Why Trump Inner Circle Fears Blonde Companion, 34

Summary

Inside Trump's Head – Episode 34: “Why Trump Inner Circle Fears Blonde Companion”

Date: June 28, 2026
Hosts: Michael Wolff & Joanna Coles
Podcast: Inside Trump's Head (The Daily Beast)
Main Theme:
This episode takes a sharp, candid look into the psychological and political forces driving Donald Trump, with special focus on the powerful influence of confidante Natalie Harp and how Trump’s obsessions—not strategy—shape his presidency. Wolff and Coles dissect topics ranging from Supreme Court immigration rulings and church-state friction to the mechanics of Trump’s personal circle, culminating with the curious case of the “blonde companion” who inspires unease within Trump’s inner circle.

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Episode Overview

Wolff and Coles, drawing on unparalleled insider knowledge and a penchant for gallows humor, unravel how Donald Trump’s eccentricities, personal fixations, and unique “non-process” continue to warp American politics. The fear and mystery around Natalie Harp’s influence, Trump’s transactional religiosity, the Supreme Court’s deference, and the cabinet of Trumpian lookalikes are all put under the microscope.

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Key Segments & Insights

1. Heatwave European Edition

• [02:00–06:50]
  • Joanna reports from an unbearably hot Paris, drawing a wry parallel between European’s resistance to air conditioning and their grudging turn toward “American-style” living as temperatures rise.
  • “The Europeans always say, oh, Americans, air conditioning. Oh, I could never live in that sterile world. And the answer now is, you can't live outside of that world.” – Michael [03:12]
  • Musings on adaptation, comfort, and the changing aesthetic of daily life.

2. Stephen Miller, the Supreme Court, and Executive Power

• [12:45–17:31]
  • The hosts discuss the Supreme Court’s new ruling granting the president (and Trump specifically) far broader authority on immigration, with emphasis on the plight of Haitians and Syrians losing protected status.
  • “In Donald Trump's court, you have two justices, Alito and Thomas, who are just as old, as racist, and as on the take as Donald Trump himself... Then you have the three other justices...not reading the Constitution as much as they are reading the room.” – Michael [16:21]
  • Wolff contends the justices are “afraid of Donald Trump,” focusing on maintaining stability rather than constitutional principle.

3. Trump, Religion, and the Church-State Divide

• [19:00–26:40]
  • The Religious Liberty Commission and the president’s transactional, even cynical, approach.
  • “Donald Trump is probably the least, the most IR-religious president we have ever had... The idea that Donald Trump would acknowledge a higher power is a very funny idea.” – Michael [19:35]
  • Joanna reflects on the comfort of faith rituals after her mother’s funeral, contrasting with Trump’s opportunism.
  • “...the point for Donald Trump is a very specific constituency...that deal did not include that he had to be a believer.” – Michael [24:05]
  • Discussion extends to J.D. Vance's “conversion” and Trump’s ability to connect through calculated irreverence.

4. Iran and the Short Attention Span of Trump-Era Politics

• [27:16–32:46]
  • An analysis of Trump’s response to escalating tensions with Iran and his focus on avoiding prolonged attention—especially ahead of the midterms.
  • “Donald Trump has to get out of this war, has to do it essentially now...for this not to be an overriding issue in the midterms.” – Michael [29:50]
  • Reflection on how crises are rapidly forgotten, despite major policy and stability consequences.

5. The Height Obsession (and Trump’s Shrinking Stature)

• [33:00–35:27]
  • Joanna notes a photo revealing Trump to be shorter than “6'2” claims, comparing him with Senator John Thune. This becomes a metaphor for Trump’s need to appear large and dominant.
  • “He’s shrinking into the giant shrimp that Steve Bannon said that he was. I think he looks more like Vicen because he’s so big around the shoulders, but he’s definitely not 6’2”.” – Joanna [34:14]

6. Rule by Obsession, Not Strategy

• [36:04–39:32]
  • The New York Times finally acknowledges what Wolff’s been saying for years: “Trump rules by obsession, not objective or strategy.”
  • “He does things for no reason whatsoever except that they live in his head.” – Michael [36:31]
  • The press’s ongoing difficulties reporting on a president with “no process at all.”

7. The Natalie Harp Phenomenon – Trump’s Blonde Confidante

• [40:03–47:58]
  • Wolff provides detailed, exclusive background on Natalie Harp (the “human printer” who filters, annotates, and delivers printouts directly to Trump, often adding fawning handwritten notes).
  • “Everything that he reads is funneled through Natalie Harp because she’s the human printer. She prints out this stuff... She frequently includes personal notes to him. ‘You’re the alpha and the omega, the be all and end all. What would I be without you?’” – Michael [00:59, 41:32]
  • Other aides and even the Secret Service are “appalled,” viewing her as a potential threat: “They saw her as a danger to herself and to him.” – Michael [41:53]
  • Speculation on Harp’s quasi-romantic notes: “I want to climb into bed with you. She doesn’t say this, but that’s the tone...I exist only in your shadow.” – Michael [44:02]
  • “This is a person who the President has allowed to become really his closest confidant.” – Michael [45:11]
  • Coles points out the recurring “Melania blonde” motif among women in Trump’s circle: “They wear boots, they wear skirts, they have long hair. Margo Martin, Melania, Hope Hicks...” – Joanna [45:38]
  • Vignettes of how staff attempted—unsuccessfully—to distance Harp from Trump, including her living in the Bedminster women’s locker room.

