How soon can we cancel the White House reality show?

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How soon can we cancel the White House reality show?
With Karoline Leavitt on leave, Trump-era briefings have gone from godawful to completely dysfunctional

By Brian Karem
White House columnist
Published June 12, 2026 9:00AM (EDT)


(Salon) Welcome back to “The United States of America: The Reality Show.”

Your host, “President” Donald Trump, conducts each day of his administration as if it were an episode of “The Apprentice.” He’s always looking for someone to fire — or throw under the bus.

He has gone from standing up and shouting at Nuremberg-style rallies two or three times a week to sitting in the Oval Office where, with appropriate props, he opines about the B-2 bomber, the “One Big Beautiful Ballroom” and his “One Big Beautiful Blue” reflecting pool.

....(snip)....

When Leavitt recently went on paid maternity leave — something most American women cannot get — Trump found himself assigning other members of his staff to the chore of briefing room guest host, much as Johnny Carson used to do when he took nights off from “The Tonight Show.”

....(snip)....

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent

Appearance date: May 28, 2026

Length of time in the room: Approximately 31 minutes

Bessent walked to the podium with a wry smile. He told everyone it was a pleasure to be there as a dress rehearsal for testifying before Congress. The joke fell flat, but Bessent was undeterred. I kept waiting for him to ask “Say, do any of you guys know how to Madison?” Yes, he still reminds me of Brad Majors in “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.”

Bessent has neither the background nor the experience to handle the press. He was lackluster and stuck mostly to talking about Trump accounts, taxes, 401k’s, digital currency and interest rates, though he did have to handle a few questions on Iran, AI, Cuba and antifa. ....................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2026/06/12/how-soon-can-we-cancel-the-white-house-reality-show/