Schumer and Pelosi were under the impression that the WH meeting was going to be private.

[kentuck]

Then, surprise!

Trump had invited the press and cameras to their meeting!

How would you have felt in such a situation??

No doubt, the Democrats more than held their ground, and Democrats, in general were very pleased with their performance.

What was Trump's goal in bringing in the cameras?

[htuttle]

1. Self-aggrandizement

Trump seems to have one and only one goal in everything he does. Self-aggrandizement.

That's all he's got, and it's what he's made of.

It is a bit comical how often that blows up in his face, though.

[brush]

24. Yep, he really believes all his own hype about himself and his greatness.

Last edited Wed Dec 12, 2018, 10:35 PM - Edit history (1)

His whole life has been one of being surrounded by yes-men, sycophants and ass kissers who tell him how great he is. People like Conway and Hannity and Huckabee Sanders.

He thought he could bluster and lie and intimidate Pelosi and Schumer in front of the cameras. The problem is, he's not all that and he wasn't dealing with rookies.

It was not Nancy Pelosi's first rodeo, she watched his show, calmly sized up the situation and let him know in no uncertain terms there would be no wall for him. And Schumer wasn't cowed either.

They played him in his own office as he attempted to play them.

[LiberalFighter]

55. He would had gotten away with it if this had happened last year or Jan 2017.

But Pelosi and Schumer know a lot more about the buffoon and Pelosi is going to be the Speaker instead of some jackass Republican.

[Cha]

82. The Traitor in the WH invited Nancy, Chuck, and the Media

into the Oval Office for an up close and personal surprise burn .

Link to tweet

Nancy called it.. The Trump Shutdown

[randr]

2. He thought he was holding court

Somehow he lost his script and the adults took over

[LiberalFighter]

56. Yep! He thinks he is king.

[Generic Brad]

83. That'll happen when you don't have a chief of staff

When the lunatics are allowed to run the asylum with zero supervision, it is no surprise it spun out of his control. He thinks he's so much smarter than everyone else that he simply doesn't realize he's a moron. He has no one to blame but himself.

[BeyondGeography]

3. Classic case of underestimating your adversaries

Among many other things. He thought he could roll them with bullshit.

[GaYellowDawg]

37. Bingo. nt

nt

[get the red out]

4. Trump thinks a lot of himself

He didn't count on Pelosi and Schumer handing him his ass.

[TheBlackAdder]

63. And the funny thing was, after the meeting Trump complained that it was a, "set up!"

[Laurian]

5. He thinks everything is a freaking reality tv show.

Ignorance abounds.

[TrishaJ]

11. Yep. He's reducing the Presidency

to a reality shit show.

[onetexan]

35. correct, he thought by setting a trap for them - going in front of a camera

that they'd capitulate to his demands so he can show the world what a deal maker he is. Nancy & Chuck turned the table on him and exposed him for the fool that he is. Very well played on their part. I'm glad we have leaders like them.

[bdamomma]

25. exactly

again he shows his ignorance and arrogance get the hook please. Like his Celebrity Apprentice we need to cancel this shit show.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

67. Yeah, well it backfired big time!!!

[HopeAgain]

71. Bingo!

He's a one-trick pony!

[GopherGal]

81. Apprentice/Punk'd crossover

... as I said in another thread.
He tried to pull a fast one on Pelosi and Schumer and "punk" them by turning what they thought was a photo op into an Apprentice episode. He put them in the situation of working off-the-cuff when he had his prepared cue cards. I think he didn't get that he's just as much a contestant as Pelosi and Schumer. Unlike in his show, they weren't there to plead for his favor.

[Raven]

6. An ambush, but it backfired. n/t

[Snotcicles]

26. +1. He tried make a WWF event out of it and he need to pounce when their guard was down. nt

[Scarsdale]

53. Pence was speechless!

He thought tRump would steamroll right over the democratic members. A taste of what he will face if tRump is impeached and little Mikey takes the reins. He looked scared.

[politicaljunkie41910]

64. Pence was his usual sleepy self. My guess is that he either doesn't get much sleep,

or that his boss's bullshit bores him to death along with the rest of us.

