From within the gilded walls of Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, President Trump took to Twitter late Sunday evening to describe Oprah Winfrey as “very insecure.” The tweet seemingly came after he watched an interview the media proprietor conducted on CBS’s “60 Minutes” in which she spoke to voters about Trump’s presidency.
Just watched a very insecure Oprah Winfrey, who at one point I knew very well, interview a panel of people on 60 Minutes. The questions were biased and slanted, the facts incorrect. Hope Oprah runs so she can be exposed and defeated just like all of the others!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 19, 2018
“Insecure” is a word Trump has used often — to describe TV hosts, “losers,” and “haters.” But the president’s current accusation comes at what might be the most insecure moment in his presidency. And zeroing in on Oprah only serves to highlight what appears to be a lack of confidence in his own leadership.
It’s been a hectic week for Trump. Following a mass shooting that killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, teenage survivors have been speaking out against both the president and GOP politicians more broadly for their inaction on gun control. In a powerful speech at a gun control rally in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Saturday, Stoneman Douglas student Emma Gonzalez delivered an emotional rebuke of the president, blasting Trump for the funds he has received from the National Rifle Association (NRA) and for rolling back an Obama-era regulation that would have barred many people with “severe mental disabilities” from purchasing such weapons.
While teenagers blast the president and demand gun control, Trump himself seems torn. At Mar-A-Lago this weekend, Trump “spent much of the time watching cable news” and “venting to friends”, according to The Washington Post. The president reportedly entertained the idea of gun control, choosing to survey club members about whether he should take action.
Worrying about the uproar following the Parkland shooting likely isn’t all Trump has been up to this weekend. Ongoing fallout from the Russia investigation is also consuming the White House. On Friday, the office of Special Counsel Robert Mueller accused 13 people and three Russian companies of “interference operations targeting the United States.” The 37-page indictment details the interference of Russian social media operations to support Trump’s campaign and disparage former rival Hillary Clinton.
While Republicans and Trump have done their best to downplay the indictment, claiming that there was “no collusion,” Mueller is continuing to investigate the Trump team and, as ThinkProgress’ Rebekah Entralgo previously reported, it is still a possibility that Mueller will indict Americans for knowingly colluding with Russia.
Only time will tell how this period in Trump’s tenure is seen by history, but one thing’s for sure — the president has a lot more to be insecure about than Oprah.
