Trump's 43 Minutes: Strongman Narrative Out of Control, Media Battle Intensifies
Original Title: A16Z's Global Mission
Original Author: a16z
Translated by: Peggy
Editor's Note: This article records the entire process of Trump's reappearance after disappearing for over a week. Faced with questions about his health, Iran's military actions, and internal party rifts, he was supposed to use this reappearance to reaffirm his control. However, the entire speech kept deviating from the core issues: from the renovation of the National Plaza reflecting pool to comparing crowd sizes with Martin Luther King's rally, and then launching attacks on reporters, Democrats, and multiple American cities. The 43-minute briefing gradually turned into a resentful and unsettling political performance.
The article focuses on two main aspects. First, it exposes Trump's personal state and centralized power style. The author presents a picture of a president who is out of control, restless, and highly defensive through his insults to reporters, attacks on cities and political opponents, and the swift evacuation by staff after the abrupt end of the event. Second, it discusses the institutional changes surrounding Trump's administration. The article mentions that the executive orders he signed will weaken the job protections of senior federal employees, potentially leading to the replacement of more senior civil servants due to political positions or non-compliance. This signifies that professional judgment and institutional constraints within the government are being squeezed by a stronger logic of personal loyalty.
The latter part of the article further extends the discussion to the media. The author believes that Trump's attacks on CNN reporters and the crisis of editorial independence within mainstream media outlets like CBS demonstrate that American news organizations are facing dual pressures from political power and commercial interests. When mainstream media begins to compromise with power, independent journalists and creators become essential forces in upholding public facts. This is also why the author repeatedly calls for support for independent media.
This article carries a strong tone with a clear political stance and mobilization color, but the issues it raises are of practical significance: can the public still obtain sufficiently reliable information when power continues to attack journalists, weaken the civil service system, reward loyalty, and punish dissent? How long can news independence be maintained when the commercial interests of media institutions are intertwined with political pressure? Trump's reappearance provides a window for observation, reflecting the deepening institutional tensions in American politics: the expansion of personal power, the erosion of media trust, the pressure on the civil service system, and the ongoing shrinking of the public factual space.
The original text is as follows:
At 3:50 p.m. this afternoon, the President of the United States reappeared suddenly after disappearing from public view for over a week. Prior to this, he had not attended any public events since his visit to Walter Reed Medical Center. Now, as bad news continues to accumulate and questions about his deteriorating health increase, Donald Trump had to make an appearance. In 43 minutes, Trump and his supporters tried to present an image of a strong, in-control leader. However, what the world saw was a paranoid man: he praised an authoritarian leader as "my friend, a good person"; attacked a reporter as "a young, beautiful woman but never smiling," saying she "has hatred in her eyes"; all while desperately trying to maintain the illusion that everything is still under control.
It all began with what is currently President Trump's favorite project: a photo of the Reflecting Pool. Before signing any documents, answering any questions, the President took a few minutes to talk about the Reflecting Pool on the National Mall. He described its length, had staff bring in pictures to compare it to some of the tallest buildings in the world. He mentioned the Empire State Building, the World Trade Center, and the Sears Tower, as if a flat pool of water could stand as tall as a skyscraper. He told the cameras that this pool would turn into "American flag blue," and bragged about how many truckloads of garbage had already been cleaned out of it. This person, who had disappeared from the public eye for over a week, reappeared and chose to talk first not about his absence, not about his health, not about the crisis facing the country, but about a pool.
Then, his ramblings turned to the truly disgusting and most illustrative part. He began to describe the location where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered one of the most important speeches in modern American history, and used this to claim that his rally crowd was even bigger than King's. "They said he had 1 million people, and we only had 25,000 people," he said, then insisted that if you put the two photos side by side, "my people are more. They're denser. My people are denser."
For Trump, everything is a competition because everything stems from insecurity. Faced with that Reflecting Pool—where Dr. King spoke about justice, equality, and the unmet promises of American democracy—what Trump's brain first went to was crowd size. Not the speech, not the movement, not the courage it took to stand there in 1963 and demand that America live up to its ideals. The only thing he thought of was whether he looked bigger. And the people standing next to him just nodded, smiled, and agreed.
