November 7, 2018

Donald Trump’s First Post-Election Press Conference Was a Complete Disaster

He threatened Dems, sparred with reporters, and called out Republican losers.

In his first public remarks after Tuesday’s midterm elections, President Donald Trump appeared notably despondent, at times sparring with reporters over a range of questions, including Democrats’ new power in the Lower Chamber to investigate his administration. 

Though he made a point of expressing a desire to work across the aisle legislatively, Trump also directly threatened Democrats with retaliatory measures if they opened investigations into his doings. “They can play that game, but we can play it better,” he said. 

The threat came as Democrats, once they take control of the House of Representatives, are likely to launch probes into a wide range of scandals they have long sought information about—topics might include Trump’s personal finances, his much-maligned Puerto Rico hurricane response, and nepotism in the White House.

Trump also repeatedly asserted on Wednesday that Republican candidates who lost on Tuesday were at fault, at least in part, because they had declined to publicly “embrace” him. This suggestion was a continuation of Trump’s long-held framing of the midterms as a referendum on him personally. In one particularly strange part of his speech, Trump read from a list of losing GOP candidates. 

“Too bad Mike,” he said referring to Rep. Mike Coffman’s failed reelection bid.

Speaking on Rep. Mia Love’s loss, Trump claimed the Utah congressman “gave me no love.” “Too bad.”

Rep. Ryan Costello, who announced in March that he would not run for reelection, slammed Trump for blaming Republicans who, like him, chose to retire or distance themselves from the president.

In other tense moments, Trump attacked reporters in the room, labeling the media with his signature motto, “the enemy of the people.” When one reporter asked about Trump’s self-identification as a “nationalist,” the president cut her off and labeled her question “racist.”

Listen to our journalists explain all the twists and turns of Election Day, and what comes next for America, on this special episode of the Mother Jones Podcast:

Take the next step: Help us fight for the truth.

Investigative journalism, like the story you just read, takes time to do. Months of research. Weeks of writing, editing, and fact checking—and putting together the photography, art, video, and audio that tell the stories in a new way, illuminating new perspectives and voices.

We can afford to take that time because we don’t report to an oligarch or corporation with a special agenda. We report to you, and for you. That’s why we unabashedly pursue the truth and relentlessly shine a light into the darkness.

In this month’s Summer Membership Drive, we’ve got to raise $200,000 to support more crucial investigations. This is a pivotal moment in our nation, with democracy on the line, and we can only do this work because readers like you step up. Every donation, of any amount, makes a difference here. We cannot do this work without you.

So, we’re asking: Will you support independent journalism that demands those in power answer for their actions?

Take the next step: Help us fight for the truth.

Investigative journalism, like the story you just read, takes time to do. Months of research. Weeks of writing, editing, and fact checking—and putting together the photography, art, video, and audio that tell the stories in a new way, illuminating new perspectives and voices

We can afford to take that time because we don’t report to an oligarch or corporation with a special agenda. We report to you, and for you. That’s why we unabashedly pursue the truth and relentlessly shine a light into the darkness.

In this month’s Summer Membership Drive, we’ve got to raise $200,000 to support more crucial investigations. This is a pivotal moment in our nation, with democracy on the line, and we can only do this work because readers like you step up. Every donation, of any amount, makes a difference here. We cannot do this work without you.

So, we’re asking: Will you support independent journalism that demands those in power answer for their actions?

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

INDEPENDENT. BECAUSE OF YOU.

Mother Jones has no billionaires calling the shots—just readers like you making fearless reporting possible

Donate