CNN Calls Out ‘Adulation And Praise’ At Cabinet Meeting Amid Market Debacle: ‘Getting A Lot Of Love’ He Was ‘Needing Today’
CNN anchors Boris Sanchez, Brianna Keilar, and CNN Chief National Affairs Correspondent Jeff Zeleny called out the “adulation” showered on President Donald Trump during a cabinet meeting after the financial markets forced Trump to back off tariffs.
Trump held a 73-minute cabinet meeting Thursday afternoon on the heels of the chaos wrought by tariff policies that wrecked financial markets, after which Trump announced a 90-day “pause” on most of the tariffs that caused the markets to tank.
The meeting included all of the features that have become staples of these gatherings under Trump; the round-robin obsequiousness, the questioning from a press pool that now includes Trump-friendly outlets, and the claims that need to be fact-checked.
On Thursday’s edition of CNN News Central, seconds after the cabinet meeting ended, all three noted that the even seemed dedicated to “pumping up” the president after a rough couple of weeks:
KEILAR: President Trump there saying he thinks it is going to work out, but he was asked if he’s been in touch with President Xi of China, because of course now the cumulative tariffs on China are at 145 percent, he wouldn’t answer. He just said he thinks it is going to work out. But that was a long cabinet meeting and there are many things certainly to fact check here.
SANCHEZ: Yeah, a lot of adulation and praise from cabinet members for the president. A lot to fact-check as well. Let’s go straight to the White House with CNN’s Jeff Zeleny. We also have with us Senior Reporter, Daniel Dale, and Richard Quest, who has been closely watching markets.
And Jeff, on that point, the president was asked what he makes of the fact that the stock market has trended downward since yesterday’s enormous gains following his announcement of this 90-day pause on most tariffs. The president there is saying that he hasn’t been watching the market today.
ZELENY: So today, the president is not watching the market. Yesterday, of course, we know he was watching the market. Look, the president in the cabinet room there is just steps away from the Oval Office. He, of course, has the full battery of aides around him and information at his fingertips. He was having a long cabinet meeting by design.
This is something that was on the agenda today, so the president can be meeting with his advisors, but, so he perhaps would not have to be watching the market bit by bit. But he is very aware of what is going on in the market. There is no doubt about that. But, the reality here is we can always put to bed the question, is the President watching the market? Yes, he is. The bond market as well. But I thought the treasury secretary, when he was asked that direct question about the market today, his response was quite interesting. Let’s watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCOTT BESSENT, (R) UNITED STATES TREASURY SECRETARY: As we go through the queue and settle with these countries who are going to bring us their best offers, we will end up in a place of great certainty over the next 90 days on tariffs. We had very good inflation numbers today. Oil is down. We had a successful bond market. So I don’t think you’d see anything unusual today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: It doesn’t seem anything unusual. There will be uncertainty — there will be certainty in 90 days. Of course, there’s uncertainty right now. But look, the Trump administration is trying to put a good light on the fact that the market is once again responding to the trade war that is at hand. Nevermind the one that has been set aside, but the reality here is that the U.S. and China are on the brink of a very significant and serious trade war. So that is what the market is doing. But by and large, otherwise in the cabinet meeting, we did see Elon Musk literally sitting at the table there. It’s the first time we have seen him in public, of course, since all this ended.
We know very clear what side he was on in this whole discussion over trade. He thought that the Peter Navarro’s side of things pushing for sweeping tariffs was wrong. So Elon Musk clearly back at the table here, but otherwise, it clearly was a moment for the president to be built up a bit, if you will, pumped up a bit by his staff, by saying how great things are, even as we know there are many challenges afoot in the markets and otherwise.
KEILAR: Yeah, he was getting a lot of love, which perhaps he was needing today.
Watch above via CNN News Central.
