Trump may need to ‘personally’ get involved to fix rift with Senate Republicans: Analysis

[0:00] Welcome to Meet the Press Now. I'm Kristen Welker in Washington on a day where President Trump [0:04] is facing mounting pressure from all sides as he navigates tumbling poll numbers, rising prices, [0:11] new and unusual dissent from members of his own party, a stagnant war against Iran, [0:16] and now breaking news that Tulsi Gabbard, his top intelligence official, is resigning. [0:22] Gabbard informed the president today that she will be stepping down as the director of national [0:27] intelligence following her husband's diagnosis with a rare form of bone cancer. President Trump [0:33] saying on social media, Gabbard has done a great job and she will be missed. Gabbard has long been [0:38] an opponent of foreign wars and notably broke with the Trump administration with the Iran war, [0:43] citing intelligence contradicting his claim that Iran posed an imminent threat to the U.S. [0:49] This latest cabinet shakeup comes as the president faces growing backlash from Republicans [0:54] to the administration's controversial $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund, [0:59] which would compensate Trump allies who say they were targeted under the last administration. [1:05] Republicans on Capitol Hill speaking out, making their frustrations with the White House and the fund [1:11] clear. I still am supportive of a focused bill, funds ICE and CBP, and that's it. [1:18] Yeah. Why would he do anything else? It's beyond me. [1:22] Do you really think that the American people like the president suing himself, basically, [1:29] then making a deal that benefits himself with a broad immunity for not just IRS dealings, [1:36] but anything else, and along the way setting up this fund, which is without appropriated dollars. [1:42] How does that appear to the American people? Frankly, by self-dealing. [1:46] Well, I'm going to go listen with an open mind, but I'm just telling you I have some serious concerns. [1:53] What are your concerns? [1:53] How do you get rid of it then? [1:54] What are my concerns? [1:56] Yeah. [1:56] An executive branch being able to, at their will, send money to people without the proper judicial rule. [2:04] Those are my concerns. [2:06] The president today doubling down, posting on social media, quote, [2:10] I gave up a lot of money in allowing the just-announced anti-weaponization fund to go forward while claiming he is helping others who were so badly abused by an evil, corrupt, and weaponized Biden administration receive at long last justice, the words of the president. [2:26] Republican anxiety over the fund comes amid intensifying voter backlash against the president, with his approval rating falling to new lows, according to recent polling. [2:34] His handling of inflation and the cost of living both more than 50 points underwater. [2:40] And right now, President Trump is looking to tout his economic agenda in a key swing district, speaking in Rockland County, New York, in Republican Congressman Mike Lawler's district. [2:50] NBC News Chief White House Correspondent Garrett Haake kicks things off for us today. [2:54] Also with me is NBC News Chief Capitol Hill Correspondent Ryan Nobles. [2:58] NBC News Senior National Political Reporter Sahil Kapoor in Suffra, New York, where the president just spoke. [3:05] And NBC News Business and Economy Reporter Ali Canal. [3:08] Thanks to all of you for starting us off. [3:10] Garrett, let me start with you, and I want to begin with today's cabinet news. [3:15] Was this departure of Tulsi Gabbard unexpected? [3:18] And what are the implications given the war in Iran and all of these fresh tensions with Cuba? [3:24] Yeah, I would say not entirely unexpected, although the immediate cause of it, [3:28] her husband's illness was news to me and I think to most people who cover this administration. [3:32] But the idea that Gabbard, who was never fully embraced as a member of the president's inner circle, [3:37] would be among the earlier cabinet secretaries to depart isn't terribly shocking. [3:42] And in hindsight, the Friday of a holiday weekend is as good of a time as any to do it. [3:47] As to what effect it might have inside the administration, my initial read on this is not much. [3:52] And I think that speaks to at least perhaps part of the reason why she's leaving. [3:56] She was not seen as a pivotal, you know, someone who was sort of, her advice was pivotal to the [4:01] president, critical to his decision making. [4:03] She was not present, whether by, you know, intentionally or not, for a number of the big [4:08] decision points around Iran and Venezuela. [4:11] And, you know, her past as an outspoken critic of wars in the Middle East made her a less than [4:16] ideal public defender of the president's ongoing, on again, off again, war with Iran. [4:21] So I think this is a situation where the job was bigger on paper than her role in filling [4:28] it was in this White House. And, you know, the president's sending her off nicely with the truth [4:33] social today, in keeping with the way that he's handled many of these recent resignations or [4:38] departures from his cabinet. [4:40] Yeah, it'll be interesting to see who her ultimate replacement will be. [4:44] Garrett, let me turn to this broader theme that we've been reporting on, this pressure [4:49] that the president has been facing from all sides, quite frankly. [4:53] What are your sources telling you about how that's being felt inside the administration? [4:58] Is President Trump looking to change course at all? [5:01] Because today he was pretty defiant when it came to that anti-weaponization fund. [5:05] Yeah, and I have to answer it this way, which I don't love, because I think a lot of the [5:08] sources that I was talking to within the administration, who were people who had [5:12] either counseled against or understood the reasons why not to go after like a Bill Cassidy [5:18] or a John Cornyn so as not to antagonize them, are now people who are having a harder time [5:23] getting on the phone. You know, these decisions from the president were decisions that the [5:27] president himself made, sometimes against the advice of the political team that has been with [5:34] him, at least through this last election. And so he's now in a situation where getting through [5:39] this mess is going to have to be something that he muddles through on instinct and on the backs of [5:43] his team, which now is sort of starting to spread out across the country, or at least sort of in the [5:48] way that they think about it as they focus on the midterms. The president has has broken this [5:53] relationship to a certain extent, particularly with Senate Republicans. How he fixes it may fall to [5:58] him personally. Yeah, well, it's a really interesting data point there, Garrett. Before I let you go, [6:03] I do have to ask you about this. Donald Trump Jr. getting married this weekend. The president says he [6:07] will not attend. Why is that? And could that give us any tea leaves into what might happen with Iran [6:14] or Cuba, potentially? Well, look, we know what the president has said publicly. And that is really in [6:20] the form of an answer to a question from our colleague, Gabe Gutierrez, yesterday and in a [6:23] Truth Social post this morning, suggesting that, you know, that he's got a big, big job to do, [6:28] essentially, and that, you know, he needs to remain in Washington, D.C. during what he called an [6:31] important period of time. Yesterday, he suggested that, you know, the war with Iran is a factor. [6:37] It's a tough one to parse, Kristen, because he's ordered plenty of strikes and made other big [6:42] decisions from Mar-a-Lago, for example. Perhaps he didn't want to be out of the country if there's [6:47] something going on. Perhaps it was just something where the presidential retinue is too big of a [6:53] footprint at what has been described as a relatively small wedding. We don't know the answer yet. I [6:58] suspect by Monday, we'll have a better view and hopefully he sends a gift. [7:02] Don Jr. Undoubtedly hoping that is well. All right. Garrett Haig, thanks for starting us off. [7:09] Really appreciate it. Ryan, let me turn to you, because you and I were on the air yesterday, [7:13] really just moments after Republicans had broken for recess without voting on this reconciliation [7:18] bill, which would have included funding not just for the ballroom, but also this so-called [7:23] anti-weaponization fund, which so many Republicans have referred to as a slush fund. [7:27] You said something really important. You said you thought it could potentially be a turning point, [7:33] a sign that things were shifting on Capitol Hill. How are you viewing it today? Do you think this [7:37] could last when they get back from recess? If anything, I think that that meeting was even [7:42] worse than what we thought yesterday in the moments after. You'll remember, Kristen, what I told you [7:46] yesterday was that nobody wanted to talk about it, uncharacteristically so, almost everyone saying no [7:51] comment. Well, now some of these senators are either talking to us off the record or on background, [7:55] or some are just volunteering the information on their own. Ted Cruz on his own podcast described [8:01] it as fireworks at an epic level. He said he's never been in a meeting that was as fiery as this [8:07] one. He says fiery didn't even cut it. He said that they were screaming at the acting attorney general [8:11] over it. And Ted Cruz also said that if Democrats had put amendments up around this weaponization bill, [8:18] if it had gone to a voterama in the reconciliation, that as many as 26 Republicans would have voted for [8:25] it. So that gives you an indication of how many Republicans were willing to break with the [8:29] president as a result of it. Among them, Mitch McConnell, who put out this statement afterwards. [8:34] We don't really hear that much from Mitch McConnell anymore. He said, [8:36] So the nation's top law