Has Trump lost control of his own party?
4/9/202645 min
Besides Trump's threat to eliminate Iran, something else remarkable happened this week. A string of Republican Congressmen finally found the courage in themselves to come forward and criticise that threat.
Trump's actions in the Middle East are a disaster for his colleagues. Gas prices are up, the affordability agenda is in tatters, and America looks on course for a humiliating military defeat to an old adversary. Is this the catalyst for widespread rebellion in the Republican party?
Jon speaks to Marc Short, Trump's director of legislative affairs, about what happens now in Iran - and to the Republican's in the midterms later this year.
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First 90 secondsJon Sopel· Host0:00
This is a Global Player original podcast.
Marc Short· Guest0:03
That Iran would probably say, you know, "We understand that America's sensitivity point is a certain price of oil." But I think if the elections were today, it'd be a bloodbath for Republicans.
Emily Maitlis· Host0:12
You kind of get the impression that there are a few people around Donald Trump who are making large sums of money out of this.
Speaker 3· Soundbite0:18
It seems that there's been an extraordinary amount of corruption in the second administration that I don't recall from the first administration.
Jon Sopel· Host0:25
That is Marc Short, who was Donald Trump's director of legislative affairs in the first term, and a very senior and thoughtful Republican who thinks that everything right now is going wrong.
Emily Maitlis· Host0:38
If Republicans are looking at a bloodbath in the midterm elections, are they about to start turning against their president? Welcome to the News Agents USA.
Jon Sopel· Host0:50
[upbeat music] The News Agents USA. It's John.
Emily Maitlis· Host0:56
It's Maitlis.
Jon Sopel· Host0:56
And a little later on, we'll hear a lot more from Marc Short as he sits down and talks about the problems facing the Republican Party and how to deal with Donald Trump and the widespread corruption that he now sees taking place before his eyes, um, with the Trump family enriching themselves off the presidency, and how he just feels the Republican Party has completely lost its way under Donald Trump. And as I say, this was someone who was very close to the president in the first term and was Mike Pence's chief of staff on that fateful