The Briefing With Jen Psaki 8/7/26 — 🅼🆂🅽🅱️🅲 Breaking News Today August 7, 2026

[0:00] straight, Donald Trump doesn't have a damn clue what's going on right now. He was apparently [0:04] blindsided by the Pentagon's dire munitions shortages due to his own war, his ongoing war [0:12] with Iran. He refuses to acknowledge that voters aren't buying the golden age economy he's trying [0:18] to sell. And now he isn't even interested in campaigning for Republicans with the midterms [0:24] less than 90 days away. In an interview with Punchbowl News today, Trump said, and I quote, [0:32] I didn't have to be supporting all the people. I have a busy schedule. Trump added, I said to [0:40] somebody, wait a minute, you don't understand. I won. I'm not campaigning. Yep. That's the leader [0:49] of the Republican Party. The guy that Republicans have backed again and again and again and again, [0:55] regardless of how corrupt or immoral he is or becomes. And so, yeah, of course, he's annoyed [1:03] that he has to campaign for them. So what would Trump rather spend his time on? Well, according [1:10] to the New York Times and Maggie Haberman, Trump is mostly focused on his pet projects. [1:20] How much of his time actually goes into the renovation now? [1:22] A lot. If you looked at like, like a chart of his mindshare, like this, I will say about getting [1:30] into his mind, like 70% of it would be on his renovations. It's it's, it's a legacy thing. But [1:36] it's, it's, I always think of legacy with him different than the way we usually use the word [1:41] legacy. It's so it's, it's not what am I leaving behind for the world? It's what can I do that cannot [1:50] be taken away. And maybe you're thinking to yourself, how could a president of the United [1:56] States spend 70% of his time thinking about renovations? Well, think about all the changes [2:03] to the White House he's been bragging about over the past year. All the time he spent talking about [2:09] the renovations to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. All the time he spent going on and on and [2:15] on about his $400 million ballroom. You take all that into account and 70% of his mindshare [2:24] might be a conservative estimate. Still, you don't buy the estimate. Okay. Well, here's Trump just [2:32] today at a round table that was supposed to be focused on shoring up supplies of critical minerals. [2:39] The president's allowed to remove things from any building. And I'm liking the chandeliers. I really, [2:48] I like those Corinthian columns, but I don't know, cutting them out would be not good. [2:53] Those are beautiful columns, but I'm allowed to do it. Every once in a while, I'll come in here and [2:59] grab a painting and put it at the Oval Office, right? But not too much. [3:05] What can you say? The guy loves interior decorating. So if you're on board with the idea that 70% of [3:11] Trump's brain is focused on his renovations, well, that 70% is pretty pissed off tonight, [3:19] because today a federal appeals court ordered that Trump administration to stop construction [3:25] on the dude's beloved ballroom. In a two to one decision, the court ruled that the administration [3:32] very likely lacked authority to demolish the White House East Wing and build Trump's ballroom without [3:38] approval from Congress. And one of the judges wrote this, each president is a temporary tenant, [3:45] not the owner of the White House and his executive residence. That's right. The court ruled that under [3:52] the Constitution, Trump is like every other president before him, just another temporary tenant of the [3:59] White House. He doesn't get to bulldoze whatever he wants. But of course, Trump thinks he owns everything. [4:08] It is why he's tearing up the White House lawn to make way for a new helipad. It's why he's trying to [4:13] build his gigantic vanity arch. And it's why he's torn down an entire wing of the White House in order to [4:21] build this ballroom. But here's the thing. It's not just the White House. Trump thinks he personally owns [4:29] and operates the entire federal government. It is why he installed banners of his face on buildings like [4:36] the Department of Justice. And yes, it's why he wants to make sure his loyal former personal attorney [4:43] is installed as the new attorney general. And when I say loyal, I'm talking about a guy who has [4:50] repeatedly said that Trump has complete control over every facet of the executive branch. [4:58] President Trump, for the first time in modern history, has said, I am the president. And if you [5:04] work in the executive branch, you work for me. And guess what? We can all read the Constitution. He's right. [5:13] Everybody in this country can read Article 2. It's publicly available. It should be in your pocket. [5:18] And it gives all the power of the executive to one person. That's the president of the United [5:23] States. And there's this there's this model out there that somehow that a problem of justice [5:27] is independent from the president of the United States. That is not true. [5:32] Make no mistake. Everybody in the executive works for the president of the United States. [5:35] Well, that's just wacky because today it looks like Trump's former personal attorney will be [5:42] confirmed as the next attorney general in the United States. And it all came down