These Are Trump's Biggest Achilles' Heels: Wolff | Inside Trump's Head

He understands that for some reason, the audience for however much. this is crazy stuff and looks crazy and is crazy. It nevertheless defaults to the strong man. The audience loves, the strong guy, the audience. Any sign of weakness takes that away. He maintains that illusion of strength and it gets him through. Not necessarily by much. He kind of kind of squeaks through, but. But it is the thing that he learned.

It is the thing that works. It is the thing that he continues to pursue. But. Michael. Joanna. It's a year on. It's a year on so many truth social posts later, so many stories. None of us can remember later. And now Greenland. How would we characterize this year? I mean, just in in your own life, in our own lives,

other than a year of of relentless podcasts, you were living dangerously. I would characterize it by our design, actually. I don't know if everybody can see this, but I think this kind of it's. we're living in the fallout. of the frenzy of Donald Trump's brain, which is getting more frenzied. We we are. But what's the result of that? Where are we? So when people call, call you up and they call me up.

and they say, are we losing our democracy? What do you say? Yeah, it's interesting. I feel like all conversations and you never want to be a podcast. that devolves to, oh, I heard this at a dinner party, but I'm reading a book called. I think it's called looking for trouble. by a foreign correspondent called Virginia Cowles. No relation to me because she's got a W in her name. But it's about the beginning. of the Second World War and how everybody is sitting around, and the only thing they can talk about is, is Hitler a madman?

And is he actually going to do this? And the world is divided into two, or London certainly is divided into two, because she's reporting from London. and you've got the Chamberlain Appeasers and then you've got the Churchillian. He is a terrible man. This is darkness over Europe. We have to stop it. And it's very hard not to see the similarities. And I myself was reading something. Although of course I don't remember what or where,

but it was it, it was making the argument that there were two existing. realities in pre-war Germany. and in one reality, the world was ending for many, many, many people, transforming and and seriously, truly ending. And in the other world, life went on as normal.

So and and certainly that's. what we are seeing at this moment obviously in Minneapolis, obviously. with, with immigrants across the country, obviously with anyone in, who has worked for the federal government, obviously anyone who is in the media. and has been sued or in my case is suing, but for the.

a large part of the rest of the country. at this point in time, life goes on, as always. Well, life does go on as always. But the promises that Donald Trump made, certainly about bringing down. the price of groceries, hasn't, hasn't come to pass. Groceries. The more expensive people feel the cost of living, but the health premium that's going the basic, basic political terms. and that could have occurred in any administration.

So the the. the thing I'm I'm just thinking back on your principle of the two things. that one side of what one part of America isn't impacted by him and the other is. because I think people are impacted. by prices, are not feeling under control. Yeah, I think that that misses the point, however, because that. that point that could happen. Yes. Prices, prices. And you know, across the across many administrations, you go through.

economic, economic ups and downs. But in this administration and it's important thing to keep in mind, things are happening which have never happened before in any administration. It is a transformation for many, many people of American life. And what we assume to, assume. and the assumptions of American life and the promise of American life.

that is all changing for many people, but not for others. So that's the that's the, as we say, the split screen that we are, that we are living in. And that's the split screen that Donald Trump manages. to exist in without. without the country rising up. And as I keep saying, 10 million people go into Washington because for. for a good part of the country, if not most of the country,

life goes on and we can ignore the fact. or at least turn away from the fact. that in this other part of the country, life is being transformed. So I don't, you know, so after a year of this, you know, I, I think, I think the problem the problem is we know. that something seminal has occurred, but we don't quite know what it is. Well, Congress, the Congress seems to have just given up the ghost.

And we know that power seems to have been transferred. to the presidency in a way that we haven't seen before. I just think there are more people impacted by it than you do. I don't think it's just brown people terrified that they're going. to get rounded up on the streets by masked agents, which is certainly new. in American life and a horrifying new detail of American life. I do think that people who've had their health care premiums. doubled or trebled, are not or are choosing not to.

It's the first time since Obamacare, was created. There's been a drop off of people enrolling because they just can't afford. it. And that, I think, has a huge impact on families. Now, I'm, obviously, I, I don't disagree. I think we're just disagreeing on what is a political problem. and what is a transformational situation. in, in democracy itself.

