John Oliver can't decide what's more shocking: Trump siding with the Democrats, or Ivanka's cameos


President Trump "had an erratic week, even by his standards," John Oliver said on Sunday's Last Week Tonight. He pointed to Trump's decision to side with the Democrats over his own Republican Party in debt-ceiling negotiations. "And the details of how the negotiations unfolded are really striking, because three months was the Democrats' first offer, and Trump just took it," Oliver said, a decision "so shocking, Republicans apparently froze in mid-smile." He shuddered at the image.
Before Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan could even unfreeze their smiles, the whole meeting was "completely derailed" by a drop-in from first daughter Ivanka Trump, Oliver said. And Ivanka visibly annoying McConnell and Ryan was "far from the most uncomfortable moment involving Ivanka this week," he said, bringing up then grimacing over the president's "daddy" introduction at a North Dakota event. "Look, it is good that the government is getting funded, and there was hurricane relief attached to this bill, but nobody seems exactly sure why Trump made this decision." He noted one plausible Republican theory, and you can watch below. Peter Weber
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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
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