Insiders Finally Admit Trump Suffers Deranged Fantasies | The Daily Beast Podcast LIVESTREAM

Hello and welcome to the Daily Beast. Live. Um I am joined today by Sarah E. Wall Walsh. Um and we're going to talk. about what is potentially the most. terrifying article I've ever read about. Donald Trump and let's face it, the bar. is very, very high for that. My name is. Nico Hines. Um I'm global editorial. director at The Daily Beast, but our. real expert in DC today is Sarah. So, Sarah, have you seen this piece in The. Atlantic which describes what I would.

call the rabid megalomaniac fantasies of. Donald Trump? Yes, so the the article we're talking. about in The Atlantic is called The YOLO. Presidency. And uh for those who don't know YOLO, my. siblings filled me in years ago, but now. I uh feel like it's kind of. gone off uh and we don't use it as much. so. anymore. Um especially Gen Z and the. younger generation. Um you only live. once and and that is being described as.

Trump's second term. Um and one quote. specifically stands out to me that I. think really kind of sets the bar um and. it was a confidant who told The. Atlantic, quote, "He's been talking. recently about how he is the most. powerful person to ever live." Then he. goes on they go on, "He wants to be. remembered as the one who did things. that other people couldn't do because of. his sheer power and force of will." Uh. and that really does seem to sum up what.

the second term of President Donald. Trump has really tried to be all about. Uh there'll be plenty of questions about. really how far he can go and how much he. can push the envelope, but it's not for. not at least drawing it throwing it out. there and trying and we can get into. some of the different things uh that he. has been pushing the envelope on or uh. punch. essentially pushing the rule of law on.

and that is where the real crux is and. where. he is moving to undermine elements of. our Constitution and the principles for. which our country was founded. Yeah, and. I think we have to just. to look at the context here. Like. whatever you say about Donald Trump, he. he is not a stupid guy. So, when he's. talking about being, becoming, or even. already being, you know, one of the most. powerful and important man in the. history of mankind, we're not talking about putting in a. ballroom here.

He must be planning. much, much bigger things. And obviously, what he has tried to do in Iran, I. guess, is the most obvious kind of. representation of that. What he did in. Venezuela, where he just swept in, grabbed another country's leader, and on a whim, basically, and did it. overnight. I think they give us a bit. more of a clue is the kind of things. that maybe are in his mind to secure. that place in history.

So, I think in the in the past. administration, in his first term, there. was many more human beings in his. cabinet, in his own family that was work. that they were working in Washington, that would really try to contain. President Donald Trump and rein him in. Those I've spoken to here in Washington, who are closest to him, who are closest. to his family, who are close to previous. administration officials and current. administration officials, said those. guardrails have completely come off. And. that is what you're seeing specifically.

with some of these actions the president. has taken in his second term. It's hard. to imagine that this president would. have tried to go into Iran during his. first term. He did rip up the Iran. nuclear deal, but. that did not mean bombing Iran. It. didn't mean the strikes on nuclear. facilities and it didn't mean literally. going in and bombing infrastructure. So, that is something that I think has. definitely changed in this.

administration. It came after, as you mentioned, he went. in and. grabbed Nicolas Maduro. He has long been. in conflict with Nicolas Maduro, the. former president of Venezuela, and he. has criticized him for years. Multiple administrations have criticized. him for years, Democrats and. Republicans. But Trump literally carried. out a mission to go in and sweep him up. And I think that also emboldened him to. go into Iran because that happened at. the very beginning of the year. And then.

of course on the end of the end of. February, we saw the move in Iran. So, when it comes to. using military force, that is something. where we've seen this president go above. and beyond and really. stretch the bear the boundaries for. which he was. originally frankly campaigned on. He He. has no political ramifications in in. this because he's in his second term, he. can't seek a third. And so, he's done that apart from.