enforcement official is asking for a slush fund to pay people who assault [8:42] cops. Utterly stupid, morally wrong. Take your pick. So yeah, this very much appears to be a [8:50] turning point. The question is, how much of a turn are we going to make and will it last? [8:54] Well, and to your point, Mitch McConnell chooses his words very carefully. So those words carry an immense [9:01] amount of weight. Ryan, what do you anticipate happening when lawmakers come back from recess? [9:06] Are we still going to see these tensions around? Well, this is the worst possible place for Donald [9:10] Trump to be. As Garrett rightfully points out, this is his mess to clean up. And what he never does [9:17] is ask for an apology or say that he made a mistake or try and fix it. So he's going to have to find some [9:24] sort of graceful exit ramp that is something that Senate Republicans are willing to go along with that [9:30] at the same time. Does it make it look like he's giving something up? And his posture today seemed [9:35] to be doubling down on this weaponization fund, claiming that it was necessary. It's to the point [9:39] now where Senate Republicans are not going to budge on this. And I can't imagine even a seven day [9:45] recess away from Washington is going to change that at all. So they're at a major impasse here. [9:51] And it's really the president's decision as to whether or not this is going to move forward. [9:54] Because the thing to keep in mind, what's at issue right now is this DHS and CBP funding. [9:59] Most of that has been taken care of in the big, beautiful bill. This is to extend the funding [10:04] through the balance of the Trump administration. That's not an urgent need for Senate Republicans. [10:07] It's an urgent need for Donald Trump. So if he wants to fix this, he needs to fix the weaponization [10:12] fund first. Well, it's going to be fascinating to see how it plays out, not to mention what they hear [10:16] from their constituents when they're back at home. We know Republican Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, [10:21] Democrat Tom Swasey, co-authoring a bill that would effectively ban any funds from going to this [10:27] anti-weaponization fund. Do you see that going anywhere, Ryan? [10:30] So this is the wild card, right? Because I'm sure that House Republican leadership has no interest [10:36] in bringing a bill like this to the floor. But what we have seen is that the discharge petition, [10:41] which was kind of a West Wing TV show fantasy procedural move that never really existed in [10:48] Washington up until this year, has been a pretty effective procedural step that rank and file [10:54] members of Congress have used. That's how the Epstein Files Transparency Act came to be. So is there [11:00] the possibility that Brian Fitzpatrick, who's already a Republican, can get a couple more Republicans [11:04] on board with the discharge petition and there's real momentum behind this? I think that's something [11:08] to watch for when they come back. All right. Well, we will indeed. Ryan Nobles, thank you so much. [11:13] Great to have you here. All right, Sahil, let me turn to you. You were at the event with Mike Lawler. [11:17] You spoke with Congressman Mike Lawler a short time ago. What did he tell you were his key [11:22] takeaways so far from the president's visit? That's right, Kristen. President Trump is still [11:28] speaking right behind me. So bear with me if it's a little bit loud. But yes, I did speak with [11:32] Congressman Mike Lawler, who's facing quite a high wire act, a difficult challenge to win [11:37] reelection here in this very hotly competitive swing district. He will be dragged down by President [11:45] Trump's declining approval ratings like every other Republican. But he recognizes that [11:49] there's no path to victory without winning over solid Trump voters, without winning over [11:53] MAGA voters like those in this room who are still very supportive of Trump. He needs to [11:57] turn them out. I asked him what he makes of the president's support rallying here with [12:02] him. Take a listen to what Congressman Lawler said. [12:03] I think, as I was just saying, having the president of the United States come to your district is [12:11] a wonderful opportunity for the community, no matter who the president was. And just like [12:15] when Joe Biden showed up three years ago, I was there. And when Donald Trump's coming, I'm here. Because [12:22] that is the job. You are expected to engage on these issues and talk to the president and your colleagues in [12:31] government. If you can't do that, if you can't engage constructively, then how do you expect to get [12:36] anything done? Now on stage behind me, when Mike Lawler spoke just a little bit ago, he joked that [12:43] he got he gets called MAGA Mike by Democrats and he gets called a traitorous rhino by some [12:48] Republicans trying to position himself as a Trump supporter who's occasionally willing to break with [12:52] Trump. The national environment, Kristen, a