The truly serious matters were buried beneath these absurdities. He signed two executive orders. One reshaping the customs enforcement system, and the other removing job protections that around 8,000 senior federal employees have long enjoyed, allowing them to be fired at will. These protections exist to ensure that government officials obey the law, the Constitution, and the public interest, not just the President's personal orders. Removing these protections will put loyalty above ability, dissent will become a reason for dismissal, and those who were supposed to speak truth within the government will soon realize that their livelihood depends on telling the leader what he wants to hear.
After that, it all returned to his personal grievances. He attacked the judge who ruled against his "De-Weaponization Fund," calling the decision that of a "radical left-wing judge." He repeatedly painted himself as a victim, especially when discussing the search of his residence, hoping for sympathy. When asked about that $17.76 billion "little treasury," he simply said, "I like it. I think it's very important."
Next, he began to repackage his war in Iran. Following strikes on Iran without congressional approval, he wanted people to believe that this was hardly a war at all. "It's not a big deal for us," he said. "We have a strong military. It's not a big deal for us." At the same time, he assured that the stock market was soaring, retirement accounts were growing, and costs were decreasing. War was inconsequential, the economy flawless. If your grocery bill says otherwise, you clearly should doubt your own eyes.
Then, his focus shifted to communism. He had just posted about it on Truth Social earlier today and seemed quite pleased with himself. The first post read: "Has anyone ever seen a happy communist?" The second, longer post stated: "Communists are always very popular in the early stages, or as they say, popular with the 'people'! But in the end, the country, state, or city will head towards hell!" When a reporter recited his own words back to him, he immediately perked up. "I just wrote that," he said. "Do you like it? Do you think it's well-written?" He eagerly sought praise. For a president, this was a globally visible moment of embarrassment.
Next came the familiar routine. He labeled parts of New York, Los Angeles, and California as communist. He performed in the first person, portraying the communist agitator in his imagination: "You no longer have to pay rent." "I will end your mortgage." "I will give you free food." "Follow me, and you will live the greatest life." He played the villain in a one-man show. He called the Governor of Illinois a "slacker" and the Mayor of Chicago a "low IQ person." One city after another, he denigrated the country led by himself, listing those he claimed were failing, and once again painted himself as the only one who could save them.
Then, in the midst of it all, he suddenly stopped. No conclusion, no natural conclusion. He was still talking, still wandering between one grievance and another, then suddenly said, "Thank you very much." Almost immediately, his staff sprang into action. "Thank you, media. Thank you, media." Reporters were ushered out of the room, the scene was cleared. Trump still sat behind the desk, expression blank, shoulders slumped, appearing to sink into the chair.
We have seen this process before. Some kind of change occurred, and the event abruptly ended. The room was cleared, the staff moved quickly, the same phrases were repeated almost like a rehearsed signal. We don't know what triggered it. It could be a physical issue or a cognitive problem. But we know this is not the normal way a news event ends, nor is it how a president usually concludes a public appearance. And this situation occurs frequently enough that those around him seem to be quite clear on what to do when it happens.
Amid that long rant, CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins stood there doing her job as he turned his ire toward her. He called CNN "completely dishonest," a "very corrupt organization," and labeled the television network as garbage. He looked at her saying she "never smiles," calling her "a young, beautiful woman" standing there with "hate in her eyes." When she tried to speak, he cut her off, saying, "Wait, quiet." He told her, "You should be ashamed of yourself." He repeatedly referred to Democrats as the "dumbocrats." Then he said something that I couldn't forget. Referring to Democrats, and also to her, he said, "They have a problem. You have a problem too."
As he criticized others, he sat there himself, holding his right hand with his left, pressing it down. His face was swollen, his right eye at times nearly swollen shut as he walked. His speech was constantly slurred, then suddenly clear. He would erupt, then go flat, monotone, and then erupt again. As a human being, it was hard not to feel embarrassed for him. But as an American, it was even more painful to watch: to think of all those who fought for this country and then realize that after nearly 250 years of democratic self-governance, this was the leader we were presenting to the world.
We must ask why. With the constant barrage of bad news, his own party members publicly distancing themselves, and questions about his health growing by the hour, why, in his first appearance in over a week, did he take the time to attack a journalist for not smiling? The answer is actually quite simple. He is attempting to smear those whose duty it is to tell us the truth because what is happening is too detrimental to him. If he can make us distrust the media, then what the media reports no longer matters. That's the whole game.
