Trump's St. John's Church photo op was reportedly in reaction to reports of him hiding in White House bunker
President Trump had federal military and law enforcement use tear gas and other nonlethal force to clear peaceful protesters from Lafayette Square on Monday evening so he could pose in front of St. John's Church with a Bible in his hand. Why would he do that? In part because he "was angered by coverage depicting him holed up in an underground bunker," CNN reports. "He told aides on Monday he wanted to be seen outside the White House gates, according to a person familiar with the matter." Maggie Haberman at The New York Times said her sources were telling her the same thing.
"Trump and his family were rushed to an underground bunker on the White House complex as protests raged outside the building on Friday evening," CNN says. "Trump wasn't seen on Sunday and spent most of Monday behind closed doors — leading to concern even from his allies that he was absent at a moment of national crisis."
CNN's Kaitlan Collins said the photo op appeared to be very last minute and reiterated that the excursion "was driven in part by that he was upset by coverage of the fact that he had been rushed to the underground bunker on Friday night." "Oh, my God," Anderson Cooper said, shaking his head. "Wow." "That is what sources are saying, Anderson," Collins responded. "We are in trouble," Cooper said. "He wanted to be seen outside the gates," Collins explained.. "Of course he did," Cooper sighed.
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.
"You know, he always talks about the world laughing, that the world is laughing at the governors right now," Cooper said. "They're not laughing at the governors, they're standing in horror over what is happening. The only people that the world is laughing at is the president of the United States, and this event? As I said, if it wasn't so dangerous and disgusting, it would be funny because it is so low-rent and just sad." Collins comes on at the 4:18 mark. Peter Weber
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
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.
-
Political cartoons for October 26Cartoons Sunday’s editorial cartoons include Young Republicans group chat, Louvre robbery, and more
-
Why Britain is struggling to stop the ransomware cyberattacksThe Explainer New business models have greatly lowered barriers to entry for criminal hackers
-
Greene’s rebellion: a Maga hardliner turns against TrumpIn the Spotlight The Georgia congresswoman’s independent streak has ‘not gone unnoticed’ by the president
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
Trump nominee in limbo after racist texts leakSpeed Read Paul Ingrassia lost Republican support following the exposure of past racist text messages
-
Trump begins East Wing demolition for ballroomspeed read The president’s new construction will cost $250 million
-
Appeals court clears Trump’s Portland troop deploymentSpeed Read A divided federal appeals court ruled that President Trump can send the National Guard to Portland
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ ralliesSpeed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June