8. Lee Greenwood, The 250th Birthday, and Trump’s America

• [47:58–51:15]
  • Examining Lee Greenwood’s role as the sole “star” at Trump’s planned 250th USA birthday fair.
  • “Trump is in the middle of...having to stage this 250th birthday...which is apparently going as a total fiasco...the only basic star he's been able to produce is Lee [Greenwood].” – Michael [49:44]
  • Reflection on the geriatric state of both the country’s political and cultural icons: “All the musicians...all of the politicians...everybody we've rolled over here...all 80.” – Michael [50:49]

9. Limericks & Listener Mail

• [55:32–57:47]
  • Joanna reads topical limericks inspired by Trump’s reflecting pool obsession, staff initiatives, and listener critiques.
  • A correction on referring to “the Ukraine”: “I’ve corrected you on this before and I’ve given up. Yes, and I’ve given up because you can only correct someone so often.” – Michael [57:10]

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• “He doesn’t pretend [religiosity] very hard...he’s a cynical guy. And I think cynicism has probably been deeply underrated in politics.” – Michael [22:11, 26:22]

• “His policy is based on whoever annoyed him on television that morning.” – Joanna [36:43]

• “President of the United States Crazy as a fruitcake. Now, they will not get there, of course, but this is effectively what they are saying now.” – Michael [38:18]

• “I think that is the tone...I exist only in your shadow.” – Michael on Natalie Harp’s notes [44:02]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment/Topic | Start Time | End Time | |---------------------------------------|------------|-------------| | Europe Heat & A/C Culture | 02:00 | 06:50 | | Supreme Court Immigration Ruling | 12:45 | 17:31 | | Religion & Church-State | 19:00 | 26:40 | | Iran Tensions & Forgetfulness | 27:16 | 32:46 | | Trump’s Height & Image | 33:00 | 35:27 | | Trump’s Rule by Obsession | 36:04 | 39:32 | | Natalie Harp Explained | 40:03 | 47:58 | | Lee Greenwood, State Fair Fiasco | 47:58 | 51:15 | | Listener Limericks & Corrections | 55:32 | 57:47 |

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Episode Tone and Takeaways

The episode blends sardonic wit, psycho-political analysis, and a steady dose of incredulity at both Trump’s persona and the baffled institutions grappling with him. Listeners are reminded that the logic of the Trump era is not strategy but psychology, not constitution but immediate gratification, not normalcy but perpetual turbulence. The enduring mystery is not why Trump behaves this way, but why so many systems still expect him to behave differently.

For those following American politics, this episode is a primer on how personality cults, obsessional management, and opportunistic alliances—not formal process—drive the most consequential administration of our age. Ignore it at your peril.

Transcript

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[Michael]

accuracy Choice hotels get you more of what you value. Comfort Inn it's calling your name. Save on the stain. Oh, and free waffles are yours to claim. Book directroyso tales.com everything that he reads is funneled through Natalie Harp. Because she's the human printer. She prints out this stuff. Things that cause her ire that the president. That will also cause the president ire that goes to him. She's also frequently includes personal notes to him. You're the alpha and the omega, the be all and end all. What would I be without you? The Natalie Harp notes were passed to me by other aides of the President who were equally as appalled by this. This is a person who the President has allowed to become really his closest confidant.

[Joanna]

Michael, I'm so hot, I may be delirious with hot.

[Michael]

You didn't let me say, Joanna. You just stepped on. You stepped on it.

[Joanna]

I stepped on you, Michael.

[Michael]

Yes, but I. I'm interested to hear how hot it is because you are in the middle now of experiencing the leading news story in the world.

[Joanna]

Is it really the leading news story in the world?

[Ad Voice]

No.

[Michael]

Absolutely. The meltdown of Europe. I mean, this is a significant event. The Europeans coming to terms with the fact that their world is utterly changing. It is now. They now at least will live part of the year in Houston. Basically.

[Joanna]

Houston or Phoenix. I mean, or Phoenix. I think. Phoenix is officially the American's Hottest city, which frequently gets up to 115 degrees. And, of course, how do Phoenicians live? They live with air conditioning. Air conditioning.

[Michael]

This is the thing which I mean. So the Europeans are not only. Only being confronted by an ecological event, but it's also an aesthetic and taste event. The Europeans always say, oh, Americans, air conditioning. Oh, I could never live in that sterile world. And the answer now is, you can't live outside of that world.

[Joanna]

It's so hot that people aren't actually going down to the edge of the river. I went down to. I went down to the river. I went down to the River Seine today to sort of poke around the rehabilitation of Notre Dame. And I thought, oh, there'll be lots of people walking along the river. It's too hot even for that. Yesterday there was a brief breeze and briefly I thought it was going to be cooler today than yesterday, but it's not. And it's very humid. So you just. I don't like taking showers. I'm a bath person. This may be TMI for people watching, but I actually find showers a bit

[Michael]

kind of horrifying to know. Thank you. And that would also, by the way, be a European thing, because. Which, of course, you are a European, because showers are so terrible in Europe.

[Joanna]

Well, that might be why. So you're always cold. But I always find showers a bit sort of violent. And I like a bath anyway, which doesn't mean I don't take showers all the time. But my point is, I've literally been taking.

[Michael]

Also good to know.

[Joanna]

But I have had four or five showers a day here because there is no way to survive without doing that. And we actually have air conditioning in my older son's apartment.

[Michael]

But I'll bet it's bad air conditioning, because even when the Europeans get air conditioning and then they're very proud of this, and you say, no, no, this is not air conditioning. Air conditioning is when you are cold.

[Joanna]

Yeah, it's terrible air conditioning. I would say that it takes the temperature down by about 3 degrees. And it's a mobile one, so you can move it around. And then we have a series of fans which are unbelievably noisy. So the apartment sounds like a tractor

[Michael]

blowing hot air at you. Sometimes very hot air.