the conflicts that he has engaged in, the use of military force he has engaged. in. There are other aspects of this. presidency that also. go beyond where he has in the past and. have been basically him trying to flex. his power and see what he can do. And. two of those examples I would say are. really questioning and trying to. undermine the alliances the United. States has had for years. Specifically, the NATO alliance,

constantly threatening to withdraw from. NATO, to repeatedly attack our NATO. allies. has been something he has done in the. past, but he's taken it to a new level. this go round. And then apart from. specifically attacking those allies, he's also tried to change the world when. it comes to trade. And and that is. in one way, obviously, he imposed these. sweeping global tariffs. across-the-board. Um he has tried to basically remake how.

the US. takes in revenue and has tried to remake. all these trade deals. uh by imposing these steep tariffs on. many of our allies, but also just. across-the-world. Uh and that is one way where you see his. power being stretched or his attempts to. stretch his power. Uh the reality on. that front is we still do have some. checks and balances in this country and. I think that's where he's come up. against a wall and has been, frankly, extremely frustrated. Uh you can see.

just by looking at Truth Social or just. by seeing him answer questions in the. Oval Office, um that there still is a. Supreme Court which has come in and. said, "No, you can't do that." on some. of these things like when it comes to. his global tariffs. Uh and also in some. ways there there are still uh the rest. of the court system which has pushed. back. Um I would say where he hasn't. been opposed as much as maybe even he. thought he might be uh has been by. Congress specifically and that third.

branch of the federal government has. really. abdicated their responsibility uh under. Republican majorities. I I suppose just to to touch on that. that hopefully that might change after. the midterms, right? Where we're going. to be looking at a radically reshaped uh. Capitol Hill. Um but let's just move on. to some of the details. So, for those of. us those of you who are joining us now, uh we are talking about some utterly. terrifying leaks that have come out of. the White House today which show the.

state of mind that the president is in. And if we look at some of the details. here, we've got sources who work closely with. Trump saying that, "Obviously, he always. used to be a massive exaggerator and a. self-aggrandizer and he would often. compare himself and suggest that he was. one of the great presidents of all time, comparing himself to George Washington, to Abraham Lincoln. What's happening now is on a completely. different scale. He's claiming that he.

might be the most powerful man to have. ever lived. He thinks he's up there with. Alexander the Great, with Julius Caesar, with Napoleon, with Genghis Khan. I. mean, this is terrifying because those. people are famous largely for. going to war, for. conquering great swaths of land, for for achieving like genuinely. huge things. And we've now got a couple.

of years of Trump in power left and. people's. I mean, what's he going to do next? What's he going to do, Sarah? I did. That is that is the the ultimate. question and is what will he do? He. still has. 3 years in office, a little less than 3. years in office even in this this term. And you talk about the the conquerors, the those who expanded on territory. We've seen Trump already attempt some of. this in his second term. We've talked.

about specifically his attempts to take. over Greenland. He has pushed for. Greenland to become a part of the United. States. He's thinking big picture, his. legacy. What will be remembered of when. it comes to his legacy, which. isn't exactly working out the way he. wanted it to so far. Obviously, his. efforts to take over Greenland have been. opposed and and while he hasn't ruled. out military force, administration. officials said that that is not going to.

happen and he's backed away. when confronted by it by some of our. allies directly. And so we have that. expansionist mentality that he has been. talking about repeatedly. I'll mention. Canada also being the 51st state, though. he's backed off that claim. a lot more. as time has gone by. Um but. in this term, it appears that his focus. has been on what will people remember of.

