Get 40% Off
🤯 This Tech Portfolio is up 29% YTD! Join Now to Get April’s Top PicksGet The Picks – Just 99 USD

Trump says he is 'comfortable' as president despite political battles

Published 15/10/2018, 03:14
Updated 15/10/2018, 03:20
© Reuters. U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a Make America Great Again rally in Richmond, Kentucky

© Reuters. U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a Make America Great Again rally in Richmond, Kentucky

By David Morgan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said in an interview broadcast on Sunday that he was "comfortable" in the White House after almost two years in office, despite political storms over immigration, tariffs and his nomination of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

"It was a little surreal to say I'm the president of the United States, but I think that's true with everybody," Trump told the CBS television news program "60 Minutes."

"Even my friends, they don't call me Donald, they call me Mr. President. And I say: 'Will you please loosen up?' I've learned on the job. I have."

"Now I very much feel like POTUS," Trump added, using the acronym for president of the United States.

The interview, in which Trump proved as eager as ever for verbal jousting on a range of issues, showed no sign he had any intention of abandoning his freewheeling, in-your-face persona as president.

Trump would not say whether he intended to return to the contentious policy of separating immigrant children from their families at the border, but gave no ground on what he saw as the need for tough policy.

"When you allow the parents to stay together, OK, when you allow that, then what happens is people are going to pour into our country," Trump said. "There have to be consequences ... for coming into our country illegally."

The family separations and the detention of thousands of children, mostly from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, prompted widespread condemnation of Trump’s policy. About 2,500 children and parents were separated before Trump abandoned the policy in June. Days later, a federal judge ordered the families reunited, a process that is still incomplete.

After a political brawl in the Senate over sexual misconduct allegations against his Supreme Court nominee Kavanaugh, Trump said his remarks at a Mississippi rally in which critics said he mocked accuser Christine Blasey Ford were necessary to win the confirmation fight.

"Had I not made that speech, we would not have won. I was just saying she didn't seem to know anything," Trump said. "And you're trying to destroy a life of a man who has been extraordinary."

He denied making fun of her, saying instead that he had treated her with respect.

"I'm not going to get into it because we won. It doesn't matter. We won," Trump said. Kavanaugh was confirmed by a 50-48 vote in the U.S. Senate earlier this month.

A New York businessman whose upset 2016 victory against Democrat Hillary Clinton sent shock waves across the political world, Trump said he had discovered that the Washington political scene was even tougher than the business world.

"Washington, D.C. is a vicious, vicious place: the attacks, the bad-mouthing, the speaking behind your back. But you know, and in my way, I feel very comfortable here," the president told CBS.

© Reuters. U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a Make America Great Again rally in Richmond, Kentucky

"I always used to say the toughest people are Manhattan real estate guys and blah, blah. Now I say they're babies."

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.