with the two incidents” but focused instead on criticizing the negative publicity surrounding Immigration and Customs Enforcement, pivoting to comments about U.S. naval operations in the Caribbean targeting drug boats.

When Llamas asked Trump directly about the Minneapolis killings, Trump deflected by claiming “nobody talks about all of the murderers that we’re taking out of our country” and shifted the conversation to offshore operations. Trump’s non-sequitur response about “the waters where we knock out boats” left the interviewer visibly confused, with Llamas repeating back “The — the — the waters?” in evident bewilderment before attempting to move forward with the interview.

The deflection exemplifies Trump’s pattern of evading accountability for federal law enforcement actions. An FBI supervisor resigned after the Trump administration pressured her to abandon a civil rights investigation into the Good shooting, while federal prosecutors simultaneously subpoenaed Minnesota Democratic officials in what constitutes politicized weaponization of the Justice Department.

Trump has also made unsubstantiated claims that a woman protesting the shooting was a “paid agitator” without evidence, and his administration has appealed court orders restricting ICE retaliation against peaceful Minneapolis protesters. These actions demonstrate the administration’s strategy of suppressing investigation and accountability while attacking those documenting federal actions.

Trump’s confused response during the Llamas interview reflects his administration’s broader refusal to address substantive questions about fatal law enforcement incidents, instead treating inquiries as opportunities to promote unrelated policy talking points and attack critics.

(Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/tv/news/trump-ice-minneapolis-shootings-interview-nbc-video-b2914752.html)

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