Donald Trump. And the people he mentions. have been these. figures who have carried out wars, who. have conquered lands. Uh and Trump is trying to think big. picture outside the United States uh. based on his actions and his. uh frankly his posting on social media. Uh I think what's interesting about this. is it goes to show that the president is. maybe thinking a lot more this term.

about his own mortality and his age. even. And the fact that he is 79 years. old, there has been a lot of questions. about his age and his mental facilities. and his physical faculties and and what. he's able to accomplish because he is. the oldest man ever elected president. at the time he was elected. >> keeps talking about whether or not he's. going to get into heaven. Let's So I. think that that mortality element really. is coming through and he's almost. thinking about the obituaries and the.

things that people are going to say when. he once he's gone. Exactly. And it I mean it comes at a. time when not only is he older, but the. the reality is as this president has. faced now multiple assassination. attempts. And so that may be a part of. this whole thinking big picture. Um. but what's come out in littler ways. because he hasn't been able to fulfill. some of these grand schemes or maybe. wishful thinking even is he's taken to.

smaller elements like slapping his face. on. passports and putting his name on. um. national park passes and wanting a $250. bill with his face on it. Things that. are outside the norm uh. will likely be very temporary uh but are. ways to kind of. uh. fulfill some of these wishes uh for this. grand remembrance of President Donald.

Trump, the celebration of President. Donald Trump. And it all comes as the. country is celebrating its 250th. anniversary uh marking its independence. So, he he really is trying to. superimpose himself on American society. but also the world uh as we as we've. seen throughout the course of. the many months he's been in office. Yeah, I I think there's a kind of. optimistic way of looking at this. If he. is allowed to get away with some of. these kind of tacky renovations, you.

know, building the Arc de Trump um. which obviously is a kind of pastiche of. the Arc de Triomphe which Napoleon. ordered to be constructed after a. fantastic naval um a fantastic uh. military battle at Austerlitz. Uh. of course Trump doesn't have a fantastic. military battle to celebrate but he. wants to just do something kind of. hollow and meaningless but that has the. same patina uh of a kind of legacy. Uh.

so, hopefully. if he gets to build his arch, if he gets. to build his ballroom. then. he won't worry too much about the. massive destruction that usually. precedes those kind of uh monuments. That's kind of a curious observation too. because we we talk about these things. like the ballroom, uh the renovations at. the White House. He has spent so much time focused. specifically. on the specific projects. And.

in some ways if they are built in the. end. they're facing lawsuits across the. board. They they will be something that is a. way to remember Donald Trump for. building unless of course someone comes. in and tears them down. But the ballroom. if it is built the $400 million ballroom. that is currently on hold will always be. the ballroom built by President Donald. Trump. The arc that you mentioned you. talk about how he wants to build this.

grand arc that's supposed to mark the. 250th anniversary of this country's. independence. It's. tells you something that not only does. he want to build it but he wants to. build it bigger. This is a 250 foot arc. This is bigger than all the arcs we've. seen in Europe. He wants the biggest and. most beautiful as he puts it one there. is. So he's really trying to one up. these other monuments if you will in his. in his own.

way of redecorating or building. monuments to himself. I I think what's. interesting here is you talk about him. getting focusing on these things is he's. gotten into some very specific details. which could serve as a distraction that. in fact. keeps him away from the rest of the. world and world order in some ways is. there was a the lawsuit involving the. Kennedy Center the fight to keep it open. after he announced it was going to close. for two years. They're talking about in.

the renovations he's specifically. getting into the details of picking out. the arm rests of picking out the seat. colors when it comes to the ballroom. specifically he has gotten into not the. ballroom but the White House that comes. to specifically picking out the marble. that goes into these projects. So the. real estate man in Donald Trump has. maybe gotten the better of him in some. ways because he's obsessing about such. small details on projects that will. maybe not be as noticed long term if.

they end up coming to fruition. Mhm. Um it is fascinating that it does seem. to be distracting him from. what people may argue would be worse, right? So, he's not kind of seeking to. radically overhaul health care or to. tear down social security or to force. through, you know, huge tax cuts for. millionaires and billionaires. You know, the kinds of things that people may may. have feared that he would be focused on. once the reins of no longer having to.

seek re-election were released. Instead, obviously the Supreme Court has. been a big focus for Trump and he has. made. big strides in terms of reshaping the. Supreme Court. But, in terms of policy, there isn't really that much that Trump. has changed. That is the interesting part about this. because when you speak about someone. that Trump ultimately despises, you talk. about President Obama. One of the things. that is a part of President Obama's.

