Presidential staffers always talk up their boss. Donald Trump isn’t shy to bragging about his own accomplishments, often to his own detriment. But the White House staff has recently taken things to an uncomfortable new level.
It’s starting to sound a lot like the propaganda more common in dictatorships.
Hope Hicks’ over-the-top statement on Trump’s “magnetic personality” got plenty of media attention.
President Trump has a magnetic personality and exudes positive energy, which is infectious to those around him. He has an unparalleled ability to communicate with people, whether he is speaking to a room of three or an arena of 30,000. He has built great relationships throughout his life and treats everyone with respect. He is brilliant with a great sense of humor … and an amazing ability to make people feel special and aspire to be more than even they thought possible.
Hicks’ remarks was meant to push back on a Washington Post story about White House staff being insulted, slighted, and otherwise treated disrespectfully by a petty Trump. The statement backfired on some networks, with CNN’s Don Lemon unable to burst into laughter while reading the quote.
Vice President Mike Pence is a reliable booster for his boss. He vouches Trump is a “man of his word and he’s a man of action,” and a “strong leader.” Asked to grade Trump he gave him “an A+ for effort and an A+ for results.”
Robert Lighthizer, newly sworn in as the United States Trade Representative, predicted that, “my grandchildren, who are here today, talk to their grandchildren, they will say that President Trump permanently reversed the dangerous trajectory of American trade, put America first, made our farmers, ranchers, and workers richer, and the country safer.”