After Nancy Pelosi opted yesterday to un-invite Trump to give a State of The Union speech because of the shutdown, Trump responded just now with this:
Hah! That’ll show her!
I triple-dog cancel your trip https://t.co/7bzgwNe2uF
— Michael Bitzer (@BowTiePolitics) January 17, 2019
He’s capitalizing shutdown in official letters. As well as “Southern Border Security”.
Congresspeople use Air Force aircraft for those trips. Pelosi was supposed to leave in a government plane this afternoon, source confirms.
White House official says Speaker Pelosi and delegation were set to use military aircraft for foreign trip, which allowed the president to halt the movement.
The letter also reveals travel plans, including a visit to a war zone, for person who is second in line to presidency.
I am pretty curious about whether the White House talked with the Pentagon before doing this publicly, and what those conversations were like. I'm sure that'll leak quickly.
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) January 17, 2019
The point, as ever, was to try and show Pelosi that she needs him. But the thing is: she actually doesn’t.
It’s not the “own” that Trump thinks it is.
Rep. Dan Kildee on Trump's letter to Pelosi: "This is the president essentially being a man-baby all over again." @MSNBC
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) January 17, 2019
Does this apply to Nancy, or the whole delegation? Looks like the whole delegation.
Sarah Sanders tells reporters all CODELs are postponed. Asked about Davos and whether admin officials will still be going, she said they are still working on that.
— Tarini Parti (@tparti) January 17, 2019
That means “it didn’t occur to us” (CODEL, by the way, means “Congressional delegation”)
UPDATE: A White House official tells @NBCNews Secretary Mnuchin will lead a delegation to Davos, as planned. https://t.co/J5ux7R7qBs
— David Gura (@davidgura) January 17, 2019
So it IS pettiness. Not sure how this makes Nancy Pelosi look bad… or brings her to the table.
Hey, look. Graham is growing a pair.
.@LindseyGrahamSC says it's "inappropriate" for @realDonaldTrump to deny military travel to @SpeakerPelosi to visit US troops and allies abroad. pic.twitter.com/SFQo9PAd6q
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) January 17, 2019
Pelosi’s deputy chief of staff, Drew Hammill, responds via Twitter:
The CODEL to Afghanistan included a required stop in Brussels for pilot rest. In Brussels, the delegation was scheduled to meet with top NATO commanders, U.S. military leaders and key allies–to affirm the United States’ ironclad commitment to the NATO alliance.
This weekend visit to Afghanistan did not include a stop in Egypt.
The purpose of the trip was to express appreciation & thanks to our men & women in uniform for their service & dedication, & to obtain critical national security & intelligence briefings from those on the front lines.
The President traveled to Iraq during the Trump Shutdown as did a Republican CODEL led by Rep. Zeldin.
Hi, THIS is rich….
A WH official has told the WH pool that Trump's move is "not a response" to Pelosi. Fact check: Yeah right.
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) January 17, 2019
But….
WH officials, including Mulvaney, began discussing canceling Pelosi’s trip this a.m., two people said. They felt caught off guard by her letter and POTUS has been frustrated by coverage, asking why it looked like Dems had upper hand. Aides agreed this was the perfect response.
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) January 17, 2019
A ton of logistical & security prep goes into these things; a lot of generals and other senior officials has doubtless taken pains to arrange their schedules around this trip for the next 4-5 days. Wasted effort now.
— Julian Sanchez (@normative) January 17, 2019