PROMINENT Republicans insist on treating President Donald Trump like a child or a clueless old man, telling Americans that he does not mean what he says — despitePROMINENT Republicans insist on treating President Donald Trump like a child or a clueless old man, telling Americans that he does not mean what he says — despite

The dubious art of explaining what Trump ‘really means’

2026/01/15 00:02
Okuma süresi: 5 dk

By David M. Drucker

PROMINENT Republicans insist on treating President Donald Trump like a child or a clueless old man, telling Americans that he does not mean what he says — despite the commander in chief making quite clear he means exactly that.

Trump’s threat to use military force to seize Greenland from Denmark, a US ally via the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is a recent example. “I don’t think it’s a threat,” Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama told The Bulwark. “I think it’s a promise that we’ll offer some money for it.” Senator John Kennedy offered his own, colorful reimagining of the president’s saber rattling. “Even a modestly intelligent ninth grader knows that to invade Greenland would be weapons-grade stupid. Now, President Trump is not weapons-grade stupid,” the Louisiana Republican told CNN. Trump, Kennedy added, does “not plan to invade Greenland. That does not mean they’re not going to seek a legal, formal partnership with Greenland.”

Trump’s subsequent comments on the matter? All options are on the table, including a military invasion. “We are going to do something on Greenland whether they like it or not,” the president told reporters during a White House news conference last week. “If we don’t do it the easy way we’re going to do it the hard way.”

The phenomenon of redefining Trump’s rhetoric was somewhat understandable during his first presidency. He was new to elected office and still learning how the federal government operated. Although still somewhat infantilizing of a man who had reached high office, Republicans uncomfortable with the president’s rhetoric could theoretically make the case that Trump didn’t understand the implications of what he was saying, or of his policy proposals.

But as we head toward Year 2 of his second presidency, those excuses have worn thin. Trump has plenty of on-the-job experience and has demonstrated an understanding of executive power, so much so that he rejects most limits on it.

What gives? In my experience, it’s about political expediency. Republicans’ clumsy verbal cartwheels are obvious attempts to avoid publicly disagreeing with Trump while simultaneously attempting to avoid publicly agreeing with him.

It’s been more of the same regarding what’s next for Venezuela following an American military operation that led to the capture of dictator Nicolas Maduro and his wife and their arrest by federal law enforcement. During a Jan. 3 news conference , Trump, 79, said the US is “going to run” the South American nation “until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.”

The president elaborated under questioning by reporters, suggesting his declaration was hardly flippant. “It’s largely going to be, for a period of time, the people that are standing right behind me,” Trump said, when asked who inside the US government would be running Venezuela.

Flanking Trump on stage: Air Force General Dan Cain, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, among others.

Yet the very next day, Rubio revised his boss’ remarks. “What we are running is the direction that this is going to move, going forward. And that is, we have leverage. This leverage we are using and we intend to use,” the secretary said Jan. 4 in an interview on the ABC News public affairs program This Week. To be fair, Rubio’s argument wasn’t wholly inaccurate.

But: Want to guess what Trump said later that day when asked, during a gaggle with reporters on Air Force One , if Washington was running the show in Caracas? “Don’t ask me who’s in charge because I’ll give you an answer and it will be very controversial,” Trump said. When asked what he meant, the president was blunt: “It means we’re in charge. We’re in charge.”

Naturally, Trump’s unequivocal comments didn’t discourage Senator Jim Risch, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, from claiming the president’s rhetoric was equivocal. “I think that’s a matter of interpretation,” the Idaho Republican told NOTUS,  when asked what the commander in chief meant by repeatedly saying the US is “running” Venezuela.

Shawn J. Parry-Giles, a University of Maryland professor who studies political communication and rhetoric, explained the ongoing dilemma posed by Trump and his penchant for provocative rhetoric and proposals.

“His messaging puts members of his party in difficult positions. They manage the rhetorical and political messiness by providing different interpretations that reshape the message into one they can support that appears more reasoned and grounded in legal [and] political principles,” said Parry-Giles, director of the Rosenker Center for Political Communication and Civic Leadership . “This is also happening with members of his cabinet. They are trying to reshape his messages into something that would be more acceptable politically.”

