Trump falls back into harsh reality after royal treatment abroad

SHANNON, Ireland – He was treated to a royal show in London, an aerial tour of Normandy landings in France and a round of golf in his luxury hotel on the Irish coast. This is the return to reality for Donald Trump.

More and more political unrest will greet the president on his return to Washington, after five days in the United Kingdom and France, where he and his adult children had the chance to experience a series of complex cases. Mr. Trump's long trip abroad – one of the last he should do before launching his re-election campaign later this month – was seen as a resounding success by his associates.

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But the president was quick to refocus on special advocate Robert Mueller and his feud with President Nancy Pelosi as he closed his visit, tainting the cover's echo positive media that he had received for his speech on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of D-Day.

In a series of tweets in the early morning, Fox News' Sean Hannity called Mueller's report about the election meddling in Russia "pure crap politics" and said the report was "totally biased". His comments come just hours after being hailed, even by long-time critics, for the remarks he made in front of hundreds of World War II veterans gathered near the soldiers' cemetery. Americans at Omaha Beach.

"This is perhaps the most publicized moment of Donald Trump's presidency today … He stayed on the script, stayed on the message and, I think, took advantage of it," the journalist said. from CNN White House, Jim Acosta, following Trump's remarks.

Conservative commentator Bill Kristol, who actively sought a GOP candidate at Trump Primary in 2020, simply tweeted: "A good speech."

Such praise from Trump's critics is unlikely to last long.

Its recent threat to launch new tariffs on Mexico, unless the country strengthens its domestic immigration control measures, has caused an uproar over Capitol Hill, where Republicans continue to discuss ways to block the move . And when Trump said Thursday that it is considering raising tariffs on China by an additional $ 300 billion, Beijing has responded sharply.

"If the United States deliberately decides to raise tensions, we will fight to the end," Gao Feng, spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, told reporters Thursday.

Then Trump has a rapidly deteriorating relationship with Pelosi (D-Calif.), With whom the White House is supposed to work on a $ 2 trillion infrastructure plan.

Pelosi, who was in the crowd Thursday at the D-Day ceremony in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, told senior Democratic officials earlier this week that she preferred to see the president "in prison" rather than Accused. Pelosi's colleagues on the House Judiciary Committee further infuriated the President this week when President Jerry Nadler (DN.Y.) revealed that Trump's former director of communications, Hope Hicks, had partially defied the demand. of the White House to disregard a subpoena of the committee. on documents related to the 2016 presidential campaign.

This was the last setback for Trump as he and his associates attacked the barrage of surveillance and ethics investigations by House Democrats.

Trump appeared particularly stingy in an interview with Fox News' Laura Ingraham, recorded before the start of D-Day ceremonies but was not aired until Thursday night, after the president completed his public duties.

"I think she's a shame. I do not think she's a talented person, "said Trump about Pelosi. "I tried to be nice to her because I would have liked to do some business. She is unable to do business. It's a nasty, vindictive and horrible person.

It was a shocking contrast to the posture of Pelosi, who told the press in Normandy: "I'm not talking about the president while I'm out of the country."

Even before Trump left Europe, the reality of the political landscape in which he was returning announced: his first national security advisor, Michael Flynn, had brutally dismissed his entire legal team – the same group of Lawyers who had an advocacy agreement with Mueller in 2017 if Flynn agreed to cooperate with the special council and his team. The development took place while the audio had surfaced from a voice message that one of Trump's personal attorneys, John Dowd, had left for Flynn on the eve of his plea agreement. The voicemail, in which Dowd advised Flynn to leave the White House cordoned off throughout Mueller's investigation despite his co-operating witness stance, has been described as potentially incriminating by some legal experts.

The return to Trump's home marks the end of a trip that he describes as particularly memorable. At a bilateral meeting Thursday with French President Emmanuel Macron, Mr Trump called the morning ceremony a tribute to veterans of D-Day's "special day".

But it's his many interactions with Queen Elizabeth II in which Trump seems to marvel genuinely.

"I thought it was a really amazing time, especially after spending a lot of time with the queen, who I think is an incredible woman," he told a bursting laughter. "It was very interesting to talk to her, to be with her for so many hours. I feel that I know her so well and she knows me very well now. "

Trump brought his four grown children for the trip and was also joined by more than half a dozen members of his senior staff – who almost all attended the sumptuous banquet held at Buckingham Palace on Monday night, where they were sitting among members of the royal house and parliament.

A senior White House official said he was approached by several UK officials, who said they had rarely seen his majesty or his son, Prince Charles, so jovial with a foreign leader.

Trump himself took up that feeling when he spoke with Ingraham. "There are those who say that they have never seen the Queen have a better time, a more lively time," he said.

Some of Trump's remarks abroad have highlighted his tendency to make radical statements without first considering the consequences. At a press conference with British Prime Minister Theresa May, for example, Trump said that "everything" would be on the trading table after Brexit, raising fears of US interference in National Health Service (NHS) of the United Kingdom. And his verbal tirades against London Mayor Sadiq Khan were comparable to the way he treated political opponents in Washington.

At the end of the trip, however, Trump's aides and allies seemed to agree that the success of his visit could, in their view, alleviate some of the domestic problems he continues to face.

"According to Trump's standards, he did not behave particularly badly on this trip," said Amanda Sloat, a former state department official who covers European issues at the Brookings Institution. "He clearly appreciated the pump and the circumstances of this visit, which was more about the ceremony than the content."