[Snotcicles]

66. Pence is a marionette. His strings have been getting pulled for a long time. nt

[N_E_1 for Tennis]

7. I'd have felt...

A little blindsided, a little confused, after sitting there for a moment as the press set up, mostly testy and pissed ready for an intelligent conversation, at least on my end to show the press what an ignorant man Individual #1 is.

I think I#1 thought he’d show America what a great, powerful leader he is. It was a failed ploy to embarrass the Democrats.

[EffieBlack]

8. He thought they'd sit there like grinning sycophantic potted plants the way Ryan and McConnell do

Pence was the only one who stuck with the plan.

[PubliusEnigma]

32. Trump has surrounded himself with weaklings and push-overs.

In doing so, he has allowed himself to become slow and complacent.

So, when he was actually faced with two humans with functioning brains, he was ill prepared and slow to react.

[EffieBlack]

33. Exactly this

He has never had to deal face-to-face with people who are as powerful as he is, who aren’t afraid of him and whom he can’t threaten.

[safeinOhio]

39. Rookie error when

dealing with the pros.

[central scrutinizer]

77. Not used to people who can think on their feet

And adapt quickly to unforeseen circumstances. He's a really slow learner so I'm sure there is more hilarity to come. Can't wait!

[underpants]

9. And they turned it on him.

The spin from Foxworld is "Border Security!" and that he made a power move on them inviting in the press.

[ProfessorGAC]

57. So Faux. . .

. . .forgot that Pelosi and Schumer have been in front of cameras before?

Well, probably so.

[Buckeyeblue]

10. He was going to try to catch them unprepared and publicly humiliate them

It's a trick. He starts an argument with them while the cameras are on and they say nothing or worse yet, look dumbfounded like Pence, and he comes across as the strong leader. They look weak. And maybe he stirs up the speaker vote some.

But that didn't work. They thought it was going to be private, but demonstrated that they both think quickly on their feet.

Their retort to him was surprising to 45. He then got passive aggressive and said he would take responsibility for shutting down the government. I think he was trying to be sarcastic but he was so flustered it didn't come out that way. Too bad for him. He owns it now.

[avebury]

12. Trump plays tiddly winks in a multi-dimensional chess world

and it always bites him in his butt. He thinks that he is the worlds greatest negotiator (NOT) and great on tv. Schumer and Pelosi played him like a fiddle and he fell for it. He never learns.

I loved the picture of Pelosi leaving the WH, she looked like the cat that ate the canary.

[dalton99a]

13. To display his very, very large brain

[Grammy23]

14. As usual, he overestimated his own abilities to control the situation.

tRump’s narcissism was in charge of his behavior and his delusions. In his mind, things were going swimmingly, making him look like a true leader, a great deal maker. But he was too much up his own ass to realize he was not dealing with just anybody’s fool. The adults in the room stood up to his shenanigans and met his rude, petulant behavior almost as if they knew he was going to act the way he did. Of course, they’ve had plenty of time to observe and study tRump so they knew exactly what to do.

Things with tRump will be different from now on. Yesterday he got a small taste of what life will be like with people who have his number. They know exactly how to back him into a corner and get him on the record owning a possible government shutdown. Things are not going to get any easier for tRump and we can expect more events like yesterday’s tantrum as his ability to control his emotions erodes to nothing.

[EffieBlack]

36. Exactly

And the weaker he looks to other Republicans, the less likely they’ll be to support him. The House and Senate HOP have kowtowed to him because they perceived him as very powerful. The more he’s publicly exposed as an weakling, the farther they’re going to move away from him.

This is going to be interesting ...

[ChubbyStar]

45. Brava Grammy!

You summed it up so beautifully!

[IADEMO2004]

15. The host thought poking wildcats would be entertainment for his base.

He chose poorly.

[marylandblue]

16. Hasn't he done this before?

Held meetings with Congress on TV? Seems to be a thing for him, so he can show off his skills(sic).

