One way that Donald Trump’s waning influence in Washington is evident is how some in Congress are “not afraid” of him anymore, foreign policy analyst David Rothkopf says.
Rothkopf, appearing Monday on The Daily Beast Podcast, pointed to Trump’s inability to prevent the Republican-controlled Congress from voting to release the Jeffrey Epstein files, and to former Trump ally Marjorie Taylor Greene telling 60 Minutes that members of her party mock Trump behind his back.
Greene, 51, and 54-year-old Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, who led the effort on the Epstein legislation, “are not afraid of Trump anymore,” the Daily Beast columnist told Executive Editor Hugh Dougherty. “In some respects, the biggest development in U.S. politics in the past couple of months is nobody’s afraid of Trump.”
Additionally, Rothkopf said, the image lately of the 79-year-old president is not one of a “vigorous person.” That has led to murmurs within the administration about how the next few years will play out.
“[Secretary of State Marco] Rubio has had his spine surgically removed. He is not standing up for anything either. But I think Rubio, like JD Vance, is sitting there going, ‘How do I play this because I want to succeed Donald Trump?’” Rothkopf said, before alluding to the frequent bruising on Trump’s right hand, his diagnosis of chronic venous insufficiency, and his M.R.I. in October—which the White House claims was preventative.
“They actually are serious issues because they are evidence that Donald Trump is at the end of his story,” Rothkopf said. “They are signs to the world that this is not a vigorous person. This is not a person whose biography is about their future. It’s about their past. And everybody can see that in Washington.”
Trump’s apparent dozing off during public events, like at last week’s Cabinet meeting, is also sending the wrong message, Rothkopf continued.
“Marco Rubio is sitting there going, you know, ‘The president is the most vigorous, brilliant man ever.’ And Trump’s like passed out next to him, you know?” Rothkopf said.
Trump’s seemingly more frequent moves to name institutions and buildings after himself—like the U.S. Institute of Peace and the Kennedy Center—are actions of someone thinking about his legacy because he feels like his time is dwindling, Rothkopf added.
“If you’re watching his Band-Aids and you’re watching his cankles, the number of things he wants to name after himself, I think is a good indicator of how ill he thinks he is, because this is just him looking for some legacy,” he argued. “It’s just him saying, ‘Well, that could make me immortal.’ Because I think he realizes that he is shuffling off this mortal coil sooner rather than later.”
When reached for comment, the White House strongly defended the president’s ability to keep up with his job responsibilities.
“As the President’s physician, Dr. Sean Barbabella, has made clear time and again — and as the American people see with their own eyes every single day — President Trump remains in excellent overall health," Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told the Daily Beast in a statement.
“President Trump’s relentless work ethic, unmatched energy, and historic accessibility stand in sharp contrast to what we saw during the past four years when the failing legacy media intentionally covered up Joe Biden’s serious mental and physical decline from the American people,” she continued. “Pushing these fake and desperate narratives now about President Trump is why Americans’ trust in the media just fell to a new all-time low.”
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