They’re hoping to “send” Trump “a subtle message of how the president would better express his views,” she added, while maintaining a sense of decorum that the commander in chief does not. “He routinely flouts such decorous practices,” Parry-Giles said.

All true and all understandable.

But after all this time, it should be crystal clear to Republicans — on Capitol Hill and everywhere else — that Trump knows what he’s saying and knows what he’s doing (or what he wants to do.) When he speaks and when he acts, it’s with deliberate intent. Congressional Republicans who oppose an American invasion of Greenland might want to ponder that rather than soothe themselves with fantasies that Trump’s tough talk is about “leverage.”

BLOOMBERG OPINION

Piyasa Fırsatı
LiveArt Logosu
LiveArt Fiyatı(ART)
$0.0004588
$0.0004588$0.0004588
-0.10%
USD
LiveArt (ART) Canlı Fiyat Grafiği
Sorumluluk Reddi: Bu sitede yeniden yayınlanan makaleler, halka açık platformlardan alınmıştır ve yalnızca bilgilendirme amaçlıdır. MEXC'nin görüşlerini yansıtmayabilir. Tüm hakları telif sahiplerine aittir. Herhangi bir içeriğin üçüncü taraf haklarını ihlal ettiğini düşünüyorsanız, kaldırılması için lütfen service@support.mexc.com ile iletişime geçin. MEXC, içeriğin doğruluğu, eksiksizliği veya güncelliği konusunda hiçbir garanti vermez ve sağlanan bilgilere dayalı olarak alınan herhangi bir eylemden sorumlu değildir. İçerik, finansal, yasal veya diğer profesyonel tavsiye niteliğinde değildir ve MEXC tarafından bir tavsiye veya onay olarak değerlendirilmemelidir.

Ayrıca Şunları da Beğenebilirsiniz

Wormhole launches reserve tying protocol revenue to token

Wormhole launches reserve tying protocol revenue to token

The post Wormhole launches reserve tying protocol revenue to token appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Wormhole is changing how its W token works by creating a new reserve designed to hold value for the long term. Announced on Wednesday, the Wormhole Reserve will collect onchain and offchain revenues and other value generated across the protocol and its applications (including Portal) and accumulate them into W, locking the tokens within the reserve. The reserve is part of a broader update called W 2.0. Other changes include a 4% targeted base yield for tokenholders who stake and take part in governance. While staking rewards will vary, Wormhole said active users of ecosystem apps can earn boosted yields through features like Portal Earn. The team stressed that no new tokens are being minted; rewards come from existing supply and protocol revenues, keeping the cap fixed at 10 billion. Wormhole is also overhauling its token release schedule. Instead of releasing large amounts of W at once under the old “cliff” model, the network will shift to steady, bi-weekly unlocks starting October 3, 2025. The aim is to avoid sharp periods of selling pressure and create a more predictable environment for investors. Lockups for some groups, including validators and investors, will extend an additional six months, until October 2028. Core contributor tokens remain under longer contractual time locks. Wormhole launched in 2020 as a cross-chain bridge and now connects more than 40 blockchains. The W token powers governance and staking, with a capped supply of 10 billion. By redirecting fees and revenues into the new reserve, Wormhole is betting that its token can maintain value as demand for moving assets and data between chains grows. This is a developing story. This article was generated with the assistance of AI and reviewed by editor Jeffrey Albus before publication. Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters: Source: https://blockworks.co/news/wormhole-launches-reserve
Paylaş
BitcoinEthereumNews2025/09/18 01:55
Trump's Epstein confession revealed in newly surfaced FBI files: 'Everyone knows'

Trump's Epstein confession revealed in newly surfaced FBI files: 'Everyone knows'

An explosive new report has yet again undercut President Donald Trump's repeated denials that he knew of the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's crimes against
Paylaş
Rawstory2026/02/10 08:09
Trump sets a 15% growth target; Warsh's potential appointment as Fed head may increase pressure.

Trump sets a 15% growth target; Warsh's potential appointment as Fed head may increase pressure.

PANews reported on February 10th that, according to Jinshi, Trump stated that his nominee for Federal Reserve Chair could stimulate economic growth at a rate of
Paylaş
PANews2026/02/10 08:28