Well, what I think is transformational is the way that he. and you have written about this and we've talked about it before, but it is transformational, which is it's policy on the hoof. By truth, social and. Well, well, what have you been hearing from people in the white House? You. No, I mean, I think it's this is this this certainly goes to the right. to the heart of who Donald Trump is and how he governs. And I use the word govern loosely.

I mean, it it is literally off the top of his head. I mean, I mean, I know people in the white House and I speak to people. in the white House often, and, and, and I think this is very difficult to appreciate in. probably impossible to appreciate that the people within the white House. are often as surprised as we are by what happens. He they, they literally open up.

They, they go to bed at night and then they, they, they open up their phones in the morning and they look to see what he has posted. and that it and that becomes. policy, that becomes reality. So my friend, a friend of mine, was was saying the other day that, you know, we we just wake up to see what he's posted. and then, we go into the office. So Susie Wiles is, of course, the, the, the chief of staff, the person who is.

literally in charge of, of taking Trump's. of of moving these policies through the executive branch. to some kind of fruition or, or resolution. And she is as unaware of. what is going to happen from day to day as again as we are. So she's basically sort of damage control.

But can you just set the scene so. because I'm still struggling to understand his routine. in terms of sleep, we know he's a bad sleeper, but he seems to wake up at about three in the morning and just fire off. whatever is on the top of his head, and we know he's sleeping alone. At least we assume he's he's sleeping alone. He's certainly not sleeping with the First Lady, so he's trapped in his bedroom. Nobody likes being awake at three in the morning. He's sleeping. He's sleeping with his hamburger.

All right. So he's. I mean, he's literally has, has the hamburger in bed, all right. And so he's got a half eaten. digested, half digested hamburger, sort of chewed, hopefully. on a plate with a nice crest on it by the side of him. He's fallen asleep, I imagine with all the televisions on, he wakes up in the middle of the night. The world is asleep. Nobody's answering his calls.

And so he just fires of crazy, true social's. a completely I mean, so I mean, that is. And think so. That's kind. You're in at three in the morning when everybody else is asleep. and you can't sleep, and you're anxious and you're furious. and you're impatient to get things done and flex your power. Exactly. So that's in in one screen, he's doing what, what anyone might do. The thing's going through anyone's, anyone's head.

The difference is that a he's posting. this on, he's publicly posting this. And B, this then becomes policy mean he's the president of the United States. So when he says this, this, this crazy stuff, I want to own Greenland. I mean, and I think this that's an interesting base baseline. The Greenland, strategy. gambit policy, whatever we want to call it,

because so who knows what to call it is off the top of his head. I mean, how it came into his head and for what reason. and for what it means to him or what it symbolizes. No one quite knows. And also the usefulness there is no and I think almost everybody. but everybody in the government, Republicans, Democrats. alike, would agree that there is no advantage here. We do not get anything from all of this.

All of this stuff about Greenland. As a matter of fact, we just increase the risks, no advantage, increase risks. So he makes this pronouncement. and then it becomes it becomes real. Everybody. And that's the other interesting thing, is that no one knows how to react to this, except in the way you would react if it were real. That is to say, the political stab.

The white House staff itself, the political establishment in Washington. and in Congress, world leaders, the media, everybody has to take. seriously what is fundamentally unserious. And then because everybody is taking it seriously, because what else can they do? Actually, he begins to take it seriously. We're we're in a the the mirrors here are, are,

well, yeah. Well, it's a funhouse of mirrors, right? A house of mirrors. So he wakes up, he he's truth social something the world wakes up. Sees what? His truth social. And because he is. the president of the United States, they have to take it seriously. And what we find ourselves with is an astonishing point in European. and American relations, where Europe's biggest ally and protector. has now has now transformed. into its biggest potential. No.

And I mean, we go over this know militarily, so we understand there is no advantage here. The military point which Trump has initially made. is not true because we already have a have a, a have a treaty in place. which gives us the right to do almost anything militarily in Greenland. And we once did we once had bases all, all over, all over Greenland.

And then after the end of the Cold War, we withdrew all that. Well, we could put them back there if we want. It would cost billions upon billions of dollars. But even if we own Greenland, that is what it's going to going to cost. There is then there was some talk about exploiting, exploiting the the mineral resources in, in Greenland. But they would love us to do that. And again, owning it does not shift the cost burden there at all.

So nothing, nothing changes. on the ground in the least. And he's now invented this other weird, weird rationale, which is which I can't even I can't even un unravel. that because they didn't give him the Nobel Peace Prize. Then, he, he has no reason to be. to try to.

But he's no longer a man of peace and peace. Right. This was his plan. So he is looking in a in and and in a more and more far flung way. for a rationale to this, for something he doesn't need shouldn't. do, will not gain anything by at the same time, of course. he's, undermining you know, this, NATO, one of the, one of one of history's.

really, most successful treaties at ever. I'm saying this off the top of my head. Maybe in there. there may have been more successful treaties, but, it's been successful. And, and a fulcrum of, I think what we called the world order. So let's destabilize the world order. And here we are. This is what is happening today. And everybody is on their way to Davos.

And this is the only including Donald Trump. And this is the only thing that is going to be on their mind. trying to unravel what is going on here. And they're not going to be able to unravel what's going on here, because there is fundamentally no logic whatsoever. to what is going on here other than one man's. grandiosity. And, and, you know, madness, quite possibly one man's madness.

And also, Davos itself was somewhat unraveled. I mean, Klaus Schwab, the guy who started it, has been shunted off to the side. after some, minor financial irregularities and accusations of bullying. and all the things that Davos stood for in Davos, man stood for, about the rule of law and about climate change. and about big ideas and the rolling forward of. Well, I get a lot of people say that's all bullshit to that.

You know what Davos stood for? Is the elites, scratching each other's back. Well, that's what I'm saying, that that all that has come to an end. because Donald Trump has just delivered. an enormous turd to them in the shape of Greenland. And they are all of flatter, every single worldly know, every everybody. Yeah. And again, the process of figuring out what this is about, of trying. to reorganize, reorganize intellectually, reorganize politically.

in response to this is almost impossible because it has fundamentally no logic. Does he really want Greenland, or does he want the attention. that he's going to get for, from demanding Greenland? And is he in? Does he does. Is he really going to go forward with this or is he going to wait. for the next distraction? So he can, slip out the back door on Greenland and everything remains the same?

Well, doesn't that seem the most likely outcome? I mean, we've pretty much forgotten Venezuela already after the Exxon guy, I was at that wonderful meeting where he had with all the oil executives. and the Exxon guy says, well, it's highly unlikely we're going to invest. That's why, look, there's no rule of law. And we've been there twice before and twice before. The memorable words, okay, Venezuela is un investable. Venezuela is un investable.

No one's talking about Venezuela anymore. He grabbed the peace prize, which is what he always wanted, even though it wasn't really his. I mean, that that alone is such a pathetic indication of who. who Donald Trump really is that he steals someone else's, Nobel Peace Prize. So happily, she didn't give him the money. I'm surprised he hasn't asked for it. He'll move on from Greenland. Don't you think? There was a good piece in the Atlantic this morning by Elliot Cohen saying, why don't the Europeans just put 5000 troops in Greenland, themselves.

with some anti-aircraft missiles and some missiles to go after the ships? Donald Trump does not want body bags of American soldiers coming back. from Greenland because America doesn't care about Greenland. This is not a fight. Not what? You know, the American. Yes, I can I can answer that because you know what this means. And this is what Donald Trump is, is obviously counting on, is that Europe. still needs the US, not least of all in,

in at this moment in time in Ukraine. So and he will remember Donald Trump doesn't back down. I mean, you know, we've just, you know, and again, this this happened as a tweet in the middle of the night. He's going to now levy, Levy new, new tariffs on the European countries that are much. So we're going to say for a slight oppose oppose this again.

the white House, he posted that in the middle of the night, the white. the white House got in, Susie Wiles is there and everybody goes, oh my God. Well and tariffs otherwise known as import taxes. So American people will have to pay tariffs. or import taxes on things from Europe because Donald Trump wants Greenland. This makes no sense okay. Yeah I and Democrats using and here's another level another level. of of senselessness here of Donald Trump shooting himself in the foot.

The Supreme Court is now on the verge. of deciding the constitutionality. of his ability to, to impose these, these tariffs. This is a decision that could come today, tomorrow and any, any time. I think they give their deliberations on Wednesdays. Right. And I mean and it and. and if they decide the way that. it looks like they might decide which is to declare,

to throw this out, his ability to do this, then even Trump. has said, well, the whole economy goes down the drain, the whole world ends. I, I don't know, but so this is, you know, it's very meaningful for him to have the court decide in his favor. So what he is instead doing is demonstrating. the capriciousness of these tariffs, which is would be one of the. primary reasons for the court to,

to, to restrain, this power, if not just completely throw it out, but nevertheless, Donald, it does it doesn't. He can't seem to think that cause in effect, doesn't occur to Donald Trump. in the most basic, in the, in the most basic political consideration. Well, do you remember initially when he came in and people like, oh, the thing about Donald Trump is he plays four dimensional chess and you're like, this is a man who's not even playing checkers, right?

He can't even put one counter in front of the other. He can't see round the corner. I mean, what's happened to Ukraine and Russia? The deal that a year ago. he said he would solve on the first day of his presidency. Yes. Well, I'll give you an example of a 3D chess playing. I'm not sure I would call it a 3D. I'm not sure what I would call it. But there is always the consideration for with, with Donald, Donald Trump.

that what wins at the end of the day? What supports him is the illusion. or the persona of dominance. That is his. That's his baseline consideration. I can never show weakness. I can never apologize. You know, Rene. Good in Minneapolis. Can double time doubled. I always has the double. I always will double down.

I will never retreat. Because the most important thing that I have to my credit. is the look of dominance. And for some reason. And he understands that for some reason, the audience let's think of that as the. rather than voters, the audience for however much. this is crazy stuff and looks crazy and is crazy it. Nevertheless, the faults to the strongman.

Now that's something he would have learned, I think, throughout his life. But even most explicitly as, as the as the star of a top rated reality television show. for 14 years, the audience loves the strong guy, the audience, any sign of weakness, takes that away. He maintains that illusion of strength, and it gets him through, not necessarily by much. He kind of kind of squeaks through, but. But it is the thing that he learned.

It is the thing that works. It is the thing that he continues to pursue. But he has an Achilles heel, I think in ice now. I mean, all the polling coming out now says that people of feel. very uncomfortable about masked men in the streets, rounding people up and throwing them in the back of cars. No, I mean, it's not the Achilles heel. Many of this is an Achilles heel. First thing, the largest Achilles heel is the economy.

And then there's Minneapolis. Then there's, then there's Greenland, which is at this point. a probably an effort to distract from Minneapolis, which was itself an effort to distract from Epstein. Right. So, layer upon layer. I and I totally a totally I mean, the logic of this is, is obvious. He's a fool and he may be a madman in everything that he does. is, is in some profound way counterproductive.

And yet I just want to warn here, you know, and just just hold up, because all logic would say he is crumbling. Except for the fact that something this, this, this strong man persona pulls him through. So another thing which has really defined. the year and made this an exceptional presidency. is just the sheer audacity. and the level and the scale of the grift.

All right. That's you. And you would normally say in a normal presidency, in a normal time. How does he get away with this? Right, right. I mean, I mean, I mean, this is extraordinary. We have seen this is not just, millions. This is billions. This is his family, his friends, his circle, profiting off of his presidency to a degree.

we have never seen in the history of the United States. I think that's incontrovertible. And it goes on. And it may be that almost everything that he does is designed for this purpose. We may be missing. Speaking of three dimensional chess, the dimension, the Greenland dimension in which he profits. We are now seeing in, in,

in Ukraine and Gaza and, and Venezuela plans which would probably create a yet again. enormous profit for him and members of his family. So, How does he get away with this? I mean, I, I again, I think I might default to this dominance issue, that there is that he has in his audience in so many American voters.

created this mythology of the man who gets away with everything. So why challenge him on this? Because we know he's going to get away with it. So at Davos, this year that apparently there's been a lot. of squabbling about who is going to introduce Donald Trump. It looks like as we're recording this on Tuesday morning, it looks like it's. going to be Larry Fink who runs Blackrock, the massive private equity company.

And who gave 2.5 million to the ballroom. and who is sort of co leader of Davos this year. And interestingly, there was a piece in the times about. Blackrock trying to raise money. for the rehabilitation of Ukraine, the rebuilding of Ukraine, the refurbishment of Ukraine, which they tried to do for the last couple of years and hadn't.

got very far because European countries who'd largely be investing, felt that this was all going to go to the benefit of American companies. But yet they continue on. And this has been revived, recent recently. by Trump and and his golfing. buddy turned international. gadfly turned, the deal guy, the deal mediator. I don't know of of to put Blackrock back in this in this.

you mean deflation as well as essentially. as essentially the financial funnel. of all things that will then, of the enormous amount of money. that the world will have to have to bring into Ukraine. to put it back together again and of of which we can. I don't think it would be, un unreasonable to assume that there will. that there will be skimming off the top, and skimming off the top of a lot.