[Joanna]

Exactly. So we've got hair. Essentially, we've got hair dryers on at all time. It's very noisy and we've got hopeless air conditioning. But it does make you think, how do people live in Phoenix or Houston or Palm Springs without making any complaint whatsoever? Euros are Going to have to be.

[Michael]

No, it's out of the H Vac industry. It's. If you're in the. I mean, I can. I can't believe that people in the H Vac business are not looking at Europe and thinking, oh my God, there's our future.

[Joanna]

Right next big opportunity. And I think they've had four times the regular number of deaths at this time of year because people are just keeling over.

[Michael]

Frying. Of course they are frying. I mean, it's extraordinary. I mean, I have been in Europe in these last years of heat and it really is extraordinary.

[Joanna]

Yeah, it is extraordinary. And of course, Paris is so. The streets are so narrow. So it's as if you're sort of baking as you're walking along. Anyway, I'm leaving for air conditioned comfort back to the States tomorrow, all being well, so. So I will leave this expense behind.

[Michael]

You've been gone now three months?

[Joanna]

Seven months, 12 months. I've been gone for two years. Someone reminded me yesterday I actually have a life in America and I've sort of forgotten about it. I'm very excited to come back. But I guess before we get cracking with all the things we have to talk about, which is Stephen Miller's victory in the Supreme Court and Donald Trump clearly lying about his height and the state fair and actually I thought perhaps we should have our own state fair. You could represent New Jersey. I'll represent New York.

[Michael]

I think you would have to represent Yorkshire.

[Joanna]

I could represent Yorkshire. We used to have. The Great Yorkshire show is an absolutely wonderful thing. Used to be the highlight of my summer when I was at school, largely. Cause you got free paper hats, which I really loved, and they're often cut in spirals. Anyway, I digress. We've got to talk about the church and state, whether or not Donald Trump is trying to squeeze them closer together. And of course, it reminds me of your friend Hager's son saying lots of prayers all the time.

[Michael]

Very public performance.

[Joanna]

Praying.

[Michael]

And JD Writing a book about his conversion. Just one more of the many conversions in his. Opportunistic conversions in his life.

[Joanna]

Yes, I'm looking forward to him reading that on storytime with the second lady. Because when we read, we grow. Just to remind you. Anyway, before we do that, quick reminder, please subscribe to the Daily Beast podcast. We're independent media. That's why we can bring you these conversations. But before we actually get started, we wanted to bring you a message from a friend of Donald Trump's.

[Marla Maples]

Hi. Wow. Love the way the clouds are lining up. Tonight. And they look like real clouds. What do we know? Gotta keep praying for that, because God knows we're doing everything else to make sure we have real skies and clean air, but just wanted to say hello. And I've had the most incredible time with my grandson and now just took

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off for a day and a half

[Marla Maples]

with a couple girlfriends who said, isn't it time we just have fun? So I may still be working, but I'm gonna have fun in the process. So just wanted to send some love your way.

[Joanna]

Just sending. Just sending some love your way to all our viewers and all our readers. In case you hadn't seen, Marla Maples, Donald Trump's second wife, mother of Tiffany Trump. She's sending love our way, Michael. It's a nice thought. The real, real clouds behind her in the sky. It's always good to know they're real.

[Michael]

What do you think motivates people to do these, to suddenly think they have to have a social media Instagram life? I mean, I suppose I should. I suppose I should talk, but I know Donald Trump motivates me. Maybe he motivates Marla, too.

[Joanna]

Well, Jill Biden has just started an Instagram account, too. So we're going to keep a watchful eye on Dr. Jill, who was feeding the dog on her.

[Michael]

Do you think people, they think somebody comes along, they get some young people in their life and say, you know, you need an Instagram, you need a social media strategy, or, what's your social media strategy? And they go, I don't know. And they said, okay, this is what you have to do. You have to just be yourself. Since that's what everyone says your social media strategy should be, I think it's

[Joanna]

a way for people to try and stay relevant. Right. So Marla Maples. Why do we care about Marla Maples? She was married to the President, but only briefly, and then seemed to warn her friends against letting their daughters work at Mar a Lago. I guess she's doing it to sort of say, look over here. Here I am. But I don't know why she would do that. Why wouldn't you just want to stay quiet?

[Michael]

And likewise the Bidens. I mean, one of the things let's say about the Bushes is that they don't have a social media strategy, nor actually do the Clintons really have a social media strategy. So, Dr. Jill, stop it.

[Joanna]

Yeah, don't even try.

[Michael]

Don't even try.

[Joanna]

We don't need to see Dr. Jill in her kitchen.

[Michael]

Terrible kitchen, too.

[Joanna]

It's a strangely dated kitchen. Feeding her dogs in the morning. Why is she doing that? I guess she's doing it to promote her book. Right. That's why people really do it. They've got something to promote. So I don't know what promoting.

[Michael]

Totally. That is actually you. You hit it. Because all publishers who are incapable of promoting anything then say their. Their answer to this is, oh, you need a social media strategy.

[Joanna]

Yeah. And so they just put their life on it since.

[Michael]

Yeah, since we can offer you nothing because we're hopeless now. You have to do this because you have social media. You can do it for yourself. Okay, I get it. Completely.

[Joanna]

Okay. So that's why they're doing, I think, to sell something or to stay relevant. Anyway.

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[Joanna]

I tell you who is staying relevant, even if his wife's podcast seems to have disappeared. Steven Miller. Stephen Miller had a win this week.

[Michael]

Well, Donald Trump had a win this week. I mean, Stephen Miller is. I'm sure this is. He's very pleased about this, but this is again, all about Donald Trump. And we're talking about the Supreme Court win, talking about a ruling that gives Donald Trump and the Trump administration significantly more power in its efforts to deport a lot of brown people.

[Joanna]

Well, but specifically Haitians and Syrians. Right. It's removing their temporary protected status.

[Ad Voice]

Yes.

[Michael]

But this goes. This essentially radiates out into creating a precedent in which it basically says. In which the Supreme Court basically says the president of the United States has a. Has a near open field to make immigration policy. And the way in which he enforces immigration laws. And so this is an expanded power which will affect tens, hundreds of thousands of families, actually families who thought that they were secure in their. In their lives in the United States are now no longer secure.

[Joanna]

Well, and the idea that they might be picked up and shipped back to countries where they have no connection anymore and broken countries like Syria and Haiti in particular. Do you think this is actually Donald Trump or is this Stephen Miller?

[Michael]

There are two ways to look at this. Obviously, this is Stephen Miller's initiatives, him pushing this, but the Supreme Court in the way they are in their favorable ruling that's all about Donald Trump. And the interesting thing in this is to, I mean, to expand this a little wider. You know, Donald Trump. The truth of the Trump administration is that it has met roadblock after roadblock after roadblock in federal courts, in local authorities, foreign powers, its own incompetence, setback after setback after setback is the truth of this administration. But the really reliable place, the reliable piece of the power grid that he's been able to count on over and over and over again is the Supreme Court. And, in fact, the Trump administration. And what we've seen over the last almost year and a half of this, of this term is, is a set of actions that have been reliably bolstered, backed up by the court. You know, and. And you. You look at this. I mean, it's in. I think it's totally fascinating because. Because in. And what it is, is. Is kind of extra constitutional. And the court, I think, for our assumptions about the court is that no matter its ideological direction, it is underpinned by a constitutional analysis, Whether you agree with it or not. It has a kind of. I mean, it has. It reverts to a logic. And I think that has passed that is no longer true. I think in Donald Trump's court, you have two justices, Alito and Thomas, who are just as old, as racist, and as on the take as Donald Trump himself. That's it. They're in the bag for him. It's, you know, their interests are aligned with his. And then you have the three other justices, Kavanaugh, Barrett, and Roberts, who are not reading the Constitution as much as they are reading the room. So I think they're very attentive at all times to what they have to give Donald Trump.

[Ad Voice]

And you really.

[Joanna]

You really think that they're that attentive? And are you putting gors, such as a kind of maverick to.

[Ryan Reynolds]

No, no, no.

[Ad Voice]

Gorsuch.

[Michael]

No, no.

[Joanna]

You're putting him in that. In that reading the room group, too.

[Michael]

Yes, absolutely. And I think that the issue is. Is. Yeah, I mean, the issue is, frankly, they're afraid of Donald Trump. So I think that they feel that they are somehow protecting the establishment, that they don't know what Donald Trump will do or what he is capable of. So it's a very meticulous parsing of how to keep him happy. Again, nothing to do with the Constitution. And I am reminded of a story from the first campaign, the 2016 campaign, when it looked like it began to look like he actually might be the president of the United States shocking everyone, including the people around him. But they hurriedly, his aides hurriedly convened a meeting with Donald Trump to explain to him the Constitution. And he lasted in the room for 10 minutes and then was gone. So what he knows about the Constitution was information, was 10 minutes worth of information.

[Joanna]

Well, and I'm sure he doesn't care. Right? Whatever. He doesn't care if it's in the Constitution or not. He just wants to add to the Constitution. Well, I guess that leads us on then to the subject of religion and the separation of church and state, which is also come under scrutiny this week with this report from his religious commission. I mean, the Religious Liberty Commission is what it's called, and it comprises one orthodox Jew and everybody else is a conservative Christian and.

[Michael]

Yes. And it would seem, an evangelical Christian. Yes. So that is, I mean, from Donald Trump's point of view. And remember, Donald Trump is probably the least, the most IR religious president we have ever had. I mean, the only times he has ever even made a nod toward religion is when that has been forced upon him in the presidency. He is, you know, the idea that Donald Trump would acknowledge a higher power is a. Is a very funny idea.

[Joanna]

Well, and he's frequently aied out this year pictures of himself as Christ saying, he's a healer. He's a healer. Donald's the healer. You know, he has no interest in the Pope. He says that the only reason the Pope's got his job is because of Donald Trump. That's why they needed an American Pope. I mean, he holds religion in such low regard apart from when he needs its voters.

[Michael]

Yeah, no, and I would add to this, I myself hold religion in low regard. So this is perhaps a.

[Joanna]

Well, this is where maybe the two of you have something in common.

[Michael]

Exactly. And he is, you know, Donald Trump is a New Yorker like I am a New Yorker and, you know, sees the world through, through that lens. And it's a lens of. How would we describe. It's the lens of. We're in, you know, a proudly atheist city

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[Joanna]

He's just proudly expedient, though. He'll pretend he believes in God if he needs to.

[Michael]

Yeah, but I mean, he doesn't pretend very hard. That's also the interesting thing. So it's.

[Joanna]

Well, and I wonder, again, I've been thinking about the point you made last week that actually, culturally, you know, with UFC and things, he's actually. People are relieved by it. They're relieved by the lack of pretension. They say he's just like me when he picks up the Bible and he holds it upside down, which he may have done on purpose, actually. It's a way of indicating to people that he doesn't take this stuff terribly seriously. And I think, although there are lots of people out there who do, majority of people know they can't live up to it, and it's there if they need it. But most people don't feel they need it all the time.

[Michael]

Yeah. I mean, I feel you're being accommodating on this. I think.

