Administration aides reel after Trump's nonsensical 24 hours: 'He just seemed to go crazy today'


Monday was … strange. President Trump spent the day questioning the cause of the Civil War, doubling down on his praise of Andrew Jackson, claiming he would be "honored" to meet with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, admiring controversial Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, disparaging the current iteration of his party's health-care bill, suggesting breaking up big banks, wobbling both ways on a gas tax, and abruptly walking out on an interview after a reporter pressed him on his renewed allegations of being wiretapped by former President Barack Obama.
"He just seemed to go crazy today," one Republican aide told Politico.
The short period was one of Trump's most accessible days in office as he gave interviews to Bloomberg, SiriusXM, and Face the Nation, but administration officials winced as the president's comments repeatedly came out of left field. "They were not helpful to us," one official said of the interviews. "There was no point to do all of them."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Presidential historian Douglas Brinkley went a step further. "It seems to be among the most bizarre recent 24 hours in American presidential history," he said. "It was all just surreal disarray and a confused mental state from the president."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Trump set to hit Canada with 35% tariffs
Speed Read The president accused Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney of failing to stop the cross-border flow of fentanyl
-
Mahmoud Khalil files $20M claim over ICE detention
Speed Read This is the 'first damages complaint' brought by an individual targeted by the Trump's administration's 'crackdown' on Gaza war protesters
-
Trump threatens Brazil with 50% tariffs
Speed Read He accused Brazil's current president of leading a 'witch hunt' against far-right former leader Jair Bolsonaro
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US border
Speed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling