Trump Screamed At Pentagon Leaders And Told Them They Were ‘Dopes’ And ‘Babies’

President Donald Trump speaks on tax reform during a meeting in the Oval Office on December 5, 2017. (Photo credit: SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

President Donald Trump repeatedly berated U.S. military leaders while throwing a massive fit during a Pentagon meeting in 2017, according to “A Very Stable Genius: Donald J. Trump’s Testing of America,” a book penned by Washington Post reporters Carol D. Leonnig and Philip Rucker.

An excerpt from the book describes how Trump’s meeting with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs General Joseph F. Dunford Jr. and flag officials on July 20, 2017 (arranged by then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, then-Secretary of Defense James Mattis, and then-National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn) went completely off the rails.

The temper tantrum began when Trump started complaining about the “loser war” in Afghanistan and demanded to know “where is the fucking oil” that he felt the U.S. deserved for its military presence in the Persian Gulf.

“You’re all losers,” he told them. “You don’t know how to win anymore.”

It didn’t end there; According to Leonnig and Rucker, Trump became so angry that “he wasn’t taking many breaths” and bellowed to the commanders in a fit of rage, “I wouldn’t go to war with you people.”

“You’re a bunch of dopes and babies,” he shouted.

Everyone in the room was shocked.

“How does the commander in chief say that?” one participant thought, according to the Post. “What would our worst adversaries think if they knew he said this?”

Trump’s attack was apparently Tillerson’s breaking point.

“No, that’s just wrong,” he said to Trump. “Mr. President, you’re totally wrong. None of that is true.”

The secretary of state asserted that those who join the military “don’t do it to become soldiers of fortune.”

“That’s not why they put on a uniform and go out and die,” he said. “They do it to protect our freedom.”

In a private conversation with Cohn and Mattis right after the meeting, Tillerson let loose and made the infamous comment about Trump that would get leaked to the press a few months later.

“He’s a fucking moron,” the secretary of state said.

Latest News
230
Show Comments

Notable Replies

  1. I think that photo is the perfect portrayal of the Oaf in the Oval Office.

    I think that is the way he will be remembered in history. It should probably be his official portrait.

  2. A stable military Jenius, too…

    cadet%20bone%20spur

  3. Dear Flag-waving-patriotic republicans,

    This is what you’re supporting.

    Luvs,

    America

  4. I’d have to say that if it took until July of 2017 for Tillerson to figure out that Spanky’s a moron, then Tillerson is pretty slow on the uptake.

  5. MDGA

    “Make Dueling Great Again”

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

224 more replies

Participants

Avatar for ajm Avatar for silvrfox Avatar for littlegirlblue Avatar for mondfledermaus Avatar for mattinpa Avatar for blandsten Avatar for earlgreyparty Avatar for drriddle Avatar for 26degreesrising Avatar for lastroth Avatar for dickweed Avatar for tena Avatar for lizzymom Avatar for castor_troy Avatar for dannydorko Avatar for cub_calloway Avatar for kelaine Avatar for luckie Avatar for skeptical Avatar for kenga Avatar for heartflow Avatar for rockitttla Avatar for emiliano4 Avatar for Bri2k

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: