Former President Donald Trump sat down for an interview last night with Fox News’s Bret Baier, and as one might expect, the interview was popcorn-worthy.
Trump, if nothing else, was consistent – speaking in ways that seemed to cut against his own interests, getting combative with Baier, claiming victimhood.
The most significant takeaway from the interview was that Trump addressed the federal charges against him more precisely than ever before.
Donald Trump addresses documents charges
“Before I send boxes over,” Trump said, “I have to take all of my things out. These boxes were interspersed with all sorts of things. I was very busy, as you’ve sort of seen.”
If I were Trump’s counsel, I would advise the former president to please stop talking.
The implication in Trump’s statement is that he did not comply with government demands to return classified documents.
And while I’m not an expert on the nuances of the law at play here, I’ve got a feeling that being too busy, or having personal items interspersed with classified materials, will not fly as a defense.
So, like I was saying, Trump should do himself a favor and stop talking about the charges and his conduct related to the charges.
“The comments from Trump are an admission that he did not move to satisfy the federal government’s demands that he comply with their request to hand over the documents,” POLITICO reported. “Pressed by Baier, Trump did not deny that he told his lawyers to say he fully complied with the subpoena when he hadn’t. Instead, he said once more that he needed time to sort through the boxes to take out personal items like “golf shirts, clothing, pants, shoes.””
That sounds like a losing argument.
Other notables from the interview
True to form, Trump also claimed to have won the 2020 election.
“First of all, I won in 2020 by a lot,” Trump said when he was asked how he might attract independent voters in 2024.
Baier, to his credit, pushed back. “You lost the 2020 election.” Which is true, of course. Trump finished a full seven million votes behind President Joe Biden in 2020
Trump also criticized his hosts, Fox News, when
Baier claimed that “more independent voters watch Fox Nes than any other TV source.”
Trump responded, “a lot less than they used to watch it.”
Later in the interview, Trump said “I’m not great fan of Fox.”
“You’re sitting here,” Bauer said.
“Well, you gotta get your word out somehow, right?” Trump answered.
Donald Trump doesn’t always help himself
Trump has some well-honed political instincts; some credit must be paid to someone who upended American politics so drastically – he recognized unaddressed wants and needs amongst the American populace, and he provided.
But Trump’s practical instincts don’t seem very sharp. For example in the lead up to an election where the eventual winner will need to court independent voters in increasingly important swing states, Trump is still claiming that he won in 2020 – a claim that is not attractive to moderates who have long since accepted that Biden legitimately won the 2020 election.
Then, of course, with respect to the federal charges, Trump is adlibbing a moronic defense about not having enough time to comply.
If Trump wants to critique the nature of the charges he could emphasize that classified documents are an administrative issue, not a criminal issue.
There’s a sound argument there. But Trump will be Trump and Trump goes on national television and hurts Trump.
Harrison Kass is the Senior Editor and opinion writer at 19FortyFive. An attorney, pilot, guitarist, and minor pro hockey player, Harrison joined the US Air Force as a Pilot Trainee but was medically discharged. Harrison holds a BA from Lake Forest College, a JD from the University of Oregon, and an MA from New York University. Harrison listens to Dokken.
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