to Republican [5:47] Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and outgoing Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. [5:53] This morning, Murkowski announced that she would vote no on Blanche's confirmation. [5:59] And Bill Cassidy decided to, well, add a little drama to his decision. [6:04] He made his big announcement on the Senate floor. [6:06] Senate confirmed gives him greater leverage to push for things that should be pushed for. [6:13] This does not demean the Senate's role. Important issues have been discussed through this process. [6:18] And Mr. Blanche has made commitments. [6:20] Barr specifically addressed the allegation that Mr. Blanche would be a yes man for the president. [6:24] He said that any attorney to represent a client well has to have tough conversations and confront [6:30] a client with difficult truths. That because of his previous attorney-client relationship with [6:34] President Trump, Mr. Blanche would be precisely the person to push back on President Trump. [6:39] But that ultimately, and here Barr echoed what I heard from Blanche, decisions are made by the [6:47] President. All considered, I will vote for Mr. Blanche. I'll be criticized for this vote. What's new? [6:57] But the people of Louisiana can be assured that I worked hard to understand the issue and to make [7:12] the right decision. With that, I yield. [7:17] Well, considering the emotion in his voice at the end of his remarks, you can tell that Senator [7:24] Cassidy really hopes he's right. But I've got news for you, Senator. He isn't. You aren't. [7:31] Senator Cassidy says the Blanche has made commitments. Oh, so many commitments. [7:39] But remember, this is the same Senator who got commitments from Trump's health secretary, [7:44] RFK Jr. Cassidy was the deciding vote to confirm him. And Kennedy has turned around and continues to [7:53] break those commitments every day. Senator Cassidy looks like he's making the same gamble here. [8:01] And based on all the evidence we have, it looks like it will likely turn out the same way. [8:06] Because you see, my friends, Republicans in Congress and Trump's lackeys in the administration [8:12] are once again enabling Trump into thinking that he's the owner, the primary client that the DOJ [8:20] and the federal government are supposed to look out for. But the Constitution, the courts, [8:28] and most importantly, you, the people of the United States, know he's just a temporary tenant. [8:37] That is the fight that lies ahead of us. And the stakes, folks, well, you and I both know they could [8:44] not be higher. Joining me now is Congressman Jamie Raskin of the great state of Maryland, my hometown. [8:51] He's the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, which is tasked with oversight [8:56] of the Department of Justice. Congressman, it is always a pleasure to see you. [9:02] So there we have it. Trump's personal henchman, Todd Blanche, is officially set to become [9:07] the next Attorney General of the United States. You're the top Democrat on the House Judiciary [9:12] Committee. How are you now preparing for what will be, I think, by all accounts, [9:20] one hell of a difficult period leading up to and certainly after this November's elections, [9:29] especially given how much Trump has already sought to abuse his power and authority with respect to [9:38] the rights of citizens and their access to the ballot? Well, the Democrats on the House Judiciary [9:45] Committee know that we are in the fight of our lives and have been working every single day, Michael, [9:52] to try to defend the rule of law, the Constitution and our democracy against an authoritarian president [9:58] who's just been rampaging over the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. So let's be clear, [10:05] first of all, about Senator Cassidy. I mean, he made two arguments that I was able to hear. [10:10] One was that anybody Trump would appoint after Blanche would be worse. Well, on that theory, [10:17] you would just vote for 100 percent of Donald Trump's terrible appointees because he could [10:22] always come up with someone worse. The other argument he made was that because he has been [10:28] Donald Trump's henchman and right-hand man and confidant, he's in a position to talk back to [10:34] Trump, which sounds like a fine argument, except there's absolutely no evidence for it. On the contrary, [10:40] he has done absolutely everything that Donald Trump has wanted him to do, including totally mangle and [10:46] distort the release of the Epstein files. After trying to sandbag and obstruct the release [10:53] of the files, he released identifying information about the survivors, about the victims that he [10:59] should not have. And he withheld and suppressed all kinds of information about co-conspirators and [11:05] accomplices and enablers of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. But it's the same thing with [11:10] the slush fund. I mean, this was basically his brainchild. And look at the agreement he wrote, [11:16] and look at the paperwork they're now using to pretend as if he's making concessions [11:21] to Republican senators, right? He says the weaponization fund is dead, it's not going forward, [11:28] and it's over. And therefore, you guys can go ahead and vote me in as attorney general. [11:33] Well, the first problem