Trump freestyles on Stormy Daniels, potential pardons for Cohen and Manafort in morning comments
On his way to the G7 summit in Quebec, President Trump stopped to share his thoughts on everything from boxer Muhammad Ali to attorney Michael Cohen.
Trump spoke with reporters outside the White House on Friday, expressing high hopes for the summit while also revealing a number of his plans for future pardons and policies.
He called for Russia to be reinstated to the group of nations that attend the summit, even though he said he has been Russia's worst nightmare. "It used to be G8, now Russia is out," he said. "Russia should be in the meeting." Trump pledged to leave Quebec with "a better deal," condemning the "unfair trade practices" between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, and the European Union.
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Besides the summit, Trump opened up to reporters about decisions at the White House. He said that he was considering a posthumous pardon for boxing champion Muhammad Ali, who was convicted after refusing to serve in the military in Vietnam. On the topic of pardons, Trump defended his "absolute right" to pardon himself, but said he'd "never have to do it because I didn't do anything wrong." He said he "hasn't even thought about" pardoning former campaign manager Paul Manafort and attorney Michael Cohen, pointing out that they haven't been convicted of anything. Attorney General Jeff Sessions' fate was left unclear: "We'll see what happens," Trump said when asked about whether he'd fire him.
Trump also addressed first lady Melania Trump's long absence from the public eye, revealing that her May operation was "a four-hour procedure" that left her unable to travel for a month. He offered his opinion on attorney Rudy Giuliani's Stormy Daniels comments that reportedly irked the first lady, saying that he was "not going to disagree" with Giuliani that being a porn star is not respectable. Watch some of Trump's wide-ranging comments at CBS News.
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Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.
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