‘I can’t stay here’ — Mick Mulvaney resigns from Trump administration, expects others to follow
“I can’t do it. I can’t stay,” said Mulvaney, adding that Trump was “not the same as he was eight months ago.”
Actually I think he is the same as he was eight months ago. He was a psychotic con man then just as he is now.
Its just that as more and more people are waking up to just how sneaky (and just how dangerous!) he is-- Trump has gotten more and more desperate, so has really started to "let the mask" slip.
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Mick Mulvaney, who was serving as special envoy to Northern Ireland, has resigned. Mark Wilson/Getty Images
KEY POINTS
- Mick Mulvaney, President Trump’s former chief of staff, told CNBC he has resigned as special U.S. envoy to Northern Ireland.
- Mulvaney said he called Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday night to tell him of his decision.
- “I can’t do it. I can’t stay,” said Mulvaney, adding that Trump was “not the same as he was eight months ago.”
- He said other officials may follow suit.
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“I called [Secretary of State] Mike Pompeo last night to let him know I was resigning from that. I can’t do it. I can’t stay,” Mick Mulvaney said in an exclusive interview on “Squawk Box.”
“Those who choose to stay, and I have talked with some of them, are choosing to stay because they’re worried the president might put someone worse in,” Mulvaney said. But he said other officials may resign after Wednesday’s riot at the U.S. Capitol.
An administration official confirmed to CNBC’s Eamon Javers that National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien was considering resigning over the insurrection.
O’Brien’s deputy, Matthew Pottinger, has reportedly resigned.
Stephanie Grisham, chief of staff for first lady Melania Trump, and Sarah Matthews, White House deputy press secretary, resigned Wednesday.
“We didn’t sign up for what you saw last night,” Mulvaney said. “We signed up for making America great again, we signed up for lower taxes and less regulation. The president has a long list of successes that we can be proud of.”
Yes-- like, for example, convincing his followers that the Corona Virus was a hoax. That it would go away by itself. And setting an example-- but refusing to wear a mask.
And screwing up the economy by his stupid policies.
And advocating violent insurrection.
Mulvaney has no credibilty at all, on this or any issue.
I agree. Rat leaving the sinking ship.
Let's see...what was it he said about Trump's extortion phone call to the President of Ukraine? Oh yeah, he said, "We do it all the time. Get over it."
My advice to Mick regarding his lack of a meaningful future? Get over it.
Sorry Mick..... The Trump stink isn't that easily removed. People of character know how to avoid the shit, and stick with Shinola....!
You're stuck forever as being an enabler for Trump.
Not the same he was 8 months ago? Oh please. He has been like that for 4 years.
From a legacy perspective, it is a good thing for a mass exodus of Trump's staff. I would prefer to see his cabinet vote for using the 25th, but in lieu of that happening (not much of a chance), it would be good for his entire cabinet to resign. Mulvaney and other lesser positions are helpful too.
Bullshit. He is the same piece of crap he has always been.
Funny as the power of the office donald holds winds down more and more people all the sudden have the 'courage' to say something...
Bullshit again. Cowards one and all. Guarantee that if donald had won the election he would still be there praising him.
Exactly.
Most Americans can see this sort of bullshit.
(As the election results have proven).
Most of Trump's die-hard MAGA-cultists will be fooled, as usual.
But they are a minority.
True. But I can see Mulvaney's point here. Losing the election put Trump into a scenario where his true nature was much more exposed. When people get desperate it usually is possible to better see the true person.
From my perspective, Trump surprised me with his post-election behavior. I have always recognized him as a narcissistic asshole and an embarrassment for the office, but I did not expect him to literally engage in a completely unevidence con job where he fires up his supporters to believe the election was stolen from him. And to continue this indefinitely. He will likely never admit he legitimately lost and will wreak havoc as long as it helps him avoid being labeled a 'loser'.
You have probably not been as engaged in exposing Trump's true nature as other people have been. There is nothing new or extra disturbing about Trump since the election. He has always been like this.
Mick Mulvaney is just trying to get himself out from under his own personal p.r. problem as Trump's reputation further sinks.
Not me. He has been lying and scamming his followers the whole time. I predicted that if he lost he would not accept it and try to burn the house down.
It is a matter of extreme. It is one thing to be a malignant narcissist. It is another to engage in a worldwide con which damages the credibility of the US election system and incites divisive behavior for the foreseeable future.
Are you claiming that you expected that Trump would, after 60 failed lawsuits, endless attempts at persuasion, endless appeals to the public, rebukes by his own party, etc. continue to claim that the election was stolen from him? Did you really expect this? This extreme behavior is what you expected?
I'll bet that even Pence is surprised by what took place post election.
Lying and scamming is one thing. Burning down the house is a whole new level. This is not shafting a business associate, this is the nation itself on the world stage.
This is a spoiled brat's temper tantrum
... a spoiled brat with nuclear codes...
In the fall of 2016 Trump was saying that the only way he could lose is if it was stolen from him. He was also saying at that time that he would not guarantee that he would accept the results of the 2016 election. There is no one that has familiarity with Trump's life that thinks he has gotten 'worse' in the past 8 months , he has always been like this. Mulvaney was trying to make himself acceptable for having waited so long to say something.
We can cite all sorts of bizarre behavior from Trump, but there are levels of extremes. It is one thing to not give a concession speech. It is wholly different to wield the power of the presidency to push a national con job claiming the election was stolen but have no evidence that even remotely approximates that claim. That is bad enough. But then to continue this damaging behavior through 60 lawsuits, numerous tactics to pressure officials, State certification, Congressional certification and to the point where people of his own party and within his own circles are jumping ship and speaking of the 25th amendment, etc., is extreme.
Trump is generally predictable. One need only imagine what a person would do if all he cares about is himself and who thinks he is always the smartest person in the room. But what has taken place since the election up to and including the present is way over-the-top.
By the way, it is obvious that Trump is doing this to avoid having to admit that he lost and is a 'loser' just like McCain. That certainly is predictable. But the level at which he is pursuing this is not something I am going to believe was predictable.
I was going to say that, sure... just keep in mind that he has no limits.
But then I realized that "no limits" gives dimension, but doesn't give direction. So yes, unpredictable.
I wonder how this is going to affect his business dealings out of office (assuming he is able to engage in business). Given that he has no normal limits, why would anyone want to do business with his company? I know that business pressures will cause people to take chances, but this has got to be a major red flag for people.
He has always been like this. His denying he lost the election is not objectively worse than trying to force the president of Ukraine to investigate Trumps election opponent and announce it to the world. It's not worse than him asking Russia to hack into his election opponents private computer system. It's not worse than ordering the US military to spread tear gas on peaceful protesters and then holding up a Bible in the aftermath and pretending it has any meaning to him.
Before he ever became president he was being described as a malignant narcissist with sociopathic tendencies. He has been cheating people all his life. He lies the way other people draw a breath. This was all known long before the last 8 months. People who think he changed during or since this past year and after the election simply havent paid attention to him in the past.
If he gets a TV gig in one corm or another, he'll do that. But otherwise, I think he'll retire to one of his golf courses.
Again, JR, being a malignant narcissist in and of itself does not determine the extreme that a person will go to. This has been a blatant con. There is no question that he is full of shit. He has tried to perpetuate a national con on the world stage and all the facts are known. That is profoundly different than allegations of abuse of power based on witnesses reporting on what they heard and inferred.
I have probably read and watched more about Trump, or at least as much, as anyone on this forum. I just dont agree that he has changed for the worse in recent months. He has always been just the way he is now.
I am not saying that Trump as a person has changed. I am saying that his behavior is far worse than we saw prior to the election. And it is not that his mental faults are worse; only that there is an opportunity for us to see the limits (if any) of his psychological issues. This makes sense because the circumstances post election forced him to admit defeat or engage in this lunacy. He was in a desperate situation. My surprise is just how far he has been willing to go when desperate. You tell me that you fully expected him to go this far. Okay. I bet you are then in an extreme minority. As noted, I would bet that Pence and other close associates have been surprised by just how over-the-top Trump has been.
That's the commonly held belief. And I'm sure its true.
But in addition, the fact is that the soon he will no longer have the office of the presidency to shield him from prosecutions-- for numerous offenses. The attorneys from The Southern District of NY having been preparing cases against him on several charges-- they are "locked and loaded"... and itching ti "pull the trigger" (to coin a phrase.).
They are ready to begin to proceed as soon as he leaves office.
So he knows the only way to avoid that (at least for four more years) is to hold on to the office...by any means posslble!
But, he has the right to pardon himself, so if he does that, many of the crimes he has committed will be pardoned and he will face no prosecution for them.
I am sure he will not only pardon himself, but, his two Sons, and Ivanka and her husband Jared as well before he is supposed to leave office on January 20th.
That would mean that he thought he had a chance to literally steal a presidential election for the first time in history. That would be delusional thinking. I have never considered Trump to be delusional; his faults are that he is a lying sack of shit who only cares about himself. He lies as a shortcut — it is like cheating at cards, shaving strokes off a golf score, etc. It is easier to 'win' if you cheat. That has been his secret to success in business: lying and cheating his associates and contractors. His whole existence is to rig every game in which he plays.
Given he must win reelection through a process of litigation, he would have to be entirely delusional to think that he can win legal battles with no supporting evidence. The only logical reason I can see for him continuing this stolen election charade is to avoid ever having to admit defeat. To battle against the obvious calls that he is a 'loser' just like he labeled McCain.
To wit ... this entire charade exists to protect his ego.
Does he?
A commentator - I haven't watched so much news since 9/11 - said something useful (!). In issuing a pardon, the President must define the scope. He must list the crimes.....
I remember waking up a little more than four years ago and getting a very physical pit in my stomach when I turned on the news. We all knew it was going to be horribly bad. There hasn’t been a single positive day of this administration. Mary Trump knows him very well, and she predicts this could get extremely worse if he’s not removed immediately. I believe her with every fiber of my being.
We must hope that the people around him will prevent him from doing anything disastrous. How terrible is it to be here!
I look at hope as being as useless as prayers. Aren't there any patriots loyal to the US Constitution left in the cabinet?
Surely.
But they may be more loyal to Trump.
So do I. He's not finished with his vengeful sabotage.
He was constrained to condemn the Capitol invasion. He'll want revenge.
Is Mulvaney really that stupid? A mere 8 months ago? HA! Trump has not changed, it is just that Mulvaney finally had his eyes opened and saw Trump as Trump really is and he just could not accept it.
Talk about blind loyalty.
Many of the rats stay on the ship until the last moment.
I am sure most of Trump's minions knew they were working for a malignant narcissist who is a pathological liar. But human beings typically tolerate a bad until they hit a threshold. We tend to not act when we should all the time ... held back with wishful thinking that things will get better and that we may not have to take the difficult action we face.