[Joanna]

Well, I think I'm a bit more sympathetic to people who feel that they want some kind of religion or faith. Having just literally last week buried my mother, I've felt very glad for the rituals of a Christian funeral service, to go to the church where she was a member of that community and sing hymns that I'd grown up singing. It felt like there was a rite of passage here that and the formality of the service helped.

[Michael]

But. But you don't and you won't. And you will be, I assume, put in an urn and left in a closet somewhere. And that'll be, I hope I will

[Joanna]

be sprinkled in the Hudson, Michael. Or possibly off the. Off East Hampton Beach.

[Michael]

Yeah, possibly. But I find mostly that people don't get around to doing that.

[Joanna]

Well, I don't want to sit in a. I don't want to sit in a plastic bag in an earth. Actually, I should say she was cremated and then put in an eco box, which is now in the ground, and then it goes back to. Goes back to the earth. The point is not the burial or the cremation. The point is the service for the people who are left.

[Michael]

Yes. Well, the point for Donald Trump is a very specific constituency and that constituency which he has made a deal with at some point and he has consistently delivered for. And that deal did not include that he had to be a believer.

[Ad Voice]

That was what.

What?

[Michael]

That was what. The interesting thing, the historically interesting thing about that deal. I don't believe in any of this. You can't even. I don't even. No one even has the pretense here that I believe in any of this. I am as. As. As openly blasphemous as I, as any president has ever been in thought and action. But that doesn't make any difference because I am going to give you what you want. And this is one of those instances.

[Joanna]

Right. And he's enjoyed the blasphemy. Right. I mean, the other thing is he looks like he enjoys himself.

[Michael]

I think it is true that he's had this both ways. And I think whereas J.D. vance, who was courting this crowd and just wrote a book about his conversion to Catholicism seems like just like a suck up in a dweeber. And I don't think anyone takes this seriously because we know he's a cynical guy and we know why he's doing this, but he is trying to, he's trying to fool everybody. And Donald Trump isn't trying to fool anybody.

[Joanna]

But he doesn't make it look fun either, does he? J.D. vance? It looks like it's a struggle, his route back to his faith.

[Michael]

Well, in all fairness, it should be a struggle. Religion is a struggle.

[Joanna]

Well, and that's why Donald Trump doesn't like it and that's why people know and connect with him. It's his power to connect over stuff like that because you know that he's winking even as he's, well, he's a cynical community.

[Michael]

He's a cynical guy. And I think cynicism is probably has been deeply underrated in politics.

[Joanna]

Well, this is a nod to, it's a nod to the evangelicals because he wants them in his court come the midterms, right?

[Michael]

Yes, oh, very, very much. I mean, I mean, this is, I mean that is, he's just delivering this. And to some great extent it's also, it's completely meaningless. The fact that, and let's say this document argues that the, that the division of church in that church and state is a constitutional misunderstanding. So it's, I mean, it's kind of like, you know, everything that you have ever thought about the way this country operates is not true.

[Joanna]

Right. And of course, in fact, we know lots of people came to this country fleeing organized religion. So their insistence on the originalist's point of view doesn't quite make sense here anyway. It's politically expedient, but it's still interesting nonetheless. And as you say, he got 10 minutes into the Constitution and then left the room. So maybe this was a bit he didn't understand. But it appears that we are back at war with Iran or at least they bombed a tanker or they, they sent a drone over and it exploded on a tanker. So now we've gone and bombed them. So I'm not quite sure what happened to the ceasefire or the memo of possibly misunderstanding at this point.

[Michael]

Well, I think that this is, we're still at the face saving stage of this. I mean, Donald Trump, we're still in this moment of Donald Trump figuring out how to get out of this situation with the least amount of damage. And he is being accused pretty much everywhere of complete capitulation, of giving up everything, of surrendering. And so I think this instance, and this instance could of course, spiral out of control at any minute, but this instance is him being able to say, no, we're firm, we're standing, we will push back and we have the biggest, mightiest military, et cetera, et cetera, but real message, I want you to forget about this as quickly as possible.

[Joanna]

Right.

[Michael]

And so which prompts the question, will people forget about this before the midterms? I mean, this is a kind of fundamental premise of modern politics, certainly of Trump politics, is that people do forget about seemingly everything.

[Joanna]

They really do. But if this escalates, they're not going to forget. And Iran has, I mean, Iran does this obviously, but they have made very threatening statements after this latest contretemps saying, you know, we're going to go after your allies, we're going to essentially reign holy hell if you provoke us again.

[Michael]

That would be very bad for Donald Trump. So I think that that would indicate that he will give them again whatever they want. He'll give them more so that this doesn't happen. Donald Trump has to get out of this war, has to do it essentially now in order for this not to be an overriding issue in the midterms. So, you know, I mean, well, it

[Joanna]

looks like prices, at least the price of oil is coming down at the pump a bit. So he may get the benefit from that. Consumer sentiment appeared to be slightly on the up first time this year.

[Michael]

No, I mean, I think that this is the, I mean, we now have this peace deal is doing it, is giving everyone the opportunity to smooth this over. And so that's the question. We all know what this war has been about. We all know that this war has been a disaster. We all know that in order to stop this war, he has had to essentially gain nothing from the four months we've been fighting this war. Nothing is materially improved for the interests of the United States now more than it was before the war started.

[Joanna]

Well, it's significantly worse.

[Michael]

It's significantly worse, yes. And the deal that he has, that he has cut is less than the deal that Obama cut, which he then ran against, made that a prime issue of his. Of his. Of his political life. So we all know that that's there. It's all laid out, could not be clearer. Will we remember any of that come November? And the answer, strangely, I mean, it's perplexing to me is no, we probably won't.

[Joanna]

Well, there'll be other things to think about then, but.

