President Donald Trump played down the fears of his critics — from the potential harms of a recession to worries about rising prices due to his tariffs to the possibility that he would seek a constitutionally forbidden third term — in a wide-ranging, exclusive interview with NBC News’ “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker.
With his approval numbers sliding modestly amid a flurry of executive actions, Trump waved away concerns about rising prices on some goods in the wake of his expansive program of tariffs.
Asked about small businesses concerned about pain from tariffs on Chinese goods, Trump said “many businesses are being helped” and that there was no need for the relief some small businesses are seeking.
“They’re not going to need it. They’re going to make so much money,” he said.
The president suggested that Americans ought to be able to make do with fewer common goods, like dolls or pencils. Asked about rising prices on items like tires or strollers, Trump pivoted to gasoline, saying that was “thousands of times more important.”
In the interview, he also:
- Clarified that he wants to be “a two-term president,” acknowledging the constraints preventing him from seeking a third term in 2028.
- Defended the high cost of a “big, beautiful” military parade in Washington, D.C., to commemorate Flag Day, which also happens to fall on his birthday.
You can read a fact-check of Trump’s interview here. You can also read the full transcript here.
Notable quote
I don’t know. I’m not, I’m not a lawyer. I don’t know.
President Donald Trump
Trump, when asked if he has to “uphold the Constitution,” argued that fulfilling his ambitious campaign promise to rapidly carry out mass deportations may take precedence over giving immigrants the right to due process under the Constitution, as required by courts.
Kentucky Derby winner overcame injuries and the odds
On a muddy track at Churchill Downs, 9-to-1 outsider Sovereignty won the 151st running of the Kentucky Derby, with favorite Journalism ending up in second place.
Jockey Junior Alvarado, who takes home $3.1 million in winnings, had already pulled off an upset of his own, bouncing back from a hairline fracture in his shoulder two months ago that left him sidelined for weeks.
He said: “Every day since I got the injury I kept telling God, ‘Please heal me, please heal me. If it’s meant to be, I know you’re going to put me right back in action before the Derby.’”
Alvarado spoke of Sovereignty’s loyalty, noting how the horse stuck by him when he couldn’t ride.
“I didn’t have any reservations about him,” Sovereignty trainer Bill Mott said in reference to the horse. “Everything had gone smoothly. Ordinarily to win these kinds of races, you can’t have any hiccups in your training schedule or the way the horse is doing.”
But the derby didn’t just bring high-stakes races. It also, of course, brought a host of fabulous outfits and mint juleps galore.
The ‘Asian Pope Francis’ who could be next
Luis Antonio Tagle, a Filipino cardinal known for his emphasis on poor and marginalized people, has emerged as a leading contender as cardinals prepare to meet Wednesday to begin the process of electing Francis’ replacement.
Like Francis, the Jesuit-educated Tagle, 67, adopted a simple life that has led to comparisons to the late pontiff.
If chosen as pope, Tagle could carry with him some lessons from the Philippines. Despite being the biggest Catholic nation in Asia — about 80% of Filipinos are Catholic — and the third-largest in the world, it is also one of the more LGBTQ-friendly countries in the region.
Edwin Valles, former president of Courage Philippines, an LGBTQ organization under the Archdiocese of Manila, says he is certain that Tagle would continue embracing the gay community.
But Noel Asiones, an academic researcher from the University of Santo Tomas, a Catholic university in Manila, told NBC News that Tagle lacks the “prophetic voice” that saw Francis exert moral authority on issues like capitalism or the injustices of war.
In case you missed it
- Lady Gaga says she was unaware of a thwarted bomb threat in Rio de Janeiro until learning about it from media reports.
- The Trump administration on Monday will resume the collection of defaulted student loan payments from millions of people for the first time since the start of the pandemic.
- The administration also plans to significantly shrink the workforce at spy agencies, with about 1,000 to 1,200 jobs to be cut at the CIA, two sources with knowledge of the matter told NBC News.
- Warren Buffett, 94, will step down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway at the end of the year, with designated successor Greg Abel taking the reins.
- A magnitude-5.3 earthquake struck West Texas on Saturday night, part of a swarm of earthquakes to rock the area near the state’s border with New Mexico. No injuries were reported.
- People in Gaza have been pushed into increasingly crowded areas, and a humanitarian zone once deemed safe is no longer designated as such, according to an NBC News analysis of maps, evacuation orders, statements and interviews.
- A community in south Texas voted Saturday to become a new city centered around Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
