Trump's interview with Tucker Carlson had some fascinating revelations
On Tuesday night, Tucker Carlson dedicated his entire program to an interview with Donald Trump. Despite six years of non-stop persecution, including two years of dealing with the fallout from a gamed election and a recent arrest, Trump looked unchanged. He hadn't aged a bit, and he was every bit as vibrant and on-the-ball as ever. His communication style hadn't changed, either: discursive and repetitive, but also insightful and showing his intelligence, humanism, and ego. In addition, the interview contained some serious bombshells on everything from the mundane to the existential.
At the mundane, personal level was Trump's observation that his arrest was, in its own way, a moving and uplifting experience, thanks to the warmth he received from the everyday New York citizens who dealt with him during the booking process.
At the existential level, Trump explained that the risk of nuclear war that we are facing thanks to Joe Biden's fecklessness is unlike anything Americans can imagine. We still have in mind Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but the current nuclear arsenal in American and Russian hands can destroy cities with something much smaller than a suitcase:
Trump: "Nobody talks about nuclear ... the biggest problem we have in the whole world. It's not global warming, it's nuclear warming, and all it takes is one madman..." pic.twitter.com/VqeqzkilSX
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) April 12, 2023
Trump also noted the terrible toll Biden's Ukraine war has taken on America's arsenal. He stated (accurately) that he replenished badly depleted military supplies during his term in office. However, thanks to Biden's obsession with Ukraine, none of that is left. While Russia is busy making bullets, we have empty storehouses:
President Trump: "We're not prepared to fight. I rebuilt our military—new planes, new tanks, new everything. They've taken the military that I've rebuilt, and they've given it all to Ukraine." pic.twitter.com/f1gRXS94in
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) April 12, 2023
And speaking of the military, Trump was savage about Biden's chaotic, dangerous, and wasteful withdrawal from Afghanistan. Trump agreed with the necessity of withdrawal and said that he had a plan in place that would have been organized, efficient, and safe. It would have protected civilians, American citizens, and the military. He also said Milley was willing to leave American equipment behind because it would be too expensive to remove a $100-million aircraft!
President Trump SLAMS Joe Biden's shameful Afghanistan withdrawal: "These are idiots we're dealing with. They left $85 billion worth of equipment. They left our American citizens behind...We didn't have one soldier killed in 18 months." pic.twitter.com/4RThDiszpz
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) April 12, 2023
Another interesting point Trump made was that he had extremely good relationships with the world's dictators. They liked and respected one another, but he always made it absolutely clear that if they strayed so much as an inch beyond the lines he'd drawn, he would destroy them. He spoke especially well of Xi Jinping, a man he says is exceptionally talented and focused.
🇺🇸🇨🇳🇷🇺🇰🇵 President Donald Trump says to Tucker Carlson that [Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, & Kim Jong-un are]“Top of the line.” & “Very smart.”
— BH Times рџ‡·рџ‡єрџ‡рџ‡№ (@BlkHmmrTimes) April 12, 2023
Trump praises the Chinese, Russian, & North Korean systems for producing REAL leaders!
What do you think of them vs. AOC & Sleepy Joe? pic.twitter.com/J0GfTz3XPL
By contrast, earlier in the interview, Trump had slammed Joe Biden, saying that the problem isn't Joe's age — older men are in great shape — but it's simply that Joe, never the brightest bulb, has declined even more:
BREAKING: Trump tells Tucker he doesn't think Biden will make it through to a 2024 campaign pic.twitter.com/wIfMlysa9l
— Jack Poso рџ‡єрџ‡ё (@JackPosobiec) April 11, 2023
And in the best line of the moment, Trump managed to slap both Biden, for his terrible policies, and Macron for being, well, Macron:
Trump slams Macron for giving China soft greenlight to invade Taiwan: "Macron, who's a friend of mine, is over with China kissing [Xi Jinping's] ass in China." pic.twitter.com/mddP4bYHZ4
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) April 12, 2023
Now, that is classic Trump!
Overall, I found irritating the same things I always find irritating: the endless repetition and the post-nasal-drip sniffing. However, my dominant impression was that this man is an intelligent, self-confident dynamo and that the world would be in much better shape — and America would be a confident, powerful, affluent nation — if Trump were still in the White House.
When it comes to the 2024 election, we Republicans have an embarrassment of riches: Trump, DeSantis, and Ramaswamy are the most notable, but other competent, intelligent people are following closely behind. I'm not tipping my hand as to the person for whom I'll vote in the primaries, but I can assure you of one thing: whoever wins in the primaries is the person for whom I'll vote in the national election. Nothing will more surely result in a Democrat victory than voters whose candidate lost the primaries than refusing to vote for the ultimate Republican candidate in November.