President Donald Trump's chief of staff Susie Wiles did more than embarrass the White House with her broad-ranging Vanity Fair interview, MS NOW's Nicolle Wallace argued to the reporter who broke the story, Chris Whipple, on Thursday. In fact, she exposed herself to subpoenas from the people Trump ordered indicted by the Justice Department, as they pursue vindictive prosecution complaints.
"What did she — what was thespirit of the conversation whenshe describes Donald Trump'spersonality as a, quote, 'alcoholic's personality'?" asked Wallace.
"What's amazing about thewhole thing, Nicolle, is thatshe was it was just a matter offact," said Whipple. "And she was matter offact when she described the thefact that there was still arevenge and retributioncampaign going full tilt. Shewas matter of fact when shetalked about how [New York Attorney General] Letitia Jameswas part of that retributiontour, which is practically aget-out-of-jail-free card forher attorneys. That was whatwas so remarkable. And I thinkI think part of it is that it'snot that there's a bubble mentality in the Trump WhiteHouse, a bunker mentality. It'sreally kind of a bubble. AndI think at a certain pointwhen you're surrounded by like-minded acolytes that you, youforget that what you're sayingis sometimes crazy."
"I mean, did she understand that byacknowledging the retributionand revenge and acknowledgingthat the Justice Department wasbeing used in that way, thatshe could be subpoenaed as awitness in a vindictiveprosecution?" asked Wallace.
"I have no idea," said Whipple — but, he added, "She certainly wasn'treluctant to talk about it."
"Andthe really fascinating thingwas the sort of arc, the sortof journey that we went throughover the over the 11 months orso," Whipple said. "And on day 56, she told methat Donald Trump and I have aloose agreement, as she put it,that the revenge andretribution tour will end onthe 90th day after 90 days.Months later, I said, rememberwhen you told me that therevenge and retribution tourwould be over? She said, oh, well, it's not a retributiontour, really ... but I followedup and said, well, so whatabout all this talk aboutmortgage fraud and LetitiaJames? And she said, oh, well,that one's a, that's aretribution. Words to thateffect."
"Stunningly candid.Stunningly dangerous," he added. "Somethingthat no senior White Houseofficial that I can think of inhistory would say out loud. Andyet there we were."