'Paralyzed' by chaos at home, Trump sets off for Paris

Paris (CNN)If Washington is currently a dark place for President Donald Trump, a stop in the City of Light may prove well-timed.

"The White House is paralyzed," a top Republican close to the West Wing told CNN ahead of Trump's departure to Paris, a withering assessment of an administration whose goals of passing a health care bill, overhauling the tax code and defeating ISIS have been complicated once again.

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"Another week lost," is how one official described the legislative timeline for Trump and Republicans, an acknowledgment that the latest swirl of Russia developments complicate an already imperiled agenda.

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Escaping what advisers, aides, and other Republicans describe as a White House rattled by Russia bombshells, Trump will find himself here instead embraced by Gallic splendor. He accepted an invitation from the new French president, Emmanuel Macron, to be on hand for Bastille Day, the national holiday that commemorates the start of the French Revolution.

The Paris trip is at least a momentary respite from his current predicament in the United States: embattled against accusations prompted by his oldest son's meeting with a Russian lawyer and surrounded by lawyers and aides urging him to remain quiet.

Back home, Trump faces a deepening crisis over that meeting, which has jolted the White House and moved the Russian meddling controversy directly into Trump's inner circle.

The President approached the news about Donald Trump Jr.'s meeting through the same lens he approaches everything with the word Russia in it, according to another person who has spoken with him: as an effort by his enemies and the media to discredit him and his presidency.

Privately, Trump has expressed dismay that Trump Jr. agreed to meet with the Russian lawyer, according to a Republican source, who said the President believes it wasn't a smart move -- but also that his son did not run afoul of the law.

Trump, the Republican source said, is annoyed that the narrative surrounding the meeting has become a distraction from what he and his advisers saw as a successful overseas trip last weekto Poland and Germany.

 

 

 

Attorney on Trump Jr.: Meeting was legal 01:22

Entrenched President

Ahead of his departure for Paris, Trump spent much of his time watching television and huddled with top advisers, according to two administration officials. He barely left the Oval Office. And his mood ranged from furious to frustrated, but also defiant.

A day earlier, he received some degree of solace during a visit from evangelical leaders. A photo from the session inside the Oval Office showed a huddle forming around the entrenched President, hands resting on his shoulders as his head bows in prayer.

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Outside the room in the West Wing hallways, staffers remain in fighting mood, according to several people speaking on condition of anonymity, describing the mindset among Trump's aides. Many view the episode surrounding Trump Jr. -- who remains widely popular among ex-campaign staffers -- as blatantly unfair, even if they concede his decision-making on the matter appeared questionable.

White House chief of staff Reince Priebus -- who himself has been the subject of speculation over his own standing with the President -- has been telling staffers to "tune out the noise," according to a person familiar with his conversations. He's urged underlings to keep their heads down and stay focused on their work.

The email exchange Trump Jr. released, in chronological order

But the prospects of continuing the administration's work apace became far more difficult Tuesday morning when the email bombshell -- which showed Trump Jr. reacting enthusiastically to news the Russian government may have had dirt on Hillary Clinton -- hit the West Wing with very little warning.

It's also triggered another round of speculation about aides' standing in the White House. Questions about the origin of the leaks have rippled through Washington, with the suggestion that backstabbing aides may be looking to take down their rivals.

Little has emerged about how, specifically, The New York Times learned about the damaging emails. But in a White House already gripped with internal battles, the revelations only fueled the impression of a divided West Wing.

One source familiar with the matter said tensions have emerged between some members of the President's senior staff and Marc Kasowitz, Trump's longtime lawyer who has been retained to handle the Russia matter.

Donald Trump Jr.'s long path to politics

When Trump departs for Paris late Wednesday, he'll take along with him chief of staff Priebus, national security adviser H.R. McMaster, and his homeland security adviser Tom Bossert. But two of the most prominent faces of his trips abroad -- senior advisers Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner -- will remain stateside.

Some inside the administration concede the President's staff is long due for a shakeup, but that constant efforts to rebut the Russia allegations have made executing such a decision difficult.

Priebus, one administration official said, faces "fresh, new hell" daily. And other staffers simply seem too inexperienced to properly execute a presidential agenda, the official said.

Trump pushed back on reports of disarray in his White House on Wednesday, writing on Twitter: "The W.H. is functioning perfectly, focused on HealthCare, Tax Cuts/Reform & many other things. I have very little time for watching T.V."

News Courtesy: www.cnn.com