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MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell called President Donald Trump’s joint press conference with billionaire Elon Musk the “most powerless image ever” of a U.S. president, and The New Abnormal co-hosts Andy Levy and Danielle Moodie believe it’s only the beginning as American democracy undergoes a drastic makeover under the Trump administration.
On The Last Word, O’Donnell further put the viral significance of the presser into context, adding
“Mike Pence never had a day like that in the Oval Office with Donald Trump. JD Vance will never have a day like that in the Oval Office with Donald Trump, because Donald Trump is the boss of JD Vance.”
He added, “We have no idea how dependent Donald Trump is on Elon Musk. There will probably never be a way of knowing.”
Moodie called the presser a preview for what democracy looks like in America as Musk makes himself at home in the White House.
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“It looks like the president of the United States slumped over like a puppet while his master does the talking,” said Moodie. “That’s all I kept thinking about, as I was watching the video over and over again, is just Donald Trump slumped over the Resolute Desk, mute, as this unelected stands in the Oval Office and tells the rest of us what we voted for; knowing good God damn well we didn’t vote for him.”
Plus! Author Katherine Stewart discusses her new book, Money, Lies, and God: Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy, the rise of extremist religiosity and a turn away from democracy.