with that is that if you read the agreement itself, just go to Section 8, [11:38] what it says is that it's the title modification. And it says there shall be no modifications to this [11:45] agreement without the consent of both parties, meaning the attorney general Blanche reporting [11:51] to Donald Trump. He wrote it. But it also means the plaintiff, Donald Trump, who sued his own [11:56] government. And so right there, that nullifies the meaning of that memo that they wrote. That's just [12:03] like confetti. But if that's not enough for you, check out Section 4 of the agreement, which says that [12:09] the attorney general of the United States can alter the name or change the name of the anti-weaponization [12:16] fund so they can make it the anti-weaponization fund and do it. And then he's maintaining fidelity to [12:25] that ridiculous memo he wrote. But they're just channeling it another way. And we know that they're [12:29] going to do that because they've been doing it. They gave $1.25 million to Michael Flynn, [12:35] Donald Trump's disgraced former national security advisor who met with different Russian officials [12:41] and then lied about it. And he gave $1.25 million to Carter Page. And he gave $5 million to the family [12:49] of Ashley Babbitt after two different federal probes determined that the Capitol Police officers [12:54] had done nothing wrong and had done everything right. And you know what they've given to the [12:58] Capitol Police officers and their families? The people who had heart attacks and strokes and traumatic [13:02] brain injury? Nothing, absolutely nothing. And so this is just a power grab and a cash grab [13:09] for him to pass out to his foot soldiers and political allies. And what they've done over [13:14] the last several weeks has not altered that reality in any way. That last part about the relief, [13:21] if you will, Congressman, to Capitol Hill police officers who served that day should stick in the [13:28] craw of every American out there as far as I'm concerned. But here's the deal with someone like [13:33] Cassidy that that also sticks in my craw. Donald Trump kicked his behind, kicked him out of kicked [13:40] him out of the game, right? Primaried him and he lost. And so he presumably had nothing to lose. [13:48] And yet he's the one who goes before the body and it makes the the the fateful ultimate decision [13:57] on Blanche's fate and giving him that nomination. I just don't understand the thinking, the mindset. [14:07] You talk to folks on the other side, senators, members of the House, Republicans. Help us understand [14:15] what is the mindset here when there is zero sum loss to you for standing out and standing up on [14:24] principle and that you continue to fold like a cheap suit. Well, look, Senator Cassidy was one of [14:32] seven Republicans who joined all 50 Democrats in voting to convict Donald Trump of inciting a violent [14:39] insurrection against the union to support his inside political coup and the coercive pressure they were [14:46] bringing on Vice President Pence. OK, so he's a man who has shown some independent judgment. When I looked [14:54] at that tape you just showed us, Michael, he looked very pained and agonized about what he was doing. [15:00] And I I wish we could get the back story on why he did it. The arguments he advanced were just, [15:07] you know, thin as paper as to why he was doing it. And in fact, it seems like he pretty much wrote a [15:14] statement about why he was going to vote against Blanche, because he made very powerful arguments [15:19] about what a terrible job Blanche was doing with respect to this judgment fund ripoff, [15:24] which is unconstitutional and illegal and just a massive waste of taxpayers dollars to give away [15:32] to Proud Boys and Oath Keepers and other convicted cop beaters. And he also made the same argument about [15:39] the Epstein files. So I feel like he was prepared to vote the other way. But something happened. I don't [15:44] know what I you know, I have zero information about it. But just being familiar with watching [15:50] people vote and how they vote. There's something very suspicious about the whole thing in my mind [15:56] about why he ended up on that side, because the arguments were so pathetically thin that he offered [16:02] as to why he was doing it, that the next guy might be worse than him. But I'll just say, look, the [16:08] the White House has tremendous resources at its disposal and they're about to give away one point [16:14] eight billion dollars. And the whole thing is a money making operation. And so they're able to bring [16:20] people in when they need them. I mean, it's very tough for us to win these votes. But I'll tell you [16:25] this, Michael. Right now we've got a discharge petition to get our no cart Blanche Act out of [16:32] committee where it's been stalled. Every Democrat in the House has signed it. We just need [16:37] six Republicans. And there are at least that many who have spoken out against this. Everybody on the [16:42] campaign trail should be asking these people, do you think that one point eight billion dollars [16:47] of taxpayer money should go to the president and Todd Blanche to hand out to all of these [16:52] political allies and extremists and cop beating insurrectionists? And if not, [16:57] they should sign the