[VOX]

17. And they boomeranged that stunt by kneecapping him on camera.

Dump was looking to make hay by playing overseer to a couple of Democratic “underlings” (“Chuck! Nancy!”), to flex a little muscle for the folks at Fox and Breitbart. But Schumer and Pelosi are seasoned, sane politicians, who can parry and thrust nimbly on issues. Pence made like a doorstop, all of which was too much for the stable genius, who then self-destructed ON CAMERA, as is his habit when things don’t go his way for 6-7 seconds.

But on Fox, the session was hailed along the lines of, “insane Democrats WANT a shutdown! They hate our president! They hate YOU, America! Smock!”

What a fantastic way to ruin a country. RUN THAT ASSHOLE OUT OF TOWN ON A RAIL!

[tblue37]

20. One FOX idiot bragged about how physically strong and aggressive Trump came across as. nt

[Bernardo de La Paz]

46. That appeals to bullies. "Might makes right". Lots of bullies among deplorables. One is orange. . nt

[VOX]

80. Physically strong? Aggressive? The PERFECT ingredients for effective bipartisan efforts.

It’s no wonder that all Republicans are pretty dumb and combative at the same time.

Right-wing media has made a mockery of facts. Every news outlet on cable is lambasting 45 for his ineptitude and cluelessness. Flip over to Fox, they talk about him as if he were some folksy, reach-across-the-aisle do-gooder who tries to work fairly with Democrats. Talk about BULLSHIT’

[eShirl]

18. Delusional is as delusional does.

[mcar]

19. He thought he would own those "spineless" Demon rats on live TV

Instead, he got owned.

[GoCubsGo]

29. This is the correct answer.

Nothing but an attempt to make himself look powerful by humiliating others in front of the world. It's his usual schtick. I am sure he thought he was going to intimidate "Chuck and Nancy" out investigating him, as well. He really doesn't have a fucking clue...

[WeekiWater]

21. Trump lacks impulse control and feels he promotes an image of power.

He probably just got this image in his mind of Pelosi and Schumer sitting in lower positions, with him elevated in the center, lecturing them. It took him all of ten seconds to play it out in his mind beforehand. He forgot one thing. He is stupid.

[safeinOhio]

44. Looks like got a lesson on

Article 1 of our Constitution from Nancy. Anyone think he will read it now?

[LiberalFighter]

60. Here is an important part about Article I

Legislative branch is before Article II - Executive branch.

[brooklynite]

22. His reasons: 1) he's a great dealer; 2) he's publicly standing up for the Wall

[watoos]

68. He only wanted to impress his base,

to keep them in fear so that they can look to him to protect them. He needs to keep his base living in fear or he has nothing.

Wait until his base finds out their tax refunds are going to be a lot smaller this year.

[TheCowsCameHome]

23. He thought he was going to run the tables.

How'd that work out, fatboy?

[Zambero]

27. Colbert summed it up best

Trump invited his best buds "The Enemy of the People" to the meeting.

[calimary]

28. He's said to be enraged that he was somehow set up.

Funny how that got turned around on him, ‘eh?

Typical schoolyard bully. Can dish it out, alright. But can’t take it.

[barbtries]

73. he's also constitutionally incapable

of accepting blame for anything, ever. since he fucks up on such a regular basis, he's constantly looking for scapegoats. it's like something that just happened minutes ago, a choice he freely made, never happened. impossible to understate how sick he is.

[tavernier]

30. He was going to show them where Jake shit,

as my late hubby used to eloquently put it.

Rump not being a dog lover didn’t know that Jake was going to happily shit on his shoe.

[PubliusEnigma]

31. Trump mistakenly thought that he was in control.

[NCjack]

40. Orange#45 needs to read "The Art of the Deal". There will be no deal when the opposition

holds all the money.

[True Blue American]

34. Schumer had the same grin

On his face that I used to have when my Grandson pulled a temper tantrum. It would bring him right out of one. He learned real quick not to try and bully Grandma because she would laugh at him.

He was 2 or 3.

