President Donald Trump launched into a bizarre, stream-of-consciousness monologue to open a televised Cabinet meeting at the White House, which lasted for an astonishing 3 hours and 16 minutes.
During the meeting, Trump veered into an awkward “bit” when discussing appearances in politics. He joked about not being able to compliment Attorney General Pam Bondi’s looks without risking his political career.
“I look at Pam. I would never say she’s beautiful, because that’s gonna be the end of my political career,” he quipped. After the awkward remark, Trump continued speaking without interruption, jumping from topic to topic as Cabinet members occasionally laughed at his remarks.
At one point, he appeared to confuse pharmaceutical companies Eli Lilly and Johnson & Johnson while claiming to have reduced prescription drug prices by 1,500 percent. Trump also mentioned that he had only been working in his second term for a few months, as he had to first focus on redecorating the Oval Office.
He later declared plans to impose a “very substantial” tariff on furniture. The President also gave an unconventional explanation of artificial intelligence while praising his wife, Melania, for announcing a new initiative for children.
“This is the new internet, the new computer, the new television, the new everything all put together in one,” he explained. Flanked by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, Trump spent over 48 minutes addressing a wide range of topics, including fuel and egg prices, Mark Zuckerberg’s data center in Louisiana, California’s water supply, the cost of pharmaceutical drugs, his disdain for windmills, the “fake” media, and his desire to expand the military’s role in U.S. cities like Baltimore and Chicago. He also reiterated his plan to reinstate the death penalty in Washington, D.C.
Trump took a moment to criticize Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, commenting on his age, saying Schumer looked like he was 100 years old. Perhaps the only issue Trump didn’t address was his own health, despite visible bruises on his hands and his “cankles.”
As usual, Trump focused his criticism on rivals like Joe Biden, California Governor Gavin Newsom, Maryland Governor Wes Moore, and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker. “I’m willing to go to Chicago, which has big trouble, but we have a governor who refuses to admit he has problems,” Trump said about Pritzker.
Trump also praised his allies Rubio and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Rubio, in particular, was awkwardly complimented by Trump, who said, “Marco has been really—I think you’re born for this job. I don’t think you should ever run for another office, actually.”
Trump then launched into his usual rhetoric about crime in D.C., confusingly stating, “The line is that I’m a dictator, but I stop crime.” He added, “A lot of people say, ‘You know, if that’s the case, I’d rather have a dictator.’ But I’m not a dictator. I just know how to stop crime.”
The meeting continued with Trump bragging about the country’s wealth and making offhand comments about Russia and the peace talks. Trump’s Cabinet seemed to hang on every word, with Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer taking the prize for praise, boasting about a banner of the President’s face outside her department’s headquarters.
“Mr. President,” she said, “I invite you to see your big, beautiful face on a banner in front of the Department of Labor, because you are really the transformational president of the American worker.”