Donald Trump took out his ire on a hit list of targets in a barrage of outbursts at the White House on Tuesday.
The angry president threatened a reporter, mixed up JD Vance’s name, and complained that Russia messed up its invasion of Ukraine during his unhinged rant while introducing a whistleblower program giving a one percent commission to people who turn others in for fraud.
In one bizarre turn, Trump appeared to take umbrage at a “stupid” Russian general for a blunder that prevented Putin’s forces from successfully invading Ukraine in a day.
He said that Russia had 1000 tanks driving up a concrete highway and should have been in Ukraine in four hours.
“The war would have been over in one day,” Trump said. But he said the unnamed general, “who probably isn’t with us any more,” then “decided to hang a right onto the farmland and then take a left to Kyiv,” and got tanks stuck in the mud instead of staying on the highway and conquering the Ukrainian capital.
Trump went on to blast Volodymyr Zelensky for not making a peace deal, referring to the infamous Oval Office meeting when the president and Vance attempted to humiliate the Ukrainian leader.
“We have given enormous amounts to Ukraine, possibly more to Ukraine than anybody over the years ... and we got nothing back,” he added.
Joe Biden, Ilhan Omar, Spain, France—and all of Europe—were among the usual targets Trump lambasted on a day the president’s net approval was said to be the lowest since 1938.
Trump, 80, allowed his irritation to bubble over at a male journalist, The Independent’s Andrew Feinberg, pointing at him after he tried to follow up a question and threatening: “Hey! I don’t know who the hell you are, but you better be careful.”
“What’s wrong with you? Are you a sick person?” he added later. “Not that I know of, sir,” replied Feinberg.
“I actually think there’s something wrong with you,” said Trump.
Trump also silenced a female journalist, telling her to “wait.”
Trump showed a moment of confusion, referring to JD Vance as “JT,” and refused to endorse his No. 2 as his 2028 heir the day after the vice president said he believed he would have the president’s backing.
“He’s a very talented person, and he’s a very good person,” was as far as Trump would go with Vance standing behind him in the Oval Office.
Europe took the brunt of his criticism over immigration policies.
“Europe has to straighten out their act... You are not going to have a Europe soon if they keep going,” he said.
“It’s an immigration problem. People poured into France. These are people who hate France,” he added, saying that 100,000 people “bum-rushed” into Spain and they did nothing about it.
Trump went on to call Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar a “disgrace to our country” and launched another attack on Somalia and Somalians living in the U.S.
“I hope they treat her fairly, but I think she is a very dishonest person,” he said.
