What A Day - Trump’s Vibing Approach To Governing

Episode Date: May 1, 2026

From the alleged attempted assassination of President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner to the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey (and everything in between), it’s been a long week in the United States. But one thing is for certain. Trump is one of the most powerful people on Earth. And yet, he spends so much of his time focused on trivial issues. Take that $400 million ballroom for example. A ballroom which most Americans oppose building by a 2-to-1 margin, according to new polling by the Washington Post and ABC News. So how does he get his base to buy in? How did we get to this place where his whims direct the news cycle? And how should Democrats respond – and get their own messages in front of the American people? To find out, we spoke with Keith Edwards. He’s a Democratic strategist, political commentator, and host of The Keith Edwards Show.And in headlines, raw milk is out and Fox News is in, the Department of Homeland Security is finally going to reopen, and Alina Habba takes on the ladies at The View.Show Notes: Check out The Keith Edwards Show Call Congress – 202-224-3121 Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/y4y2e9jy What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast Follow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/ For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

It's Friday, May 1st. I'm Jane Koston, and this is what a day. Show that finds it's strange that this is why President Donald Trump doesn't want to wear a bulletproof vest after three assassination attempts. I don't know if I can handle looking 20 pounds heavier. Look, I get it. But also, I don't think that would be the vest, Mr. President. On today's show, the Department of Homeland Security's longest shutdown ever finally. comes to an end. And somehow we missed Alina Haba joining the view for a cage match, I mean interview. But let's start with Trump's very strange week. On Saturday night, the president survived an attempted assassination at the White House Correspondence Dinner. And in response,

the president appears to have one singular thought. We got to build that White House ballroom. He even got the GOP on board. Here's South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham earlier this week. We're going to introduce legislation. that would authorize $400 million to be spent to secure the, to build the presidential ballroom, private donations can be used, but I think they should be used for buying China and stuff like that. Yes, those private donations that were supposed to be paying for the entire ballroom. This is nuts, right? Not enough people are saying it, but it is.

Donald Trump is one of the most powerful people on earth. His political party is in charge of Congress and arguably the Supreme Court. But even though his power is immense, his apparent vision is so small. Just keep cashing in as much as possible as the headlines get crazier and crazier. So how did we get to this place where Trump's whims direct the news cycle? How does he get his base to buy in? And how should Democrats respond? To find out, I chatted with Keith Edwards.

He's a Democratic strategist and host of the Keith Edwards Show. Keith, welcome to Water Day. Hey, how are you? I'm good. So you, like me, follow politics, follow the news day in and day out. And I know that because you are reacting to it on your YouTube channel. And I have to say, this week has felt crazier than most, which is really saying something. In your view, what is the wildest thing you've seen this week?

Oh, my God. There's so many. I think the wildest thing so far is a small thing. but Erica Kirk's random pronouncement about how she went to D.C. to confront reporters

but she was dressed like Janet Jackson. Yes. Erica Kirk, the widow of Charlie Kirk, did a video about like she was going to come to D.C. to confront reporters, but she was dressed like Janet Jackson in the Rhythm Nation video. Rhythm Nation, that's right.

I don't think that that's what she was going for, but what was she going for? Like, Ninja? Spy? What was the, what, does she, does she not think about these things? I don't know. I think that that's something, I mean, I wanted to ask you, how much, like, MAGA media in fighting do you observe get into? A lot. A lot. It's kind of my bread and butter. Okay. I enjoy it. Yeah. We need more of it on our side. We, we just going to say, we need left-wing influencers attacking each other. I'm serious. I'm kind of serious. Yeah. There's a whole, like, beat. Yeah. where the right-wing influencers are covered by like the bulwark. Yeah.

We don't have that on the left. No. I think that's to our detriment because then we don't have people that are really like garnering attention in the way that they are. What do you think that kind of attention does for conservatives, does for the right? Because I think that there's people on the left who would be like, we all got to be in lockstep because otherwise it's just going to be like they're going to find like the most irritating person among us and then pretend that we're all them.