legacy that he's extremely proud of is. the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known. as Obamacare. And that has endured. despite Trump's best efforts to tear it. down. And he has talked about building. this beautiful health care system. He. has provided zero details and has never. moved forward with it. I mean, they've. been able to as a party, Republicans. have been able to chip away at. Obamacare, but they've never provided. the alternative that may stand the test. of time from these other presidents. So, no, he has not.

fundamentally changed health care. And. he has not been able to do certain. things that one would expect him to do. based on what he campaigned on. What he. has been able to do is implement tax. cuts, a lot of it going to corporations. and the ultra-wealthy while some of the. more temporary tax cuts as a part of his. uh. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and and last. summer's massive tax bill have been. temporary fixes that helps ordinary.

Americans but only in the short term. So, some of those things that he. campaigned on for the MAGA base will. actually expire at the end of his second. term. Um things like what he calls no. tax on tips and he talks about. uh cutting taxes for social security uh. and some of the details on that frankly. he's in fact lying about. Um he did not. go as far as he says he has when he's. out on the campaign trail. Um but even. those specific things that he's touted. as a part of his like policy legacy or. policy agenda have been temporary to.

satisfy a certain amount of people to. get things through but but are not. long-term changes to America. Um we. don't have things like the New Deal. We. don't have the FDR or the um the Voting. Rights Act though I know that obviously. had a huge court decision today on that. have been a part of the legacies of past. presidents. And so, it's curious to see. if there's anything else that comes over. the next 3 years because he literally.

said in the past during his term this. second term uh that he got a lot of what. he wanted to get done in a. reconciliation package last summer, less. than a year ago, within the first few. months of him being in office uh to cut. The other things he is really focused on. are things like immigration policy and. we haven't seen the massive changes that. he has called for when it comes to. immigration. Granted, birthright. citizenship is um being deliberated by.

the Supreme Court and and that could be. a huge lasting impact. Uh but when it. also comes to things that he campaigned. on policy-wise, there is the reality. that he campaigned specifically on. immigration, he's now underwater on. immigration without ever having passed a. single bill uh besides more funding. specifically uh for immigration and. changing immigration policy uh. immigration at large to this country. Uh. and so, he's never actually been able to. wield that legacy making policy changes,

and we're getting. in a couple of months, Democrats are. expected by many to retake the majority. at least in the house, potentially even. the Senate Senate based on the. president's approval, and that reality. will completely change his ability to do. anything policy-related moving forward. I should say we're getting a little bit. of pushback in the comments here. So, I'm reading your comments as they're. coming in. Um. Evolve or Dissolve uh said points out.

that he or at least suggests that he. successfully implemented Project 2025. Uh TF has. been frustrated by what we're saying. Really? He cut the funding for. everything. No USAID, etc. So, there have there have been. impacts, haven't there? I I want to be clear. There there. absolutely have been impacts on a. budgetary level, on the impact. specifically on government workers, and. on American lives. A lot Millions of. people are paying more for healthcare. right now because uh they allowed subs.

um Affordable Healthcare subsidies to. expire at the end of last year. That is. not what I'm getting at. What I'm saying. here specifically is that a lot of this. can easily be reversed in the near. future. Um. whether it will be is a a question. Um. there are concerns, and historians raise. these concerns, that we are already on a. slippery slope, that what he has already. done to the United States, to its. founding principles, uh by pushing the. boundaries and trying to take actions uh.

even though he has been stopped by the. courts in many way cases, has already. eroded uh the institutions, uh, in which. we are living in. And and so, that is where the the questions really. lie. Is it Is it a slippery slope in. terms of policy? Um, it could very well. be and is likely, uh, depends on what. what happens in the next election and. far beyond that. I I won't try to. predict. Um, and but you're But you are. right. Our Their viewers are right that. there's not There In no way are we.