I mean, this is almost $1 trillion that they're saying they're going. to need to rebuild Ukraine. $800 billion. Yeah. No, this would be. this may become one of the biggest deals in the history of the world. Actually, Steve Wyckoff and Jared Kushner. basically turn up in the rubble of any warzone. And it's like they present their grifter, Marshall Plan.

This is how we get out of it. They're building condos, they're building casinos. They're going to turn and remember, they're in Gaza, too. So it's Ukraine, Gaza. There's Albania they've turned up in. They're trying to build. a hotel in the center of Albania, which I think has been pushed back now. Albania, once a potential Gold Coast. I remember 40 years ago. in, in London, people were all saying, oh, we're going to buy a house in Albania. Albania is the new Riviera, right? This is not the new Riviera, but maybe, maybe Gaza will be the new Riviera.

from the grifter Marshall Plan and just the rebuilding of everything. And now we have this other other piece. What is this called? The. Oh, the passport. I can't believe it's not to get to the passport. Donald Trump's passport, which, has already signed up, I think Hungary. and a couple of Middle Eastern states, which Israel is very upset about. And the only price of entry is a check.

for $1 billion to Donald Trump, who will administer the passport and be in charge of the passport. So they love this 1 billion. That's what you know, Melania was suing me for 1 billion. A round number. That's one. That's that that's their their go to number. We we've just jumped over hundreds of millions and now we're just. settle that at a billion. Yeah. So this piece board is I can't unravel that.

What does this what is it supposed to do. What is it supposed to signify? What is nothing. Don't you think it's it's signifying the end of Davos? It's probably signifying the end of the UN. Another very successful organization that God knows it's had its flaws. Well, let me let me offer that. It signifies nothing. Which is, which is the real the real meaning of this. We're just going to do this. It doesn't mean anything. It doesn't solve any problems. It just is another avenue of grift.

Quite possibly. And another avenue of illusionary dominance. Illusionary dominance? Yeah, that's a very good line for us all. And of course, people are going to be coerced into signing up. And this the whole of Europe. talks about gender dominance. You have to do this. It has no meaning. It will do nothing. It will not even meet. But you have to sign up and give me $1 billion.

What's interesting is that the only people that he seems to think. highly. of are G Shipping and Vladimir Putin, everybody else is treated as if they absolutely don't matter. I mean, the white men and those those are the strong man, the dominant guys. Since we're all interested in, lawsuits on the part of the, on the part of the white House and lawsuits in my case,

suing the white House or principle players in it. You've had a, good week. The Daily Beast. Has been in a tangle. with Chris Los of the one of the campaign. One of Trump's campaign lieutenants and campaign managers. I never understood what he was suing you about. And perhaps he didn't either, because, because he dropped his suit this week.

So you are, you won a complete. victory over these, over these bullies. So, congratulations. And, what's the behind the scenes? Well, well. Thank you. Well, quietly, we've been fighting this suit over a piece. that we ran saying that Chris Le Savita, and his company. Advancing Strategies had taken in $19.2 million for the buying of media.

in the run up to the Trump campaign, which he objected to. And, of course, you know, I understand that the story ruffled. some feathers within the white House because, as we know, Donald Trump doesn't. like anybody to make money off working for Donald Trump. Only he is allowed to do that and members of his family. And just let let me put a, a b make a behind the scenes point that Chris lost. So Vida, who was the, the co-manager of the. of his campaign was Susie Wiles, did not get a white House job.

He did not get a white House job. He did, however, get the opportunity to make Albania great again because the, opposition leader there hired him, I think, for 1.5 million to help them. No. Sadly, it was it. It could have been on, on on lots of eda's part, you know, as money hungry as anybody in the, in the Trump world. You could, I mean, a number. of people higher ups in the, in the, in the Trump circle.

made the calculated decision not to go into the white House. because they could make so much money outside of the white House. Oh, interesting. Well, there was a piece in the Atlantic which described Trump. shouting at La Savita and telling him he needed to sue the beast. By the way, that's a that's a setup that could work for almost anybody in the Trump circle. Trump yelling at the screaming at them. and saying that they had to sue somebody or other.

Well, interestingly, Chris le Savita, on the RNC who was paying for his defense, hired. the LA celebrity lawyer Mark Geragos, who's better known as the, wife murderer Scott Peterson's, lawyer, the Menendez parents killer lawyer. We get to Biden's lawyer also and interestingly, Colin. Kaepernick's, lawyer.

So he's had an interesting collection of of clients and he can now add Christopher. Savage to to it. Anyway, do we know how much less Aveda paid? Well, it looks like he got paid. $650,000 from the RNC. They were footing the bill for this, so that's what that's what we've seen to date. And we just very methodically went through all the and they got nothing. They got nothing. You didn't settle what you didn't.

I mean, I mean, I I've seen the way he quietly walks away, let's say in reference to this as a settlement. But it wasn't really no money, no actually capitulation. And he just, he just, Yeah, there's no money, no apology, no retraction. If you want to read the piece, it's available on the Daily Beast website. You know, you know, I mean, I saw the times piece, too, which which I mean, I knew a little of the background here, so I was thinking,

well, when I saw the The Times piece, I thought, what? Because because it actually suggests there's some ambiguity here. And it gives, it gives the impression it certainly gives the law savvy. to decide the last word on this, saying that they won this lawsuit, which is obviously preposterous in any way. I was not very surprised that they did that. I don't understand why Katie Robinson, who wrote the piece, actually included.

Geragos is quote at the end of it, because it was nonsensical. It was like, black is well, she's one of their media reporters. She's one of their media reporters who I know and she's the kind of, you know, you know, a B minus reporter, certainly. But the other, the other aspect of of this, which I can personally attest to, can I just love can I just this. I have with the ring to be described as a B minus reporter. Katie was one of the four sitting round Trump.

And she did ask the question is there anything that will stop you? And he said, only my own morality. But please continue because this was not my favorite piece. by Katie, and I don't understand why she ran that quote when it was clearly untrue. Unless of course, well, I can give you some thing, that, that, that loss of EDA is a, well, let's let's, let's use our language here. so we don't get further sued, by these, these people.

He has a good relationships with the press. So, you know, from time to time he would tweet at us, you know, f a f, as if we were somehow supposed to be sort of cowed by that. And. No, you know, during the campaign and on the campaign trail, you know, every night he was out with, with, with, late with reporters. So this idea that the Trump people had somehow, you know, were, at odds. with the mainstream press was totally not not true beyond intriguing.

And we never give a shout out to our lawyer, Neil in the house. at the end of the podcast. We only ever give a shout out to the production team, but Neil always, it's, Neil is a terrific. lawyer and his, copilot on this. Kate. Kate Bolger, at Davis right to me. And I want to give a shout out to. because she did sterling work and we would have occasional check ins, and she was steadfast and nobody was planning to back down.

And in fact, I encourage everybody to go and look at the FEC filings. where you can see in public quite. how much Crisler Savit, took into his LLC, of which he is the only apparent member, you know, and I know that other people in the white House. when he filed this, this, this suit, they were like, oh, man, you know, this is well, he he why is he doing this? And this is going to get everybody in trouble. And of course, the minute discovery looks like it was going to happen.

and we had a list of 50 subpoenas, he he walked away. He walks away. And, you know, this is the man who's famous for, for being tougher than tough. He was the one that orchestrated the Swift boat. So this was a bit of his own Swift boat disaster. Yeah. So, boom. Hoist by the New York Times. The New York Times is really is really that was, that was surprising.

And, And and, and how how would we characterize. when the New York Times reports something that's actually completely wrong? You would think they would have been more robust about it, is they also. and it's not a matter of robust. They gave the they clearly, in every respect. gave the wrong impression consciously gave the wrong impression.

Well, as I say, no apology, no money, no retraction. If you want to read the piece on the Daily Beast website, you can. All right, Michael, give us an update with where you are on suing. the first lady, ten days before her movie opens. Well let's go. I mean, we are no, we're we we're just grinding along. in this, in this this lawsuit. I mean, she's she's moved this to federal court. We're asked to move it back, and we're now waiting for a,

the procedural. decision on that, which should come relatively soon. But meanwhile, there is. a, a premiere of Melania. the movie that is scheduled for, the 29th of June. And this is being held. What is this, an Amazon in Washington? In, in Washington. I and I'm, I'm told a,

it's a mandatory appearance from, from, from all of the people in the of, of the Trump White House. and any other Trump, and the most loyal Trumpers, in Washington as as a matter of fact, I think it's it's. if you want to show your loyalty, it's kind of a requirement to, to be there. And and I guess what you're not is, is. Jeff, do you know if Jeff Bezos is going to be there?

Because, of course, his Amazon commissioned this for $40 million with. Brett Ratner, a director who had hitherto $40 million to $40 million. And she gets 70% of the back end and she gets 100%. of the corporate sponsorships she is selling at $10 million a pop. The grift goes soft, continues. But will Jeff Bezos be the one year on. from when he and his then fiancee Lauren Sanchez and her booster?

Yeah. Which caused Mark Zuckerberg a flurry of excitement. I think we all remember when he was caught looking down her substantial, boom point. But will Jeff Bezos be there for. Well, I don't I don't think so, but I suspect that very well might be there, which will then then cause some conflicts with the Washington Post, of course. So that was reporter. That will be nice to look forward to. And whose reporter was last week raided by this government.

and had her computers and her phones taken because she's become. the federal government whisperer and reports. endless stories of government employees being fired and rehired. and the chaos that's going on in the federal government. But let's talk about Brett Ratner, because I think this is. this is totally fascinating. So Brett Ratner, a of a very significant Hollywood,

director, producer, powerhouse who was. who was me to head out of out. of his career several years ago and is now being. because he is now the director of this of Milani of the movie. Which can I just say from the trailer, looks like just one long Instagram post, which is what documentaries are about these days. Yeah. Somebody I know who saw the movie and I said, well, what what is it like?

And, and and there was a pause and he said, stylish, stylish. Okay. I think in this question, it meant it, it it certainly meant superficial. I mean, it it looks I'm sure Brett Ratner is a very good director. I mean, he's a moron. But but from a visual standpoint, that's his. That's his gift. And and I'm sure it is a visual kind of, Yeah. I mean, the trailer literally looked like an Instagram, a really good Instagram.

So, you know, I and. but it's the interesting, interesting thing that this has. completely restored him again to, restored. his career, restored him to Hollywood prominence. The the the his fourth. What's the name of his franchise? Rush. Is it the rush hour? Rush hour? Yes. So rush hour for which he could not get picked up. or financed or distributed, is now being,

picked up, financed and distributed by, by Paramount now, and and Paramount is doing this, you know, basically at the request of Donald Trump, Brett Ratner is becoming Donald Trump's director and Paramount, which is of which is which is run by the Ellison family, Larry Ellison, the second richest man in the world and a Trump supporter.

who is now trying to buy Warner Brothers discovery. That's a deal that will that can only happen with Donald Trump's approval. So so we see the grift here. Everybody's a beneficiary. If you're in the Donald Trump circle, you're a beneficiary of it, which Brett Ratner has clearly joined. Just imagine if they'd got the TikTok deal already sorted out by now, because Larry Ellison, Ellison is supposed to have a big chunk of that, and then they could promote the millionaire movie on Tick Tock.

Yeah. And the other thing I heard about is that is that how was this this put that. Well, you know, this is a has a worldwide theatrical opening. Now, let's remember, this is a documentary. film docu and, documentary films. which usually have, you know, are made for a couple of million dollars. They don't have worldwide theatrical openings. This is now $40 million and a worldwide theatrical opening.

And, as what was described to me is that ticket advance. ticket sales are soft. Well, but they said, but there's a, there's an enormous appetite for people to screen this. They said, well, we'll see how how it kind of, how would they know that there was an enormous upside? I don't mean it. I don't know, I'm going to be chronicling it. We're going to I think we should a we should watch it and be.

we should check it against the Beckham documentary. The David. But we have not been invited to the, January 29th preview to try and crash it. We could try and crash it. I wonder if protesters will manage to smuggle themselves into the theater. I would imagine the security is going to be very tight, because that would be. I would think I would test, I would imagine, and I don't know where this is.