Like there's a real, I think that there's kind of fear. There's a lot of fear and anxiety among liberals in the left. What do you think that the infighting on the right does for them? Well, it creates brands. And brands create name ID. And then when you have name ID, you can command attention. And sure, like, Laura Loomer is using that to, like, to ruin lives. Yeah, to ruin lives and to talk about the things that she thinks are really important.

But she really does have the capacity to, like, draw attention to the things she's interested in. And so Candace Owens does too, again, but this is like for evil, dark purposes. But I do think if we had folks on the left that could garner attention and actually like,

if we just had characters that were running amok, we need more people to run amok on the left. I've always been saying we need more running amok. People need to be out in the metaphorical streets. But I think that that gets to something I've been thinking about a lot, which is that Trump has, obviously, the biggest

name ID of all. He's still super unpopular with most people, but still holding steady with his base. What do you think makes Trump such a good messenger? Not a messenger of good things, but good at messaging. I think he, the thing he's really good at is he repeats it a lot. Like, we're all talking about the ballroom. Right. Why? Because he won't stop talking about the ballroom. Non-stop. Non-stop.

So there is, and that's how advertising works. You don't just buy one commercial and run it, maybe for a Super Bowl ad because you're expecting that to make a bigger impact. But you have to repeat a message over and over and over again in order for it to stick. And he's been, I don't know if he just intuits it or if he just, it's something he's learned over time, but he really does methodically say the same thing over and over. I think there's a purpose to that. And it's because he wants us to listen to the thing he wants to talk about.

He doesn't really talk about the things that the media wants to talk about. Or, I mean, I would argue the things that, like, everyday Americans would want him to talk about. Like, you know, he doesn't really talk about the economy except to talk about how it's amazing and perfect and everything is great. But if we're borrowing from Trump in that way, of, like bringing up things or trying to develop better name ID and thinking about how to communicate better as liberals and Democrats. What should we be learning from Trump? I think repetition is one thing.

I do think redefining things in the way that resonate not only with our voters, but, you know, maybe the more moderate voter who's not necessarily paying attention as much could work too. I like to call Like for instance Like my little version of this Is I call true social Donald Trump's blog You know

You want to cut it down in size Everyone calls it His social media platform please It's just him It's a blog It's a blog It's a blog It's a blog

It's a place where one person Goes to write And then people comment Okay No one else is on True Social going viral Right So I think there are those things

That we could be doing As a party To one just Kind of change The perception Of what's happening But two also just cut him down in size. I think cutting down someone who appeals or at least wants to be an authoritarian,

one of the best things you can do is try to like shrink them. Do you think we need to be like, how do we blend that with like, he's trying to do some terrible things and has done really terrible things. But also like they're really, he's incredibly thin-skinned and very easy to make fun off. So I think it's like yes and I don't think you have to do one or the other. Right. I think there are going to be some people who, lean on raising the alarms on like the threats to our democracy and our freedoms but I think there's

going to be other people who are really good at just like cutting him down in size and I think they're both really valuable. I personally was one of the people who was raising the alarm for a long time. I don't know how you feel. I kind of feel now I might regret saying this. I kind of feel like we're like it's I think we're going to be okay. That's how I feel today. I have also I mean again this is all one of those things where I'm just like, knock on wood, like, don't make this be like a thing I regret saying. But I kind of agree. I want to hear more about what you're thinking that. Well, I do think there was a moment where if Donald Trump had the desire or if he had the capacity, he could have probably overtaken most aspects of our government. Like, I really do believe there was a moment where that could have happened. I think he's become too unpopular. Authoritarians have to be popular in order to gain control of the government. And I also think we've seen that folks don't like what he's doing and they rise up in numbers that are pretty impressive.

And when you have those sorts of things, it's kind of impossible to fully take over a government. Now, I'm not saying he wouldn't be able to, but it just feels to me. like that moment has passed. Now, I don't know what's going on in the midterms. I'm preparing for shenanigans. I'm saying this wherever I can because no one remembers in 2024 for the election day. There were bomb threats in Democratic voting areas, precincts. And I don't like the margins were so close in these states.