trying to say that they have not. impacted Americans with the policies. that they have implemented so far. Um, I'm talking big picture legacy-building. policies and questioning whether they've. gone far enough uh, that that can't be. overturned by electing a Democratic. president and Democrat majorities in. both chambers of Congress in the future, though. policy takes time and and reversing some. of these things that the president has. done could take years and in some cases. people believe even decades, uh, to.

undo. Um, but we're not talking Napoleon. uh, looking back on it and saying what. on healthcare in in that way is my. point. As I move there, I just was. reminded that we actually have that. fantastic illustration of Trump, uh, dressed up in a Napoleon costume, uh, on. the wall there behind me, uh, in. Joanna's office where we're sitting. Um, another thing that's being hotly debated. in the comments is whether or not these. Trump additions, so the ballroom, the. arch if it's ever completed, should be.

torn down. once he leaves office. Is Is Do you. think if he does get this ballroom built. that it'll be there forever? Or. will somebody come in I can imagine. there being a huge groundswell of, uh, anti-Trump sentiment in a future. election. Will somebody promise to tear it down, do you think? And and kind of rebuild. the old East Wing? I mean, you can't erase history. What. has been done has been done on tearing. down the East Wing of the White House.

Um, he bulldozed it. I I mean so he does did. remove a piece of history, uh, but we we. can't return to what it was is my point. I I'm. skeptical that these projects will come. to fruition, um, before 2028, even if. they're still slowly making their way. through the legal system. What I do think is that some Democrats. are going to and some have already. hinted at this, joking now, but who's. who knows in the near future, whether.

they incorporate this into their actual. campaign platform, uh, because we do see. such a huge swelling with especially. grassroots, uh, folks in the Democratic. Party on tear it down, it's not going to. last. A- And and that could be very well. what someone runs on and and if they. win, I mean that's a campaign promise. that they should or should not keep is. it it it it it comes down to where you. stand on what's your priority, um, but I.

will say one thing to keep in mind with. all of this is the money. So, we build a. ballroom. Let's say we do or we say the president. builds his ballroom, his $400 million. ballroom. There's a debate now on. whether that will be taxpayer funded. even though he said it would be private. donors. Uh, Lindsey Graham introduced a. bill just this week to have taxpayers. pay for that. A- And then it comes to. the reality, okay, if a Democrat ran on. this and the Democrats win the next. election, um, in 2028, uh, do they spend. more money to replace it or how does.

that work? Do we go into this cycle, this vicious cycle of build something, tear it down, build something, erase. Donald Trump? I don't know, uh, what the. answer is. I see that being a part of. the conversation for the next three. years, frankly, and I think that. conversation really does depend on. if these projects end up getting built. and then how much the base supports. Democrats demolishing them. A- And that. is something I'm not willing to predict. in the grand scheme of things right now,

but but I think it'll be a conversation. going forward. Okay. So, let's just remind people who. are joining us that we we're talking. about Trump's vain glorious projects. Um and the reason we're talking about. those projects is because there is a. terrifying article out today which shows. that Trump is thinking of himself as a. great man in history. He thinks he's. going to go down as the new Julius. Caesar or the new Alexander the Great or. Napoleon, not just. I mean, and and this would surely be. boastful enough, not just the new. Abraham Lincoln. Uh we're talking with.

Sarah E. Wall Weiss in Washington, D.C. Um but I think we've been By by talking. about the the achievements that he is. attempting to secure, we're losing sight. of a crucial element of this. and we're taking him to be too seriously. because. let's just stop for a second here. What. is he talking about? Has he completely. lost his mind? Of course, he's not the. most powerful man in history. Of course, he's not one of the great leaders. This. is the deranged ramblings of a.

79-year-old man who seems to be losing a. grip on reality. It does raise questions on what he's. actually focused on and and you're. right. This president spends his entire. nights posting on Truth Social about all. kinds of conspiracy theories and threats. and staying up through through the hours. going through random posts and reposting. and then sleeping through some of his.

own meetings at the White House. And so. there's a detachment from reality from. the get-go here. He also remains the. president of the United States. So, detached from reality, yet president of. the United States, and having people. surround him who are enablers and yes. men to the fullest extent they possibly. can be. So, it's a it's a mix. It is we see the.

photo here of him with his eyes closed. during a cabinet meeting. It's a mix of ramblings and wishful. thinking, but it's coming from a man who. does wield immense power and. has immense power both nationally and on. the global stage. But, that does make. you question where the US will stand at. the end of his term. If this is someone. who's rambling and has no grip on. reality and is isolated, he can go on and on for the next 3 years.

to some extent. But, while he's doing. that, our allies, those who we've. supported, who have supported us, are. imagining a world where this becomes the. next norm that we're dealing with. And. and they go and they realign themselves. comes to trade policy, when it comes to. military alliances, when it comes to. finding partners who are not. outside reality, but are reliable. And. the reliability aspect of this, even if.

he's a man who's rambling at at the age. of 79, it is something to keep in mind. through all of this. And I think it. actually comes. from the King of England, King Charles, was before Congress yesterday. I was in. the room when he spoke. And and he. talked about the United States and and. how the America's words still matter and. its actions still matter. And he really. it was very bizarre to see the British. monarch basically rebuking the President.

of the United States. 250 years after our independence from. England about the importance of. alliances and climate action and. frankly. everything that this president has. criticized. he took very pointed ways of. rebuking the president on a number of. issues. Uh and so. we really are at at a at an uncharted. place in American history where.

detached from reality. perhaps, posting at all hours perhaps, uh an old man who's thinking about his. own mortality, it appears. Um but it does have consequences either. way. I I think talking about the alliances. and relationships is important. And And. if you think about how this article that. got us started started talking about. these issues. think of for a second about how that. must have been reported out. What's. happening here is people who are working.

seemingly day-to-day with Donald Trump. or working in the White House or senior. figures in the administration who are. now. I was about to say openly, not openly, they are secretly leaking to the media. stories which show that this is a man. who is losing grip on reality. And they. know what they're doing. These are These. are seen serious Washington players. They know that if they tell a reporter. off the record that these things are. happening, that it's going to end up in.

print. So it's almost like they're kind. of firing a warning sign and flashing. the the alarm here for us to see. They. want the world to know that this guy is. really losing grip. It It does appear that way and it does. It feels that way because it's different. from the first Trump term. The president. of the United States, Donald Trump, had. a ridiculously leaky first.

administration. And everything got out. into the public. And he didn't feel like. he was surrounded by his. closest allies, those who will back him. So this this go round, he has insulated. himself from perhaps the Washington. establishment. with the specific characters who will. back him and yet we're still seeing the. leaks coming out about him specifically. and the questions about his. mental state and what he's focused on.

and I think that. in and of in and of itself. is a lot. So we talk about they're. sounding the alarms. That is clear but. to for them to be sounding the alarms is. just like such a much further. warning than it was even during his. first term that. these people must really be freaked out. behind the scenes and and I get some of. that personally. I will have different. people say something to me and be like. this isn't what I feel like I had dealt.

with in the past. So I think they're. even coming to terms with it in their. own way where they they do support the. president but they're seeing it for. themselves and they're realizing it in. real time and so maybe they were. enablers for some time. They enabled him. all the way up until now. They're still. behind the scenes working with him and. they're seeing it getting worse and and. that is the question. about how far how much worse has it. gotten even since he was voted into. office last November 2024. That is.

alarming. So. just talk to us a little bit more about. that. How does that manifest itself? You. obviously spend a great deal of time. with the folks on the hill. When there's a few drinks in the bar of. you know a glass of wine in the evening, what are people kind of saying to you. about their fears of what's going on. behind the walls of the White House? It's curious because I feel that some. people think this is a blip and.