New York Times-Siena poll found that Trump's approval [12:57] rating nationally is 37 percent. But among Republicans, it's 82 percent. So he still needs to turn them out [13:03] or there's no reelection path for him. Now, lastly, I'm here in Rockland County. This is the red part [13:09] of the district that Mike Lawler won by double digits. It's the reason he's a congressman. Across [13:13] the Hudson River from me is Westchester County, the blue part of the district that he lost by double [13:17] digits. So that's the balance he's got to strike if he's if he is to win reelection here. [13:21] All right. Sahil, thank you so much for bringing us those statements from Mike Lawler and that great [13:28] reporting. We really appreciate it. Ali, let me turn to you now. Let's talk about the big news in the world. [13:33] of the economy today. President Trump swore on his new Fed chair, Kevin Warsh, and encouraged him to [13:39] be independent. Take a look. I want Kevin to be totally independent. I want him to be independent [13:47] and just do a great job. Don't look at me. Don't look at anybody. Just do your own thing and do a [13:52] great job. What was the reaction to the president's remarks given his previous attacks, quite frankly, [14:02] on Fed chair Jerome Powell? Yeah, there's clearly a lot of tension there considering President Trump's [14:07] relationship to the Fed and Jerome Powell, like you said, over the fact that he did not cut interest [14:12] rates fast enough, at least to the president's liking here. But the timing here is important [14:16] because Warsh is entering a very different economy than many expected even a few months ago. Inflation [14:22] has reaccelerated due to a lot of these energy shocks tied to the Iran war. And even some Trump [14:27] appointed Fed officials are now saying that rate cuts might not come anytime soon. So this felt like [14:33] Trump trying to thread the needle a little bit, publicly acknowledging the need for Fed [14:38] independence, which we know is important to the general public, while also distancing himself a [14:43] little bit when it comes to any potential changes we could see down the line, whether it's interest [14:48] rate hikes or interest rates staying higher for longer, which we know from an affordability standpoint [14:53] would be an issue for many Americans out there, Kristen. So let me ask you and follow up with you on that [14:58] exact point, because Fed Governor Christopher Waller, who President Trump did nominate to [15:03] the Board of Governors during his first term, actually hinted at a rate hike in the near future. [15:08] This is what he said, Ali. He said, quote, I can no longer rule out rate hikes further down the road [15:14] if inflation does not abate soon. Should people be bracing for a potential hike? [15:20] Well, it's too soon to say whether rate hikes are coming in the imminent future. However, [15:25] the fact that Chris Waller even brought this up really sticks out to me, because inflation right [15:31] now is hovering at 3.8 percent. Remember, the Fed's target is closer to 2 percent. So if we don't see [15:38] the Strait of Hormuz reopen, if we don't see inflation come down over the next few months, [15:43] there will be a real need to keep interest rates higher for longer or perhaps see some of those rate [15:49] hikes. And we're starting to see those energy shocks ripple through the entire economy. You look at [15:55] gas prices, for example. They're up over 50 percent. And of course, it's not just contained [15:59] to gas prices. Also, airline costs, fuel, fertilizer. Really, across the board here, [16:04] you're seeing a lot of these pricing pressures. And Ali, before I let you go, [16:08] we know consumer sentiment has actually fallen to a new low. That's according to a University of [16:13] Michigan study. What exactly is fueling Americans' concerns? And what does that new low mean, [16:20] broadly speaking? It's all about that cost of living, particularly around gas prices. And what [16:26] stood out to me is that lower-income Americans and those without a college degree, they're seeing [16:32] sentiment levels plunge. And they're more susceptible to higher gas prices and higher grocery prices. [16:37] Another thing that stood out, inflation expectations are moving higher. That's important, [16:43] because if Americans think prices are going to keep going up and up, they're going to pull back spending. [16:48] They're going to delay those big purchases. And they're going to feel more anxiety around their [16:52] current financial situation. And that could eventually hit economic growth. So just a lot [16:58] of things for the consumers to look out for here. All right, Ali Canal, thank you so much for all [17:02] the great information. We really appreciate it. I hope you have a really wonderful holiday weekend. [17:06] Thank you for being here. [17:08] We thank you for watching. And remember, stay updated on breaking news and top stories on the NBC News app [17:13] or watch live on our YouTube channel.