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WASHINGTON (AP) – The counter-puncher has collapsed.
President Donald Trump's decision to postpone his speech on the state of the Union under pressure from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi surprised the allies, contradicting key collaborators working on a alternative speech. plan and let Washington try to determine if that meant Trump's new willingness to enter into an agreement to reopen the government.
"Well, that's really his choice," Trump said Thursday, recognizing that Pelosi had the advantage over his presence on his return. planning the traditional presidential speech in Congress. The speaker had clarified that Trump could not deliver his speech if he was not waiting for the reopening of the government.
So, Trump, who is reluctant to show any sign of weakness, made a very unusual turn and pointed it out. the importance that the president attaches to the type of symbolism and pageantry associated with a speech from the rostrum of the House.
The Chair concluded that there was no viable alternative that could match the gravity of the traditional speech about the state of the Union, which brought together the three branches of government under one roof, attracting the largest TV audience of the president this year. An alternative speech or rally would also have been difficult to sell for television networks, who had spoken earlier this month for broadcasting the Oval Office speech in prime time of the president in which he had largely rephrased his case for a wall on the southern border.
"I would have done it in a different place, but I think it would be very disrespectful to the state of the Union," Trump said Thursday. "I could have gone to a large auditorium and gathered 25,000 people in one day and you went there several times. But I think that would be very disrespectful to the State of the Union. "
Trump went so far as to praise Pelosi's gesture as" really reasonable "- although he had just denigrated it a day earlier.
The overthrow surprised those who had known Trump for years.
Throughout his presidency, Trump loved his negotiating style of not taking – prisoners – going to speak out against North Korea to impose tariffs on allies. he always stumbled on his heels, refusing to admit mistakes and insisting that he will not agree to a budget deal not including money for his promised border wall
"No one has ever seen it do such a thing … concession in public," said former campaign advisor Sam Nunberg. "The only thing I can think of, is that it's a good thing. is that he would not like the optics of not giving it to the House. "
Until Wednesday apr s afternoon, officials were busy discussing the places of & # 39; emergency, including a rassemblement- style event, an Oval Office address, a speech in the Senate chamber and even a visit to a border state.
"We always like to have a plan B," said White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders,
. ] But White House officials were caught off guard when Pelosi announced that she would prevent Trump from speaking until the end of the shutdown. In fact, at least some seemed to ignore the rules specifying that the House and Senate should adopt a concurrent resolution formally inviting the Speaker to speak at a joint sitting.
Late Wednesday, Trump had announced by tweet that he would postpone the speech "because No place can compete with the history, tradition and importance of the House.
"This is a stage that no modern president wants to leave," said Donald Ritchie, a former Senate historian. "I can understand why the President decided to wait for the reopening of the chamber to be able to enter."
On the program "Trump Friendship", "Fox and Friends", the co- presenter Brian Kilmeade applauded the move. 19659011] "I really respect the President's decision to maintain a kind of tradition and a semblance of order. So I think it's a good thing to do and hopefully it puts more pressure on all parties to get something done, "said Kilmeade.
The decision was taken several hours before the Senate vote – and was unsuccessful – ending the bills duel the closure.And this raised questions about the future of Trump's evolving strategy in the fight against the budget.Friday, Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will miss another paycheck and polls have shown that a majority of voters blame the president for the mess.
Some feared that the conflict would worsen relations between Trump and Pelosi, which have not yet been discussed in weeks, but former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich, informal adviser to the president, argued that this could be a positive step. [19659002]"I suppose that it's an effort on his part to signal that he's ready to be reasonable and find a way to get along. And now, we'll see if Pelosi will come back and also be reasonable, "said Gingrich. "In granting him, I think he is preparing the ground," he said.
If that is the case, it would be a remarkable new approach for the president, said Trump biographer Michael D'Antonio. He said that in Trump's life before politics, he never backed down, choosing instead to hijack, blame others or simply declare himself a success even though he was not, insisting on example on the fact that the show The Apprentice was a success even when he was lagging in the ratings and qualify his bankruptcies as intelligent legal maneuvers.
"The President's decision to postpone the State of the Union speech is a moment of unprecedented realism in the life of a man who has always presented himself as a fantastic figure who always wins at everything, "said Antonio, the author of" The Trump Truth. "
" For him to freeze against a challenge from an opponent, and a not less, is truly a historical event. "
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Associated Press editors David Bauder and Kevin Freking contributed to this report.
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