We must understand this game because it is about more than just one journalist and one bad afternoon. When an authoritarian can no longer reliably put out his own propaganda, when that person himself starts to slur his speech, waver in thought, be hastily led out of the room, the machinery around him does not stop wanting that propaganda. It just needs others to do it for him. So, it reaches out to seize those institutions that were meant for everyone. It takes over the media.
We saw this scene play out this week on CBS. Scott Pelley, who had worked for the network for 37 years, was fired. On the eve of a staff meeting, he accused the new management of "killing the show" — the show being the renowned investigative news program "60 Minutes." He later released a written statement confirming many of our worst fears. He said the new management had asked him to include false information and bias in a politically sensitive report. He said he was asked to include unverified allegations, which he had so far refused to do. He said politicians were being allowed to choose which journalists would interview them. He also said the network's new owners were pushing the show aside, in his words, to "curry favor with the Trump administration for the time being."
CBS is no more. Its independence and credibility have also disappeared. We are likely to lose CNN as well. They will not stop. We will continue to lose these mainstream media one by one because those who own them have already done the math. Telling people what the strongman wants them to hear is easier to make money from than telling them the truth. There is no oligarch behind the truth, but there is an endless pit of money behind lies. The CEOs of these companies have seen how this president rewards loyalty, punishes others, so they have decided to take as much as they can while they can, even though they don't believe it will last. They don't care if it can last; they only care about the present.
So, this work will increasingly fall on those who do not have deep pockets. Independent journalists, investigative reporters, writers, and creators, especially in dark days, they still show up every day, often paying a real price for it. Our country cannot survive after these voices fall silent because a nation that does not know what it is facing is not a free nation. You can already see what a lack of awareness can lead to. Many people around us have no real concept of what is actually happening. And those who actively seek the truth are increasingly only able to find the version that others pay to feed them.
When I started writing these articles, I made a promise: whenever this government attacks the media, attacks the First Amendment, attacks the American people's right to hear the truth, I will call it out. Today, Trump is doing just that. And I am calling it out. This is an attack on our right to know, an attack on our right to understand how this government is dismantling the country. He has sent a direct message to all journalists and media members: I will come after you too. To the public, he is saying: you cannot trust anything the media tells you. Our response must be that we will not back down, we will support those who are still speaking out, still reporting the truth.
Navigating this moment in history is about making sure our money matches our voice. Whenever this government attacks the First Amendment, we respond by funding those who defend it. This is the most direct form of resistance we can take right now. Independent media is the way to keep the truth alive when all other systems are captured. I have been writing every night for a year, with no corporate support or sponsorships. No one can reach into my articles and change a single word. Every article I write is free for everyone because the truth should not be locked behind a paywall. But all of this is possible because some people choose to support this work through paid memberships, because they understand what is happening and choose to support it. Thank you for standing with me in resistance.
Tonight, I ask you once again, do not just think of my voice. Think of every writer, journalist, podcaster, independent media, to whom you will turn when you need the truth. Think of those who are enduring endless attacks in their email inboxes and facing greater pressure from the federal government. Think of those who continue to speak out even though it comes at a high cost. Because what this government is trying to build requires our silence. And our most powerful action at this moment is to ensure that those who refuse to be silent can continue to persevere. Every paid subscription to independent voices is a vote against Trump and his supporters.
Trump's increasing desperation is because on this very day, the same day the US President attacked a reporter and his network, the House of Representatives passed a war powers resolution demanding he end the war in Iran. The vote was 215 ayes to 208 nays. Four Republicans crossed the aisle to support the resolution.
It still needs to go through the Senate. Procedurally, it is largely symbolic. But the focus isn't there. The focus is that his own party members have finally openly broken ranks and voted against him. This is Trump's greatest fear: disloyalty. Someone said no. Someone realized that instead of fearing him, they should fear their own constituents. That is what made this man so agitated in today's event.
Because this is what he is doing now. He is pushing people beyond the breaking point. This man's cruelty, paranoia, and his increasing inability to tolerate any hint of disloyalty are causing him to lose those who once shielded him. They are watching him speak incoherently, ramble, lash out, and are starting to weigh the costs. So, one by one, they are stepping back. That is why I still have hope for America. And so should you.
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