Could that have changed? I don't know. But who did it? Why did they do it? What did they do? We don't know any of that. There's been no investigation. And so, like, I'm looking forward to voting Republicans out in the midterms.

But, like, what was that? And is there going to be, like, an echo of that in November? I was really excited to talk to you, not just to talk about kind of the politics here, but because thinking about messaging is really important. Yes. What can Democrats, can liberals, progressives do better to message to a, Americans to talk to Americans, not lecture them. There's been way too much of that coming from liberals, I think. But how can we better talk to Americans? I think Democrats are really good at

explaining the what and the how. I think we could get a lot better explaining the why. Why is this happening? Why is this happening to you? Why are things more expensive? why do Republicans focus on trans people and immigrants instead of the things that actually affect your day to day life? I don't know about you. A trans person has never affected my life positively or negatively. It just does not impact me. And yet it's something that we talk about a lot. And I wish Democrats would go on the offensive and say why, why that is, because they don't want us to actually talk about things that we can be fixing right now. Right. So that's something that Republican creators like Laura Lumer, Candace Owens, Ben Shapiro, they're really good at giving us the why this is happening. Now, they're lying and they're telling a fairy tale.

But that's something that I think Democrats just don't, I don't know, is there like, is there something different with our mind? I don't know. Like, are we just like programmed differently? I think that there's like an over like explanatory, but not in a way that like reaches people. Like there's a real like, we're going to give you a bunch of PowerPoint slides. Yes, it's like if I just told you enough facts, you would see it my way. Right. And that's just not, we are inherently storytellers.

We've been telling stories for since we've been humans, right? Cave. It's like cave art. Yeah. Right? So I just think it's not as hard as we make it out to be. Just tell a compelling story. Graham Platner, I think, has been doing that pretty effectively.

I think James Talarico has been doing. that pretty effectively. I'm not going to name names on other Democrats who have been telling the what and the how, but I think you can fill in the blanks on that. So it's to great success as well, is if you can tell a compelling story that actually happens to be true. Keith, thank you so much for coming in and joining me. Thanks for having me. That was my conversation with Keith Edwards, host of the Keith Edwards Show. We'll link to his YouTube channel and the show notes. We're doing our best to get the word out that there's a better way forward for this country. If you want to help, make sure to subscribe, leave a five-star review on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, watch us on

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Joining me is Crooked's news editor, Greg Walters, to talk about the big stories. Hey, Greg. Hey, Jane. Greg, Trump was once again locked in on the most important issues of the day on Thursday. Those issues being the ballroom, the ballroom, and also the ballroom. You know, when you have a thousand rooms sitting on top of a ballroom and you have the elevators coming down right near the entrance, it's a pretty tough situation. Now, right outside, we have something that's on time, on budget, actually ahead of time. and had a budget depending on finishes, you know, finishes is a big difference between marble and

onyx. I'm always saying that. But it's right on budget, right on time. And that's built to the highest standards of security. Anyway, some actual news, just as Trump was waltzing away on his presidential twinkle toes in the ballroom of his dreams, choosing between marble and onyx. Wouldn't you know it, the longest government shutdown in history actually ended? Which is, Jane, why we need a ballroom.

Obviously, while Trump was pounding the table for his ballroom, aka his new favorite pastime slash obsession, House Republican leadership caved and agreed to fund the Department of Homeland Security ending a 76-day shutdown. Yeah, and to point out the elephant in the ballroom here, Jane, we were just days away from Transportation Security Administration employees missing a paycheck. And this Bloomberg headline sums us. up. House votes to end DHS shutdown as threats of airport chaos loom. Greg, why does something always have to be looming before Congress can do anything about it?