everything will go back to normal and. they just have to survive it. And that. is a strange take when you see just how. far President Donald Trump is willing to. go. The other part of this is. people actually fearing retribution for. criticizing openly. And And so, in some. ways, you want us You're frustrated. because people won't not go on the. record and say a lot of these things. I've experienced it. I know my. colleagues have experienced it. I know.

many people, just based on the anonymous. sourcing you see in articles, have. experienced it. They don't want to say. it on the record. And the retribution. aspect of this is. interesting. Um but it's not that. they're They're They're not The White. House says people are making it up, they. this and that. That That is not true. That is They The people are saying this. Um they have raised concerns. And. in my mind, more of them are doing so. now than have in my experience in the.

past. Um. But it But it it it does remain. Does it matter? I I I certainly hope it. does, and I'd encourage anyone who wants. to share their thoughts and feelings um. to continue to reach out to me and at to. the Daily Beast. Um but this This is. happening, and and. and people are trying to balance raising. the alarms and, frankly, their own. security and. safety and. being able to work in Washington, D.C.

And that is something that. everyone has to grapple with themselves. personally. And look, we're not doctors, we're not psychologists, we don't have. any way of diagnosing anything, but you. have been covering this man very, very. closely for many years now. And I think. what is really obvious, even without. kind of hearing these whispers and these. leaks starting to emerge from behind the. scenes, is if you just look at him with your own.

eyes, when you've been in the same room. with him. I was in the room with him on. Saturday night as were you, and we. thought when he walked in on stage that. he was looking very frail. and a little more doddering than when. we'd previously seen him in person. And. if you think back now to when he came. down the golden escalator or when he was. first elected to office in 2016, how has his. behavior, his health, his mental faculty.

changed in your eyes as a reporter? So, I'm not asking you to give me a medical. diagnosis, but from what you've seen. with your eyes, how much do you think. he's changed since 2016, 2014? Having observed Donald Trump since 2015, I mean even before that I'm a New. Yorker, but just since he entered. political life, he has changed dramatically. And the. reality is is I mean it's been.

10, 11 years. Everyone gets older. You. just when when in life are you getting. older? Are you going from 70 69 to 79? Are you going from 42 to 52? There's a. dramatic difference there. Um but he. has really lost um the ability to filter. himself. Um he's. unfiltered in a way we have not I have. not seen in the past um over this course. of his political career. He goes on.

tangents in a way that he's always. talked about the weave. He talks about. go the weaving of different subjects. together. It's gotten a lot worse and. he's less capable of pointing it or. claiming it is the weave, if you will. Uh and so he's distracted often. Um it. does feel that this specific term he's. always gone after the media. He's always. been vicious at the media at reporters. and sometimes frankly nasty to them to. their faces. Uh but it does feel like he. has a harder time controlling it this go.

round, especially uh those who end up. being in the Oval Office and asking him. questions. You'll see him berating women. reporters specifically a lot more and it. it feels like that has gotten worse. Um. but then there's also just So, that is. something that. maybe is a part of his mental state, um. includes you in there. But he also. physically is different. I mean, he's. older and you can see it in in terms of. how he walks. He's slower. He talks. constantly, not constantly, but he does. acknowledge his fear of falling at his. age. Uh he is stooped over more. We've.

talked about the fact that he falls. asleep in public. Um he'll argue it. cameras catch him during a blink, um but. we've seen him jolt up physically, um. which would indicate it was more than. just a blink of his eyes and it's caught. on camera, a video camera. And and so. there there are a number of different. things physically uh that have also. raised questions, um. and and that's not including the the the. questions about the bruising on his. hand, which started and the White House.

said was due to excessive handshaking, but now suddenly on his left hand, where. he's not shaking as many hands with his. left hand, um and and the makeup. covering that up or the the swollen. ankles, which were diagnosed last. summer, I believe. Um so he has some. minor. medical um issues, but or I or being. described as minor medical issues, but. we don't actually know the extent of. them. Um and we have not had access to. the White House physician, um. to ask those questions directly. I think.