[Michael]

Well, that's the point. There are other things. Yes, there are other things that come that there are other distractions. There are other things that pile on top of this. But this is, and I mean right now is the leading issue of that defines Donald Trump. And the fact that by the time November comes around, he may actually get away with this is astounding to me.

[Sports Announcer]

And we're live on Matchday as Doug reaches for a Buffalo wing. He's got it. Oh, and he's gone for a can of Pepsi, too. What a finish. There's no doubt about it. It just tastes better. Match Days deserve Pepsi.

[Joanna]

Well, he gets away with so many things. One of the things I'm slightly fascinated that he gets away with is clearly lying about his height. I saw a photo this week which I wanted to bring to your attention because it involves my friend John Thune, who I think looks so much more presidential than Trump.

[Michael]

Well, wait a minute, wait a minute. Let's stop there. The idea that anyone. That Trump anyway, looks presidential.

[Joanna]

Yes. Fair.

[Michael]

I mean, he's a grotesque, clownish. I mean, the only way that he looks presidential is in the context that in order to be president, you have to. People have to be. Just can't take your eyes off of you.

[Joanna]

Well, and that's certainly true, but can we totally agree. Okay, now can we look at the height differential here of these two guys? Cause John Thune is 6 foot 4. Donald Trump insists he's 6 foot 2, but he's shrinking. He's shrinking into the giant shrimp that Steve Bannon said that he was. I think he looks more like Vicen because he's so sort of big around the shoulders, but he's definitely not 6 foot 2. I mean, John Theune looks like he's got 4 inches on him there. I know that size isn't supposed to matter, but I think it does in this situation.

[Michael]

Well, we do shrink. Well, he's shrinking. I'm shrinking. As we sit here, can I just

[Joanna]

tell you the benefit of having I've had in the last year? Regular viewers and listeners will know I've had not one, but two hip Replacements in the last year, and I have grown an inch. Hugely grateful to my doctor for giving me an extra height. Extra inch from my height. Anyway, I don't think that's what John Thune is doing. I think that Donald Trump is literally shrinking as we see him.

[Michael]

How old is John Thune?

[Joanna]

He was born 61, so he's 65.

[Michael]

Well, Donald Trump is, as we know, 80. And as we should repeat on a regular basis, Donald Trump is 80. And, you know, you shrink. There it is.

[Joanna]

You shrink. Well, we're watching it, but maybe he's got accelerated shrinking, which could be a new form of syndrome. Accelerate a s. S ass. I think he's got accelerated shrinking syndrome, Michael. And diagnosing him, which I know you don't like it when people do. Okay, so the New York Times appears to have frankly caught up with something that we have been talking about since we started this podcast, which is that Donald Trump basically has a series of obsessions, and he rules by obsession. That's what. That's what.

[Michael]

Totally. I think it's extraordinary that the Times has taken so long to get to this. I mean, they have so assiduously tried to see Trump in a relatively normal political context. Cause and effect. This is. He does this to pursue this goal. And so this week in the Times, in this Times story, they basically threw that out. I mean, after 10 years, they basically saying, oh, yeah, yeah, that's not true. He does things for no reason whatsoever except that they live in his head. Which if you came here and we

[Joanna]

would tell you, well, hello, inside Trump's head. That's the point of us doing this. Yes. You know, he. His policy is based on whoever annoyed him on television that morning.

[Michael]

I mean, I have, you know, criticized the Times again and again and again. But. But this was kind of. Kind of stunning. A stunning admission on their part that they literally do not know how to report about this president. Their way of reporting about a president is. Is. Is as we report about politics. It's a process business. And this story identifies the exact opposite situation. There's no process at all. It is pure obsession. Whatever comes into his head. The goddamn reflecting pool. The reflecting pool literally, that exists outside of politics. There's no cause and effect. This is not going to be good for him in any way. He is not going to gain from this. And the only reason it is happening is that he can't get it out of his mind. It is something. It literally. And I've spoken to people in the White House who are kind of agog at this, too. It's all he talks about. So all that. The New York Times. The next logical headline for the New York Times is President of the United States Crazy as a fruitcake. Now, they will not get there, of course, but this is effectively what they are saying now. Finally. Finally.

[Joanna]

Well, I find the New York Times compelling for all sorts of reasons, and it's a huge resource. But at the same time, they've also really struggled to, or they were really, really late on understanding the importance of the Epstein files.

[Michael]

Well, they can't even get that story. I mean, I mean, they did a story of Jeffrey Epstein's. Jeffrey Epstein as a, as a child.

[Joanna]

Was this the one on his childhood growing up.

[Michael]

Growing up in which they managed to spend. They spent a lot of words saying Jeffrey Epstein appears to have been absolutely normal.

[Joanna]

No one noticed as a child that he was going to grow into one of the most diabolical people of the century.

[Michael]

Well, I'm trying to think that. I would say that that would be a New York Times line and clearly an overstatement in any reasonable context of history. But what can I say?

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[Joanna]

Natalie Harp stuff in Regime Change, the new Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan book. I feel like you had all this in your book. And we've been talking about Natalie Harp, AKA the human printer, for some time now.

[Michael]

Again, the New York Times, I mean, how. I mean, I mean, they're running years behind at this point. I mean, Natalie Harp is a good story, a kind of important story because she spends so much time. She is the person who spends. Nobody spends more time with the President of the United States than Natalie Harp. And this is a relationship that, that. Yeah. I described at great length in, in my book about the campaign. Yeah. So the fact that the New York Times suddenly wakes up to this, you know, again. And I think that part of the history of understanding the Trump presidency will be understanding how poorly the news media, the New York Times particularly, has covered this guy and this has happened because they just don't understand them because he exists outside of politics and all of their political reporters exist inside of politics.

[Joanna]

Right.

[Michael]

But I would go back to say that Natalie Harp's story is a piece of work. And in. In my. In my book, in all or Nothing, I, you know, I produced a set of. A set of notes that she had written the president. I mean, love letters in which everybody.

[Ad Voice]

During.

[Michael]

Everybody was in a. A major kerfuffle over this, including the Secret Service warning the President of the United States or warning aides to the president, whose job it was then to bring to the president, whether they did or not, that they saw her as a danger to herself and to him.

[Joanna]

And is the implication that she's in love with him in these notes? Because she writes in these notes? No one is more important to me.

[Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Michael]

I mean, these are love. Love notes. Mash notes. Yeah, completely.

[Joanna]

And she leaves them in his private spaces. What are his private spaces?

[Michael]

No, she leaves them. So Natalie Harp is. Everything that he reads is funneled through Natalie Harp because she's the human printer. She prints out this stuff. And so. And the stuff that she prints out is this laudatory stuff. Anything laud she's searching for at all times and then giving to the president other things that will. That will cause him ire. So. And actually, that would be her agenda. So things that cause her ire that the president. That will also cause the president ire that goes to him. But in this pile of papers, she also frequently includes personal notes to him and notes that, you know, you're the alpha and the omega, the be all and end all. What would I be without you? And then weird kind of language which kind of suggests him punishing her. I'm not even gonna go there.

[Joanna]

Him punishing her. That sounds very strange. Well, they're sort of motivational love notes, aren't they? That's what I thought when I read them, that they're sort of supposed to be motivating for him. And.

[Michael]

No, I don't. I don't think that that's true at all. I think that they're. They're straight up. You know, I want to. You know, I want to climb into bed with you. She doesn't say this, but I think that is. That's the tone of this. I love you. I exist because of you. I exist only in your shadow.

[Joanna]

And how do they compare with the Love notes that RFK Jr still Jr at 72, the love texts that he sent to Olivia Nuzzi? I want to put a baby in you. I need you to. There was some very strange language around those texts.

[Michael]

Yeah, well, I think most Most, most love notes should not be read by outsiders. But that all, probably most love notes

[Joanna]

should not be written, I think, is the, is the conclusion from this or certainly not left around for public consumption.

[Michael]

And those notes that the Natalie Harp notes were passed to me by other aides of the, of the President who were equally as appalled by this. And that's one of the things that exists currently in the Trump White House, this tension that she has. This is a person who the President has allowed to become really his closest confidant.

[Joanna]

And she looks like Melania with blonde hair. I mean, to your point, we've talked extensively on this podcast about how the women around Trump all look the same. They wear boots, they wear skirts, they have long hair. Margo Martin, Melania Hope Hicks. And I remember Hope Hicks telling me that she used to get up at three in the morning so that she was always at her desk by 5am because we know that he doesn't sleep. And it sounds like Natalie Harp is sort of 247 at the White House at this point.

[Michael]

Yeah, no, and she was, I mean, during the campaign, there was a concerted effort to, to get her away from the President, to get in her way to do anything to impede her access. And when they moved during the summer of 2024, when they moved up to Bedminster, actually, this was probably the summer of 2023 because they then they stayed in Palm. Anyway, they moved up there and they did not give her any housing accommodations. And then she arranged it on her own that she would be able to stay in a maid's quarter at Bedminster, but that was far from the main house where Trump was. So instead she moved herself into, to the women's locker room and spent the summer there.

[Joanna]

Was there a bed in the women's locker room that.

[Michael]

I don't know. I can't.

[Joanna]

I hope she didn't have to squeeze.

[Michael]

It cannot have been very comfortable.

[Joanna]

I hope she didn't have to squeeze herself into a locker and sleep there. Perhaps she had to lock herself into locker at night so no one could find her. Well, the mystery of Natalie Harpe continues. But I remember those love notes and I remember talking about them with you. When we first started doing Inside Trump's head, which is 10 months ago at this point, we promised that we would talk about Lee Greenwood.

[Michael]

Love Lee Greenwood.

[Joanna]

God bless the usa.

[Michael]

This was always, you know, the thing that I looked for when I had to go to these, when I did go to these Trump events, always the moment I looked forward to is Lee Greenwood tottering out on stage. The oldest country music star in the world. There he was.

[Joanna]

Can that be true? He's only 83. I feel like there are lots of them that are probably older than that.

[Michael]

Well, you know, I said that. As I said that, I realized the country music probably attracts a lot of oldsters. Yeah.

[Joanna]

And of course, you know, he had as many stars. Might have been slowing down 25 years ago at his age. Cause he's 83 now, so he would have been sort of 60 then. He got a whole new surge of popularity post 9 11, didn't he? I mean, our producer Ryan was saying that they were always playing God Bless the USA in school. And it was a sort of. It's like a sort of shadow Star Spangled Banner.

[Michael]

Yeah. No, and again, there's that thing about, you know, Trump and his idea of American taste. So, I mean, I find it hard to imagine that actually that this has resoundingly scored with.

[Ad Voice]

I.

[Michael]

We're going to just stop a minute as you get the. That's Paris.

[Joanna]

That's Paris. The church bells in Paris. And it's rather wonderful, isn't it, to hear the bells. You have the Amagansett horn at noon.

[Michael]

But it's. So Lee Greenwood, you know, I mean, Trump is in the middle of this, of having to stage this 250th birthday of the United States of America, which is apparently going as a total fiasco. And the only basic star he's been able to produce is Lee.

[Joanna]

And of course, it's particularly thrown into contrast because Barack Obama had Stevie Wonder and who must actually be around the same age as Lee Greenwood, isn't he?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Ad Voice]

No, I have to.