[George II]

38. Whatever his goal, it backfired BIGLY!

[caballojm]

41. Trump is Wily E. Coyote.

His idiotic plots always blow up in his face, but he keeps repeating the same mistakes over and over thinking the results will somehow be different the next time. Time to buy stock in ACME!

[Johonny]

42. On his TV show when the cameras come in, people kiss his ass. This time...not so much

hmm...

[left-of-center2012]

43. Trump thought Schumer and Pelosi would behave as his cabinet does ...

When, in front of the cameras, Trump's cabinet praise him as a god.

[getagrip_already]

47. pence had to be mentally counting signatures for the 25th amendment.....

A fantasy no doubt, but he would at least get kelly.

[PatrickforO]

48. Yeah, that whole thing was a debacle.

I was rolling by the time it was over, and I saw that both Pelosi and Schumer were holding in gales of laughter.

I mean, I wish this guy was back doing reality TV and this all a long, evil, dark, orange dream.

[Historic NY]

49. Somebody forgot to plug Pence in....

Trump keeps on giving.....SNL is going to have a field day.

[ehrnst]

50. Nancy played him on it tho... "Do you think there should be cameras here?"

ensuring that he would demand that they stay.

[barbtries]

74. yep. they actually tried to save him from himself

and he wouldn't have it. it's the only time i watched one of these meetings all the way through and even though i was still yelling at his bullshit, my BP stayed level and i laughed and laughed because they showed him up so bad. it was lovely.

[marble falls]

51. Desperation. He thought his 'mastery of control' in The Apprentice just might carry over.

[still_one]

52. playing to his base. I have no doubt his base degenerates liked his performance. Normal people saw

the socio-path for what he was

[FakeNoose]

54. Cheeto forgot to bring in his paid cheerleaders

I think that was his big problem. All he cares about is the free TV coverage, he could care less about building a wall. I'm sure he knows there will never be a wall but he's milking this baby for all the TV coverage he can get. Reality TV 101.

Nancy and Chuck handled it brilliantly. They were well-prepared and they can think fast on their feet.

[33taw]

58. I think he thought he would force them to his side with the cameras rolling.

I also think Pence gave him zero support as a wing-man. Probably letting him fail purposefully. He likes the bully technique - talk loud and forceful and then back it up with a bunch of lies. Ryan’s and McConnell give in. Pelosi and Schumer did not.

[nvme]

59. I am no Pelosi fan

Damn she trampled Drumpf. Schumer was wimpy though, "lets do this privately". I wanted him to go throttle and tell king baby the truth. Pelosi was having none of it and that scored some points for me.
Good job Nancy.

[ffr]

61. Lesson: Ambush a democrat, you get your nose bloodied.

Individual-1 should have been more prepared.

[MoonRiver]

62. He thought he had a brain. Big mistake!

[elmac]

65. All tRump cares about is the "YUGE" NBC reality show contract he will get when he gets the boot. nt

[Kablooie]

69. To impress his base and it worked.

Masterful! Unwavering. That's a real president! You can't push him around!
He knows what he wants and goes for it.

These are the kind of comments from his base.
They loved it.

[tanyev]

70. Nancy needs to walk in next time with a rolled up magazine in her hand.

[barbtries]

72. he thought he'd wipe the floor with them,

making his shrinking base love him all the more. didn't work out that way. hehe

[nini]

75. I doubt they were really surprised

they know what an attention whore idiot he is.

He actually did them a favor for allowing them to call him out in front of everyone. Now there's proof of what went down.

[bigbrother05]

76. He expected them to be "respectful" of the office (Oval) and not challenge him on camera.

Behind closed doors Dotard would have likely been even more abusive, but the Dems expected him to be a jerk.

It probably would have gone about the same way w/o cameras, but now there's a tape to offset any spin. Big mistake, I#1.

[NastyRiffraff]

78. Well, that didn't work out well for him

He thought he would show off what a great deal-maker he is. Instead he looked like a bratty 7 year old screaming and throwing things in a roomful of distinguished adults.

[malaise]

79. He tried to set them up

and ended up looking like a complete fool.
Delish!