Geez. I wonder if it's at the Trump Kennedy Center. Do you think Melania will go? Will she? I do, she be in Trump Tower? No, I'm going to I'm going to. Yeah. No, no, no question. As a matter of fact, someone I know. who was invited to this was invited. with the promise of of of personal time. with, the president and the first lady. I will be doing personal time for my movie.

I hope she's talking about Epstein. We've got some questions for you. He is not going to be there. He's going to be there in spirit, Michael. He's going to hang over the thing like a specter. Everybody's going to be waiting to see if he is alluded to or not. I, I think we can safely answer that. He will not be alluded to. He will not be alluded to.

All right, Michael, I've got a couple of questions for you here. Ask Melania. Yes, I've got a couple of that. Yeah. You know what? They're not very many. But questions for Melania. Okay. Although feel free to ask questions of me. Yeah, yeah. Question for Melania. Did Donald pay her to threaten Michael. legally? Well, that's an interesting. That's, that's that's interesting.

Or maybe it's better. How much of the 1 billion that she is suing that she proposes to sue me for? She is not suing me. I'm suing her. But she threatened first. Does she get to pocket herself? That's a good that's a very good question. And then this is from that. That question was from Lillia. This is from Kenpachi. Stephanie Winston Wolkoff wrote the book Melania in Me in 2020.

They were friends for about 15 years. I think they were friends, a school moms, actually, and Stephanie. is certainly one of the people who knows the mysterious Melania could. Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, Melania Trump's ex friend, be one of your guests? Well, we haven't ever had. We have where we're so wrapped up in each other. She will be watching for me. But, but the book is is is her her book is actually gray.

I mean, incredibly insightful. Kind of eye opening. Like, flabbergasting. Yes. So we'll be recommending Stephanie Winston Wolkoff book. I wonder why nobody's made that into a documentary. And then this is from Better Ways, Better Days. What is to stop Melania from promising not to sue anyone else. and then doing it anyway? Will there be any consequences if she does that? How will you put teeth in the agreement if you win?

I don't know the answer to that. I mean, that assumes that she would, she would actually agree. that there would be no. And actually, I want a broader agreement. I mean, there's no reason for us to stop this this, this lawsuit, we. have been, a people. all over the country, all over the world, have been incredibly generous. We've raised a lot of money. Our our, you know, on our go Fund Me page.

So, we intend to push this absolutely to the end. But were they the white House to, look for ways to stop this, which they might very well have to. because they, as we've observed often, they really can't afford. to sit for depositions to and to be asked under. oath questions about their relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. So, I don't know, maybe at some, at some moment,

it, it comes to this that they have to like Chris lots of EDA. and and the Daily Beast that they have to capitulate here. And I think the only terms I would, I would accept are, you know, a, an agreement. on the part of the white House not to sue anybody in the media business. Which would be an amazing result. And and let me just say that that that in, in, I mean, this seems like.

Whoa, that would be amazing. But no other no other white House has sued media organizations. So this would just be sort of returning. to the Democratic baseline, the First Amendment baseline, the Democratic baseline, all right. So we've had a ton of limericks sent in. And I don't annoyingly, I was going to read some of them. And Godfrey has identified himself.

Godfrey two is our regular Limerick. writer, has inspired a ton of other Limerick writers. I've got one poem here because we've now got haikus. We've got poems coming in. I can't quite keep on top of them. I promised I would read some out, and of course, I haven't got them in front of me, except I've got one which is from Regina Ashby, and it is. The quality of mercy is not strained, except in all the world's. so ruled by Trump that power reigns and blinds the hearts of men and women.

So no breath of life remains. So keep sending them in. I promise you, I will read, more out. But we've got a whole poet thing going on on our comment section, which is very exciting. But it's very exciting. And actually, what's really fun is when the podcast drops the live. conversation that goes on between people, there are friendships being made. It's very exciting. I try and drop in when I can and, it's it's really enjoyable.

So if you have been, thank you for joining us. Thank you for your comments. We love them. But speaking of friendships. and, commenters and, and, and everybody who has any interest in what we're doing here, Joanne, we are live. tomorrow night, at the 92nd Street. Y in New York City.

at 92nd Street and Lexington Avenue. And, there may not be tickets left, but there certainly are virtual tickets left. And there may be a few tickets left. Seems to me there's always a few tickets left. So, so if you're. if you're in the neighborhood, please. We'd love to see. We would love 92nd Street y w w 92nd NY. Org. Joanna. Hi.

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