Trump Reportedly Improvised ‘Fire And Fury’ Comments On North Korea

President Donald Trump looks at members of the media extra the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, during his meeting with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, Tuesday, 25, 2017. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
In this July 25, 2017, photo, President Donald Trump sits in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. Trump is likely to sign a tough new sanctions bill that includes proposed measures targeting Russia _ a r... In this July 25, 2017, photo, President Donald Trump sits in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. Trump is likely to sign a tough new sanctions bill that includes proposed measures targeting Russia _ a remarkable concession that the president has yet to sell his party on his hopes for forging a warmer relationship with Moscow. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

When President Donald Trump issued a warning Tuesday that North Korea “will be met with fire and fury” if the country continues to pose a nuclear threat, he was completely improvising, the New York Times reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources familiar with the situation.

When Trump responded to reports that North Korea had produced a nuclear warhead small enough to fit into a missile, he appeared to be reading from a statement. The paper he held only listed talking points about the opioid crisis, however, according to the New York Times.

Trump did not run the language he used by advisers beforehand, according to the New York Times. Politico also reported that Trump did not run his statement through the State Department.

Addressing questions about who Trump consulted with before his “fire and fury” remarks, White House spokeswoman Lindsey Walters told reporters Wednesday that the President had been discussing North Korea with his advisers.

“The president and chief of staff Kelly are and have been in constant contact with members of the NSC team,” Walters said, according to a White House pool report.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said later on Wednesday that Trump had consulted with advisers about the “tone” of his comments on North Korea but not the exact language.

“General Kelly and others on the NSC team were well aware of the tone of the statement of the president Prior to delivery. The words were his own. The tone and strength of the message were discussed beforehand,” Sanders said, according to the pool report. “They were clear the president was going to respond to North Korea’s threats following the sanctions with a strong message in no uncertain terms.”

She did not say whether Trump consulted his advisers on the exact language he should use to address North Korea.

Trump’s fiery remarks set off an escalation in already strained tensions between the U.S. and North Korea, with North Korea threatening to attack the U.S. territory of Guam.

Since the President’s impromptu comments, administration officials have sought to temper his warning, with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson saying that the situation with North Korea has not changed dramatically and that “Americans should sleep well at night.”

This post has been updated.

Latest DC

Notable Replies

  1. Guess he watched Game of Thrones Sunday night. What a pathetic little man.

  2. Is there anything he doesn’t improvise ? Donnie is not very keen on doing his homework…

  3. Avatar for paulw paulw says:

    When does he not tweet from the hip?

  4. I used to say the same kind of thing when I was 13 and listening to speed metal and writing my own D&D adventures

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

73 more replies

Participants

Avatar for cabchi Avatar for paulw Avatar for overreach_this Avatar for old_curmudgeon Avatar for jloomis3 Avatar for boscobrown Avatar for johnbarleycorn Avatar for ralph_vonholst Avatar for nymund Avatar for dickweed Avatar for cincypix Avatar for wagonmound Avatar for reggid Avatar for tena Avatar for psychobroad Avatar for originalbob Avatar for edhedh Avatar for cat_grey Avatar for dannydorko Avatar for canuckistani Avatar for socalista Avatar for maximus Avatar for skeptical Avatar for edgewise

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: