White House aides reportedly try and fail to convince Trump to denounce storming of Capitol
President Trump has urged his supporters who breached the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday to "stay peaceful," but his aides, some of whom are reportedly "furious" with the commander-in-chief, want him to issue a stronger statement condemning the situation. Unfortunately for them, he doesn't appear interested at this point.
Trump's reason for holding out may be tied to his anger at Vice President Mike Pence, The New York Times' Maggie Haberman reports. The president is upset that Pence refused to try to block the Electoral College certification, even though he doesn't have the constitutional authority to do so.
Haberman also pointed out that Trump and those in his orbit, including his daughter Ivanka Trump and his attorney Rudy Giuliani, have hedged while calling on people to act without violence. Ivanka Trump described the supporters as "American patriots," while Giuliani said Trump's supporters were "on the right side of the law and history."
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.
Trump did go on to release a video asking his supporters to "go home," though, like Ivanka Trump and Giuliani, he expressed sympathy with their cause. It's unclear if the message is what his advisers were hoping to hear. Tim O'Donnell
-
Trump wants a weaker dollar but economists aren’t so sureTalking Points A weaker dollar can make imports more expensive but also boost gold
-
Political cartoons for February 3Cartoons Tuesday’s political cartoons include empty seats, the worst of the worst of bunnies, and more
-
Trump’s Kennedy Center closure plan draws ireSpeed Read Trump said he will close the center for two years for ‘renovations’
-
EU and India clinch trade pact amid US tariff warSpeed Read The agreement will slash tariffs on most goods over the next decade
-
Israel retrieves final hostage’s body from GazaSpeed Read The 24-year-old police officer was killed during the initial Hamas attack
-
China’s Xi targets top general in growing purgeSpeed Read Zhang Youxia is being investigated over ‘grave violations’ of the law
-
Panama and Canada are negotiating over a crucial copper mineIn the Spotlight Panama is set to make a final decision on the mine this summer
-
Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
-
Maduro pleads not guilty in first US court hearingSpeed Read Deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores pleaded not guilty to cocaine trafficking and narco-terrorism conspiracy