this is one of the big changes. Uh. one of the things that people are. talking about in the comments is that. permanent damage is being done to the. United States democratic system, right? So, whether it's small things, relatively small things, um Carol has. raised the issue of. qualified attorneys leaving the DOJ, because they don't want to work for this. administration. Well, course. once they've gone, they probably won't. come back, you know, when the next. president's elected. So, there are kind. of relatively small things like that, although I'm not minimizing that's a. serious issue. But, there are also norms.

that have been completely destroyed. Why. would a president in the future want to. release all their medical records, which. might be embarrassing, if they can point. to it no longer being the standard that. everybody did? Well, it it I mean, we talk about the. medical records aspect of this and and. we let's be clear, we we got a lot of. pushback from the Biden administration. when you ask questions about his health. This did in fact start in many ways. under President Joe Biden and in his.

isolation from the public and the media, um and him being a fragile old man, though we don't know the extent of it, um to this day. It's continued under President Donald. Trump. That may be the argument as to. why uh perhaps maybe elect younger. presidents in the future. Um there's. also arguments being made on Capitol. Hill by lawmakers uh about putting age. limits on these things. Um but, it does. it does set a precedent that could be. followed in the future. I think one.

example of this also is the idea that. President Donald Trump never. released his tax records. Um he moved. away from that norm in talking about his. financial disclosures and releasing. information to the public before being. elected. And so, that was something that. happened during his first term. Now, we. have this one. It'll be curious to see. what candidates in the future do and. whether they want to actually position. themselves to be the opposite of. President Donald Trump by going above. and beyond with these things or if. they'll fall into that same pattern. Um.

I actually do want to just go back to. something you said about experienced. people leaving the government. And that. is one thing that I have gotten so many. former administration officials, former. civil service employees saying to me. over over course of time. You mentioned. specifically DOJ and the the flood of. people leaving the Justice Department. We've seen a flood of people leaving the. FBI, which is scary in some ways, but. also being fired by the FBI, these. career civil servants.

with vast experience that we will not be. able to replicate. But there's another. part of this also that I didn't want to. leave out here is. where we are in terms of our public. health. um. in this country under Donald Trump and. the organizations there because we talk. about the eroding of norms. They have eroded the CDC to the point. where a lot of former public health. officials are telling me that they fear. that there is no coming back from it.

even if future presidents. really try to inspire new confidence in. some of these agencies and. that that it'll be forever determined by. the fact that the president cut funding. and fired many of these like vastly. experienced people that it took decades. for them to build their careers, to have. the knowledge to serve in some of these. positions. And that all happened. starting with DOJ on day one, but has continued throughout this. administration even as though some of it. isn't getting much as much focus now.

with all the different things going on. It's still a reality that the career. servants and the experienced folks. continue to bleed from the Trump. administration. That's right. And. I want to say thank you to everyone. who's joined us. We will be on this story. We are. covering this Trump health situation I. think more aggressively than any other. media outlet. We've got Inside Trump's. Head podcast in which Joanna Coles and.

Michael Wolff try to go inside Trump's. head and to see the world through his. eyes, to imagine how he's thinking. And. I think it'll be be to hear if they get. some further information about this kind. of sort of megalomania that seems to be. bubbling up inside his head right now. Um and we will continue to do that. So, please follow our website, which is the. dailybeast.com. Please follow our new Substack, which is.

if you search if you Google dailybeast. Substack, it's the easiest way to find. it. And we are on YouTube as well as as. you've joined us as you found today. Um. so, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you, Sarah. Um I think I'm going. to give the final word to Sandra. McFarlane, who's been watching on. YouTube. She says, talking about the kind of whispers. coming out of the White House, "No. alarms needed. If you have eyes, you'll. see it plainly. It's clearly evident. right before our eyes.".

We will continue to report what our eyes. are telling us on Donald Trump. Speak. soon. Thank you very much. Thank you.