During an appearance on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," regular contributor Claire McCaskill claimed Thursday's failure by the Republican-dominated House to pass a budget that would forestall a government shutdown was a blow to Donald Trump's reputation.
As she noted, it was made worse because he was overshadowed by adviser Elon Musk who led the charge to defeat a bipartisan agreement making it look like the president-elect's billionaire adviser is the one calling the shots.
Speaking with MSNBC host Johnathan Lemire, the former Democratic senator from Missouri, suggested that Trump has to be painfully aware of online joking about President Elon Musk.
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"Claire McCaskill, let's talk about this moment," host Lemire prompted his guest. "First of all, let's not lose sight of the real implications if the government does shut down, people will not be paid just before the holidays. We also should note about how this seems to be offering a preview of what's to come. This talk of a unified Republican government? Well, now, it seems to be a recipe for more chaos."
"Yeah," McCaskill replied. "First, Trump looked tiny yesterday –– he looked like a very little man and that has got to be bugging him big time."
After that barb, she added, "He not only had to follow Musk's lead, he then couldn't deliver votes at a time when he's trying to convince everyone there's a massive mandate for him and everybody wants to be his friend. Then, whoops, the brakes got put on."
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