I'm so tired of looming. I hate looming. I don't want to loom. Me too. But, you know, no matter what is looming, this plan does not include funding for federal immigration enforcement, which Democrats were refusing to fork over after federal agents killed Alex Pready and Renee Good in Minneapolis without new safeguards. So some folks are calling this net net a win for Democrats. You know what else I'm tired of? I was really tempted to make a tired of winning joke here, but it's 2026 and I'm tired of making jokes about being tired of winning.

Maybe I'm just tired. Maybe I need to reawaken my feminine power and light, but there's bad news on that front too. Greg. Damn. I don't know if you're into psychedelic mushrooms, raw milk, manifestation, and the divine feminine. But if you are, I have some very sad news, I must tell you. I cannot wait to find out how you're going to link all those things together in one headline, Jane. On Thursday, President Donald Trump pulled the nomination of Casey Means to be Surgeon General.

Ah, yes, that story, I should have guessed. Okay, so Trump is claiming that this is because Louis, Louisiana Republican Senator Bill Cassidy, whom he called, quote, a very disloyal person was holding up her nomination over her views on vaccines. But I've got to say, this seems to me like another big break with the Make America Healthy Again people after Trump's decision to boost the production of glyphosate, a very controversial pesticide for people who hate pesticides. Now, according to Trump's true social post, Means's replacement is Dr. Nicole Sapphire, a radiologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering in. in New York and a Fox News contributor. And like, of course she's a Fox News contributor who thinks RFK Jr. is a, quote, visionary. It's Trump.

But I'm guessing she spent a lot less time talking about using psychedelics to find love and doing full moon ceremonies in Casey Means has. So there's that. I mean, the Trump alignment with the Make America Healthy again people has always been a little sketchy from my point of view. I mean, this is the most famous fast food president since Bill Clinton jogged to McClain. Donald's back in the old days. But speaking of people who don't have the job they wanted, Alina Haba joined The View on Wednesday. You might remember Alina Haba as the former White House counselor and former acting U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey. Anyway, her appearance on the view didn't go what you might call very well. Yeah, here are some

selected moments of greatness. What do you think 86 beats? kill the president to get rid of the president. That's what it means. By the way, his words not mine. If you look at his late night show. But the dictionary disagrees with you on that. The president also posted death to Democrats. Do you think the president

should be held responsible for that? When you, I'll do respect. I haven't seen that post. I will tell you what I did. It does exist. The Department of Justice brings real cases. We are not Jack Smith. We are not Letitia James. We bring real cases of that's people. I can

see two things here. Why Trump really liked her and why she was not very good at lawyering. You know, Jane, my mama always told me not to pick a fight with the dictionary and lose. And if I do, don't do it on TV. Greg, your mother did a wonderful job. Thank you so much for hanging out. Thanks, mom, and thanks, Jane. And that's the news. Before we go, on this week's hysteria, Aaron and guest host Naomi Ekparrigan, Break down the chaos at the White House correspondence dinner after a thwarted shooting attempt and the conspiracy theories that took off after. Then they get into the internet's obsession with missing American scientists, plus how Megan the Stalian handles her breakup fully on her own terms. Listen to Hysteria now wherever you get your podcasts or watch on YouTube.

That's all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe, leave a review. Enjoy some delusional thinking and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading, and not just about how if Donner, Donald Trump can believe what he said on Newsmax Thursday. Everyone says if I was on the ballot would win in a landslide. I have the best, I have some of the best poll numbers I've ever had. You can believe absolutely anything.

Like me, what a day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at crooked.com slash subscribe. I'm Jane Koston and run an ultramarathon. Go after that new job. Ask that person out. Because if Donald Trump thinks he's super popular, you can think whatever you want. Have a great weekend. Water Day is a production of Crooked Media.

Our show is produced by Caitlin Flummer, Emily Four, Erica Morrison, and Adrian Hill. Our team includes Haley Jones, Greg Walters, Matt Berg, Joseph Dutra, Johanna Case, and Desmond Taylor. Our music is by Kyle Murdoch and Jordan Cantor. We had helped today from the Associated Press. Our production staff is proudly unionized for the Writers Guild of America East.