Missing clues, Trump claims the right to pursue his political enemies

Watching Donald Trump's interviews with Fox News' Sean Hannity is a unique viewing experience. As we've discussed, the host is a close and longtime ally of the former president, so everyone watching understands that the Q&A session won't be a contentious discussion.

What makes their discussions particularly interesting, however, is Hannity's willingness to use their interviews to steer Trump in specific directions. It's something viewers have seen the host do again and again: Hannity has the Republican's interests at heart, so he works to guide Trump toward specific answers that the host believes will ultimately help his political friend.

The problem is that the Republican Party's presumptive presidential candidate regularly misses the signals.

Late last year, for example, Hannity asked Trump if he planned to “abuse power, break the law, use the government to go after people.” The obvious point was for Trump to say he did not intend to break the law or abuse his authority. The former president, however, did not understand the essential point and deviated.

So, Hannity tried again to convince his guest to say the sensible thing. “Under any circumstances will you promise America tonight that you will never abuse your power in retaliation against anyone?” » asked the Fox host. Trump responded by saying he wanted to create a temporary American dictatorship.

Last night, the duo tried again. This also happened.

“Will you commit to restoring equal justice, equal enforcement of our laws, and ending this practice of militarization? the Fox host asked, pointing out developments that have no basis in reality. “Is this a promise you’re going to make?” »

Trump finally responded: “Look, I know you want me to say something so nice, but I don’t want to seem naive. »

It was a rare look at the fourth wall: The former president explicitly acknowledged, out loud and on camera, that he was aware of Hannity's efforts — even though Trump wasn't interested in the signal .

During the same on-air appearance, the Fox host also highlighted those who “want people to believe that you want retaliation, that you will use the justice system to go after your political enemies.” Once again, the former president did not understand.

“Look, when this election is over, based on what they did, I would have every right to sue them,” Trump responded.

Taking a step back, the Republican's frankness is somewhat refreshing. It's not exactly a secret that Trump lies uncontrollably about virtually everything, and it's easy to imagine a scenario in which he offered false assurances to voters before the election, for the sole purpose of getting back at his alleged enemies – who, in reality, did nothing. false – after inauguration day.

But in this case, he doesn't bother pretending. Trump wants to go after his domestic political enemies, and he doesn't seem particularly interested in hiding his intentions. On the contrary, he speaks of his desire to constantly abuse presidential powers.

A New York Times analysis, published today, points out that Trump is effectively putting the rule of law “on the ballot.” Hannity wanted to help the former president remove the question from the ballot, but the Republican candidate, hell-bent on revenge, just couldn't help himself.

This article updates our related prior coverage.