[Michael]

I take back this. Everybody, every. Every musician. Totally. Paul McCartney is my Amaganset neighbor. Is.

[Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Joanna]

Everybody in their 80s. Everybody's in their 80s at this point. Yeah. All the. All the musicians. But certainly, I mean, the boss isn't quite 80, but Stevie, wonderful.

[Michael]

The musicians, all of the politicians, everybody we've rolled over here. No, I think it's. I mean, all this criticism of Donald Trump for being 80 may just be that the world is 80. That the only people who really matter are 80.

[Joanna]

Yeah. NATO's 80. I mean, think of it that way.

[Michael]

So Lee Greenwall. Jesus, why am I making him Jewish? He is the least Jewish person on earth. But at any rate, Lee Greenwood. Might be the only star at the Trump Fair, at the Trump 250th birthday fair, and he actually may be the only person or among the few people who show up. So, Joanna, you Have a perv report from the Americas. What is this thing called? America's Fair.

[Ryan Reynolds]

America.

[Joanna]

America's State Fair.

[Michael]

America's State Fair. Okay, the perv report.

[Joanna]

A perv report. Well, it was simply that a MAGA live streamer called Manny, who was dressed up as Uncle Sam, you know, complete Stars and Stripes absolutely everywhere. It turned out that because there weren't very many people there, he was easy to spot. Plus he was livestreaming and there was an acrobatic group of sort of Cirque du Soleil light. And Manny was reported to be enjoying himself rather too much. And his hands apparently were down the front of his pants. And not once, not twice, but three times he had to be approached by police. And finally they took him away and arrested him, which must have been tough. Cause that must have brought the numbers of the crowd down significantly. I think we're going to show some pictures of just how few people have turned up for this thing.

[Michael]

And he was one of these Uncle Sam caricatures on stilts. He was on stilts.

[Joanna]

He was enjoying himself on stilts.

[Ryan Reynolds]

He.

[Joanna]

He wasn't on stilts. I thought he was on stilts. He was not on stilts.

[Michael]

How disappointing.

[Joanna]

Do you want to make any remarks on J.D. vance embracing the mantle of Richard Nixon?

[Sports Announcer]

I do.

[Michael]

I think extraordinary. What could have motivated that? Except that there is a thing and this is a Trump thing. So everything, and I think you have to understand, see it in this light, everything that JD Vance says, every single word out of his mouth has some ulterior motive with regard to Donald Trump. So Donald Trump has a Nixon fixation, often comes up. Nixon got a bum deal. Nixon was screwed. Or the favorite thing. Nixon should have burned the tapes. If Nixon had only burned the tapes, I would have Trump saying this, burned the tapes. So much. So within the Trump circle, it's the burn. They go burn the tapes, rolling their eyes, having heard this so often. So I think this is JD Vance is sending that message back to Donald Trump. I agree with you. I'm on the same plane. The Nixon thing. Nixon got a bum deal.

[Joanna]

So is he saying that because he's projecting, because he thinks he got a bum deal last time round, or what is the contrast gainer here, as you would say?

[Michael]

Well, J.D. vance is just saying this just to please Donald Trump. Everything he's saying a way to please Donald Trump. Everything a his campaign to ultimately get Donald Trump's approval. There is going to be a moment where Donald Trump is going to have to say, I endorse J.D. vance. Or I endorse someone else. Or I endorse nobody.

[Joanna]

Or I endorse all of them. I mean, we just had a race. Both candidates.

[Michael]

Exactly. Exactly. But J.D. vance. J.D. vance's life at this point is. Is hooked on one event. That event. Donald Trump saying I endorse you.

[Joanna]

We've got a new contributor to our limericks. This one is from Nicholas Rochford, New Blue Pool. Now not so cool. Our prez flies off the handle. Can't afford another scandal go got to find and jail a vandal. Very apropos. Then this is one from someone called Haverthink. There once was a king with a pool. When he looked at it, he saw a fool, so he huffed and he puffed, ordered help to be snuffed and succeeded in ending his rule. And then we have one from Garfried. There was once a man Trump in a funk by a pond with green algae Quite sunk while the wars raged abroad and his poles took a plod he still brooded on slime in the bunk. Very creative. Very creative. We get lots of them and I'm not very good at collating them, but very good news. We have an intern starting on Monday who's going to start going through the comments and being really methodical about how we respond to them and how we collect your comments and take themes from them and actually answer some of your questions specifically. And someone made a very good point last week, which I hadn't noticed. And, Michael, you didn't notice as well either, which that I constantly refer to Ukraine as the Ukraine, because when I grew up in school, that's how it was referred to. But in fact, in 1991, when Ukraine became its own country, you're supposed to drop the definite objects.

[Michael]

I've corrected you on this before and I've given up. Yes, and I've given up because you can only correct someone so often.

[Joanna]

Well, turns out that we have a very knowledgeable Ukrainologist, I think, listening to the show. And they write a woman or a man. They write a long.

[Michael]

Literally everybody has learned this lesson over the past four years.

[Joanna]

Okay, well, never having talked about Ukraine, we do now talk about Ukraine regularly. And I've got to drop the. So, duly corrected. Duly noted. Thank you. And if you have been. Thank you for watching and thank you

[Michael]

for listening and I will see you in person, I believe.

[Joanna]

Very exciting.

[Michael]

Over croissants if you indeed do come back, which I still have my doubts about.

[Joanna]

From the hottest place on earth.

[Michael]

Thank you, Ryan, Heather, Neil, John, there's one more. Don't tell me. Rachel. For God's sake, Rachel. Thank you.

[Joanna]

So the good news is we have so many beast tier members now there are too many names to read out. And we really appreciate your support.

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[Michael]

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[Joanna]

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