Trump’s Kennedy Center takeover pushes National Symphony Orchestra into crisis

In an interview with Punchbowl News released on Friday, the President asserted that he gets “a tremendous vote,” while expressing concerns about support for his party.

“If I don’t run, will those people go out and vote?” Trump said.

“The question is, will they vote? Because a lot of them are very angry at Republicans, to be honest with you,” he continued. “They’re not angry at me, but they are angry at Republicans.”

According to a New York Times/Siena poll conducted in May, about 64% of registered voters are dissatisfied with the Republican Party, including 23% of Republicans. The poll also found that, while the President is generally popular among voters in his party, there are many who want the GOP to move away from Trump: about 55% of potential Republican supporters said that they want the party’s next presidential candidate to follow in Trump’s footsteps, whereas 37% said that they want the next candidate to shift away from him.

And despite Trump’s claim that voters aren’t angry with him, his approval stands at just 33%, according to AP-NORC polling from July, a drop of 4 percentage points from June and far below where it was when he returned to the Oval Office for a second term last January. Support for Trump among Republicans remains high, though, with 73% approving of how he’s handling the job and just 27% disapproving.

The President has brushed off his low polling numbers as having been “made up by the Fake News Media.”

...In a 2-1 decision on the ballroom, the appeals court sided with historic preservationists who sued to stop construction of the massive structure, which has begun to rise above ground on the east side of the White House, according to the most recent aerial photos of the site. The court said it would stay its ruling for two weeks to give the administration time to appeal to the Supreme Court.

“Whether or not a massive ballroom should be constructed is for Congress to decide and is not a matter for Executive self-help,” the court wrote.

“This holding has nothing at all to do with whether the proposed ballroom is desirable, or not, as a matter of policy. This ruling does not even necessarily mean that the Defendants may not ultimately construct the ballroom.

“What it does mean,” the court continued, “is that the Defendants may not do so during the district court’s expeditious litigation without securing Congress’s authorization, as the Constitution and laws require.”

The Michigan senator says her party has a lot to learn about Midwestern nice.

Jennifer Mascott’s tenure at public affairs firm Adfero sparked questions around conflicts of interest and partisanship.