discharge petition so we can vote to cut the whole thing off and not just the [17:03] weaponization fund and the shmeaponization fund, but any transfer of money for these purposes. [17:09] If these people have a valid cause of action against the Capitol Police or the U.S. government, [17:15] go to court and make your case. Not a single one has been able to do that because they had every [17:20] advantage of due process and the presumption of innocence. They were all lawfully convicted and [17:27] lots of them just pled guilty. So Donald Trump just wants to give them a bonanza payout day. [17:33] And it's got nothing to do with the rule of law. That's characteristic of an authoritarian society [17:39] and a mafia state. That is not something representative of the U.S. government. [17:43] It is not. And throw in there that IRS boondoggle as well, because there's no way in hell [17:50] anybody in the United States should be free and clear to go out and engage in, let's just say, [17:57] bad behavior. And the IRS has nothing to say about it. Congressman Jamie Raskin, thank you. [18:03] We had to go out, unfortunately, but thank you very much, my friend. Appreciate it. Good to see you. [18:07] Hold down Maryland for us, baby. Coming up, for anyone who thinks Democrats are divided right now, [18:14] just wait until we show you what happened at a rally in Detroit tonight [18:19] with some faces you might recognize. Michigan's Lieutenant Governor Garland Gilchrist was there, [18:25] and he joins us next. If you listen to the folks over there at Fox News, [18:32] they're always saying that the Dems are in disarray. Well, this week in the state of Michigan, [18:38] we saw one of the most heated Democratic primaries in recent memory. But tonight in Michigan, [18:44] the Dems were in array. See what I did there? Tonight, all of the Democrats who won their races on [18:52] Tuesday held a unity rally together with the added star power of Pete Buttigieg. [18:59] Now, we have just 88 days to make sure that things go right. The stakes are high, [19:06] and people from around the country, people from around the world are watching the state of Michigan [19:12] right now to see if we have the capability to put together that coalition to win. And we will win. [19:19] We fight for the families barely able to put their groceries in the cart and check out. We fight [19:33] for the mom who's worried about the childcare she needs to be able to work a job that barely [19:39] pays enough. We fight for the folks who are afraid about what happens if they get sick. [19:47] We fight for each other. Now, right now, it feels like government, especially at the federal level, [19:59] is showing up everywhere we don't want it. Our polling places, masked federal agents in the [20:04] streets of Michigan and all right terrorizing residents showing up everywhere we don't want it [20:10] and nowhere where we actually need it. And this election is our opportunity to change that. It is [20:18] our opportunity to grow our coalition to include citizens in every corner of this state who believe, [20:25] as we all do, that the power of the people must always be greater than the people in power. [20:32] This moment that we're in is a moment where we determine where we choose how we move forward. [20:43] You see, the entire trajectory of the United States of America rests on the choices of Michiganders. [20:52] And so it matters the choices that we make. It matters how we show up. It matters that we organize, [21:03] converse, connect, and convert people to understand that we share their values, [21:10] we will fight for their freedom, and we will fight for this democracy here in Michigan and in America. [21:19] Looked like even the cameraman was applauding there for a second, all that motion. [21:23] Joining me now is Michigan's Lieutenant Governor Garland Gilchrist, who is running this year to [21:28] be Michigan's Secretary of State. Welcome, LG. LG to LG. I'm loving the corner, baby. Here we go. [21:35] This is what I'm talking about. [21:36] I appreciate that. Good to see you. [21:38] It's good to see you too. So let me ask you just straight up. Are you feeling unified? Do you feel [21:44] like Democrats are truly unified or was that just kind of like, okay, we in the room and there's a light [21:49] and a camera and we got to at least move like we are unified? [21:54] We have been locked in here as Democrats in Michigan. We had our unity breakfast that was [21:58] happening when the cameras were off, where everyone came together and understood that [22:02] we had one mission and it's to deliver for the working people and working families of Michigan [22:07] to hold accountable the people who raised our prices and kicked people off their health care. [22:11] And my job as our candidate for Secretary of State is to protect people's rights to vote from the [22:15] threats from Trump, his administration, his Department of Justice that are seeking to encroach on those [22:20] rights. And we know that we all have a role to play on this team to make sure we can win in Michigan, [22:24] and that Michigan can deliver for the country. [22:26] Yeah, you know, a lot of people going into primary night and certainly coming [22:31] out of primary night with the win of U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El Saeed defeating Haley Stevens, [22:39] the establishment candidate. You know, that this would be a tense moment and that there would be [22:46] friction. But El Saeed started his speech tonight thanking Stevens for her public service. And on [22:54] Wednesday, she came straight out of the gate and vocally supported him. So that sort of helps to put [23:00] things in the wanting to throw flames and create some fires, put those things aside and focus on the [23:08] front that you and other Democrats in the state are really focused on. And that's winning. How is that [23:15] going? And how do you think it lasts? [23:17] I mean, people around the country need to stop making the wrong assumptions about the people of [23:22] Michigan and the state of Michigan, right? You know, we know what we have to do. We have to make [23:28] sure everyone understands their power coming into this November election and recognize that Michigan [23:34] Democrats are focused on delivering for people, not even just protecting them against the danger, [23:39] destruction, chaos, and calamity of a Trump administration that is so focused on itself, [23:44] but that we will deliver on their priorities. You know, look, the reason that they are, you know, [23:48] so focused on wrecking voting, reason they are so focused on trying to get this say back through [23:54] the House and Senate is because they want to protect power. They're focusing on their own priorities, [23:59] which is their own power, not the priorities of Michiganders, which are gas and groceries and [24:03] childcare and housing. And Michigan Democrats agree on that. And we're going to deliver at every level [24:08] for those values, for those priorities, for those goals, for the people of Michigan, [24:11] and show the way and to show what this looks like and can look like across the country. [24:16] So, you know, one of the things that struck me about tonight was the fact that [24:25] you have a moment where Michiganders are seeing in fullness the ticket, right? The change. You guys [24:35] talked a lot about that. You talked a lot about policy. And what was interesting was, you know, [24:41] I think a lot of people sort of thought you'd be focused, oh, about Trump. Everything's Trump, [24:46] Trump, you know, running against Trump, who's not on the ballot. But you seem to be running for [24:52] something. The policies, the ideas that are going to be important to people. The job of Secretary of [24:58] State, which you're running for, isn't what it used to be, of course, because of the ways in which the [25:04] administration and his allies have attacked our elections. That's not economy. That's not tariffs. [25:13] That's not the war in Iraq. But it is something that's so fundamental to who we are as Americans, [25:19] our ability to access the ballot box and the generations upon generations of Americans who [25:24] fought for that. How do you think about what your job as Secretary of State will require in this moment, [25:32] specifically? You know, Michael, where this comes from for me is that, you know, I'm a different [25:39] kind of person running for office. I'm a software developer. Like, I'm an engineer, which means I [25:43] know how to solve problems and make systems work for people. Like, I didn't enter public service [25:49] merely to stop bad things from happening. But I entered public service to make things happen for [25:54] people and use the tools that the voters have given us to deliver for them. And in this case, [25:59] the tool of our vote, that sacred tool is the thing that we use to fix the systems that are failing us, [26:05] to vote the people out of office who kick people off of healthcare, to vote to protect our environment [26:10] and our clean water in the Great Lakes state that has more fresh water than any place else [26:14] on the planet. And I think people are hungry to know that there are solutions to these problems and [26:18] that someone is ready to deliver them and that we're going to focus on those challenges and those [26:23] solutions and not focus on fealty to a president who does not want us to have or exercise these [26:29] rights, who wants to make it harder for people in rural communities to vote, whose goal is to break [26:34] the government so that it cannot serve people and then point fingers and say that government fails you. [26:39] Well, no, we believe that we can make systems work for people and the secretary of state's role. [26:43] My job is to open this doorway to Michigan so people can walk through it. They know their government [26:48] can respond to them and help them meet their priorities and give them a chance to be successful [26:52] and to have a say in how we move forward. And that's what I'm going to deliver as Michigan [26:55] secretary of state. And I'm looking forward to doing that work and asking folks to join [27:00] me at GarlandGilchrist.com so we can make it happen together and stand tall for Michigan. [27:04] All right. Good luck in opening that door, sir. Lieutenant Governor Garland Gilchrist. [27:08] Thank you so much. Appreciate you. [27:10] Thank you for having me. [27:12] And coming up, folks, Donald Trump thinks he's cracked the case on why voters are pissed off right now. [27:18] Oh, you think they're not angry at me, but they are angry at Republicans. [27:24] Yeah, we're going to talk about that nonsense when we come back.