WASHINGTON — Zigzagging from issue to issue, President Donald Trump has left his political allies struggling to keep pace with his pronouncements and lost precious time to drive a compelling message ahead of the midterm congressional elections, Republican strategists and people who’ve worked with him said.
asserted
who → zigzag → him
The takeaway from recent polling is that voters worry most about high prices and the cost of living.
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voters → worry → living
But Trump has at times veered off pocketbook issues and made moves that are peripheral to the top-of-mind concerns of voters who will soon decide which party controls Congress.
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party → veer → Congress
The latest instance of Trump stepping on his party’s own messaging came on Friday.
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Trump → step → Friday
In the hour before he held an Oval Office event focused on reducing prescription drug prices, Trump announced he was barring three news outlets from the White House grounds because he disliked their coverage.
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he → hold → coverage
That caught even some members of his own staff off guard.
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That → catch → guard
The media ban has dominated the news cycle for days, and rather than steer the conversation back to the savings Americans would reap from his policies, Trump amplified the furor.
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Trump → dominate → furor
Some Republican candidates in competitive races are increasingly distancing themselves from the president, believing that voters want a different focus and tack than what Trump is offering.
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Trump → distance → what
Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar, R-Fla., who is typically a staunch Trump defender, released an ad criticizing Trump’s mass deportation agenda.
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who → release → agenda
And GOP candidates in Iowa and Michigan have spoken out against the Iran war and its effect on prices.
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candidates → speak → prices
Nearly two-thirds of adults lack confidence in the national news media, according to an NBC News survey in June sponsored by More Perfect, a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to advancing democracy.
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thirds → lack → democracy
That makes the press a ripe target, though it isn’t clear that Americans want Trump to do something about it.
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Trump → make → it
In an NBC News poll this month, registered voters cited inflation, government corruption, threats to democracy, jobs and the economy, the Iran war, immigration and healthcare costs as issues that loom largest; news coverage was not presented as an option.
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coverage → cite → option
“The president is out there touting his new arch,” Maura Gillespie, a Republican strategist, said of Trump’s plan to build a soaring arch near Arlington National Cemetery.
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Gillespie → tout → Cemetery
“None of that addresses the gas prices being over $4.
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prices → address → 4
None of that addresses the younger voters who are struggling to afford their first home.
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who → address → home
None of that is landing.”
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None → land → that
“Republicans need to steer their messaging away from Trump and divert their lane from him and focus on their constituents, because that’s the only thing that’s going to get them elected,” she added.
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she → need → constituents
Trump often complains that news coverage fails to credit him for his successes.
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coverage → complain → successes
Labor and stock markets have proved resilient in Trump’s term, though wages are lagging inflation.
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wages → prove → inflation
“The story no one is writing is how well the economy is doing in spite of the president’s lack of discipline,” said a person close to the administration, who added that Trump, 80, is growing “more impulsive with age.”
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Trump → write → age
Speaking at the United Nations on Tuesday, Trump spooled out a list of accomplishments on his watch.
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Trump → speak → watch
He struck a triumphal tone as he cast the U.S. as a nation in the midst of a renaissance.
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he → strike → renaissance
“Our economy is the envy of the world,” he said.
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he → say → world
Our technology is second to none and we’re leading in virtually everything.
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we → lead → everything
Our energy is fueling the planet.
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energy → fuel → planet
America is rising, our nation is growing, our power is expanding, our country is doing better than ever before.”
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country → rise → ?
A White House spokesman, Kush Desai, said in a statement: “The Trump administration has remained laser-focused delivering on the president’s long-term economic agenda on the home front.
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administration → say → front
Continued private-sector job growth, booming investments, and month-over-month prices of beef, chicken, prescription drugs, and other essentials declining in the last two inflation reports are all proof that America’s positive economic momentum continues.
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momentum → decline → reports
In recent months, Trump has slalomed back and forth through the issues.
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Trump → slalom → issues
In April, he threatened to destroy Iran’s civilization.
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he → threaten → civilization
Hours later, he backed off.
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he → back → ?
He called Iran’s leaders “very rational” in June, “scum” in July.
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He → call → July
In his United Nations speech, Trump revived his apocalyptic threat.
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Trump → revive → threat
He warned that he may need to “annihilate” Iran and “drive them into hell” if the regime doesn’t agree to a deal to end the war.
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regime → warn → war
This month he announced that he would send every American a $5,000 check if Republicans win the midterm elections; a key Republican senator whose committee oversees spending plans told reporters he had seen no details of how Trump’s idea would work.
“He’s very unpredictable.
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He → announce → details
He calls it trusting his gut,” a second Republican senator told NBC News, who, like others in this piece, requested anonymity to speak candidly.
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who → call → anonymity
A number of high-level White House aides were unaware beforehand that Trump had imposed the ban, and they struggled to explain it in the hours after it went into effect, according to conversations with four White House officials.
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it → impose → officials
Trump’s chief of staff Susie Wiles was absent from the building Friday when he announced the new directive, according to a person familiar with the situation, potentially leading to some of the confusion from the staff.
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he → announce → staff
Still, aides sought to defend Trump’s move.
“Nobody close to the president was surprised at his action to hold the fake news accountable,” a senior White House official said.
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official → seek → action
…and 51 more, not listed.
The Aporia
