Pool Reports of August 22, 2025

In-town pool report 1

Morning everyone,

Loading into press vans for a morning field trip. 

Will update location once we arrive.

In-town pool report 2

POTUS spotted getting into Beast. Motorcade rolling out now

In-town pool report 3

Motorcade stopped on corner of 17th outside People's House exhibit. Pool now holding outside exhibit before going inside.

In-town report 4

Pool inside waiting in people's house exhibit area for POTUS to take questions. POTUS Currently in the gift shop

In-town pool report 5

Trump rolling to Kennedy Center. Took questions for 15 minutes

Noteworthy quotes 

POTUS said he will fire Fed Gov Lisa Cook. "I will fire her if she doesn't resign."

re: Bolton: "don't know about it. Saw it on television this morning. Not a fan, he's sort of a lowlife. He's a very quiet person, except on television if he can say something bad about Trump. Not a smart guy, could be a very unpatriotic guy we're going to find out."

Re: DC. Said the "fake numbers" need to be fixed. Is asking Congress for $2billion to clean up DC

full otter below
https://otter.ai/u/rKxGbEiX4NMrQqLnFV_4iGabf9c

In-town report 6

POTUS has arrived at Kennedy Center out of sight from pool. Press holding in vans for now

At previous stop Trump spoke on planned renovations to Kennedy center, which will include painting columns from gold to white and refurbishing marble floors. Also said 2026 World Cup will have offices here

In-town report 7

Additional quotes from previous stop.

Re: Ukraine/Russia talks

"We're going to see if Putin and Zelenskyy will be working together. It's like oil and vinegar a little bit. They don't get along too well for obvious reasons. But we'll see. And we'll see whether or not I would have to be there. I'd rather not, I'd rather them have a meeting and see how they can do."

Re: DC

"DC is a miracle, what's happened. DC was a hellhole and now it's safe. 

"I think the mayor has to get on the ball, because we have a situation, and she's a nice woman, but I tell you what she's got to get on the ball. I don't want to see phony numbers."

on national guard in DC - "the big question is how long do we stay? Because we want to make sure it doesn't come back. So we have to take care of these criminals and get them out."

In-town pool report 8

More quotes from last stop (h/t to Haley Bull for the assist!)

Re: Bolton
"They'll brief me probably today sometime" on if he expected to be briefed by the DOJ. "I tell Pam and I tell the group I don't want to know but just you have to do what you have to do. I don't want to know about it. It's not necessary. I could know about it I could be the one starting it I'm actually the chief law enforcement officer but I feel it's better this way." 

Re: White launching TikTok account
POTUS says he's "really not" concerned about privacy concerns and national security problems.

"I'm really not. I think it's highly overrated" before talking about his use of TikTok during the campaign. 

"We're going to watch the security concerns. And we have buyers, American buyers. We have American buyers. And I haven't spoken to President Xi about it. At the right time when we're set I'll do it in the meantime until the complexity of things work out we just extend a little bit longer"

Re: renovations
Trump says they are redoing the Lincoln bathroom "that'll be done in about a week, two weeks" 

Trump says they're are looking at "doing something on the executive office building".."all cosmetic"

He said they are "fixing" the Kennedy Center, noting "the bones are so great. They have marble that is so unbelievable but it hasn't been polished" and will paint columns "probably a very good white beautiful white". He said had "all the marble people with me" ahead of the stop at the Kennedy Center. He noted work on chairs and stages.

In-town report 9

Pool still in vans outside Kennedy Center waiting for POTUS. No update re timing of scheduled noon announcement in Oval, but will almost certainly be delayed

In-town report 10

Motorcade leaving Kennedy Center and heading back to White House. Will provide update on POTUS announcement timing when available

In-town report 11

Motorcade back at WH

In-town report 12

Pool called to Oval for announcement

In-town report 13: heading into oval

Pool entering Oval now for announcement

In-town note 14: World Cup draw announcement

POTUS announces World Cup 2026 draw to be held at "Trump-Kennedy Center" on December 5, 2025.

In room: Vance, FIFA President Infantino, Noem, Grenell, and others

In-town announcement 15: Trump given trophy

FIFA president infantino hands Trump the trophy, says "only winners" can hold it.

Trump asks: "Can I keep it." says trophy would fit well into new Oval Office deco 

Pic attached

In-town report 16: Trump shows photo from Putin, talks DC

POTUS showed photo from desk of he and Putin sent to him from Putin. Pic attached

When asked about role in negotiations: "I'll know in two weeks what I'm going to do". says Putin has "a couple of weeks" to agree to meeting.

Re DC: POTUS "Honored the national guard has done such a fantastic job." DC becoming "safest place on earth". Says after DC they will go to other cities. Chicago "will be our next one after this"

POTUS added he has had conversations with Mike Johnson and John Thune about getting $2B in funding from Congress to clean up DC. Goes on to say he will declare national emergency to keep troops in DC beyond 30 day limit if needed, but doesn't want to.

During comments on crime in California, POTUS said re: Newsom: "I know Gavin very well. He's an incompetent guy with a good line of bullshit."

In-town report 17: Additional Oval quotes and full Otter link

Trump spoke for about an hour in the Oval. In addition to holding the World Cup trophy, Trump was given the "first ticket" to the final to be held in Jersey at MetLife Stadium. 

More detailed quotes and the full Otter below.

Re: CBO report on Trump tariffs reducing the deficit by $4T
"I was very happy today that the group that does this, a government group, radical left group, announced that Trump was right about something. $4 trillion worth of tariffs." 

Re: Chicago being the next city to send national guard
"After we do this, we'll go to another location. We'll make it safe, we're going to make our cities very, very safe. Chicago is a mess. You have an imcompetent mayor, grossly incompetent, we're going to straighten that out. Probably that'll be our next one after this, and it won't even be tough. And the people in Chicago, Mr Vice President, they are screaming for us. They're wearing red hats."

Re: Russia/Ukraine
"I'm not happy about anything about that war. Nothing. not happy at all. We'll see what happens. I think over the next two weeks we're gonna find out which way it's gonna go. And I better be very happy."

"A couple of weeks" on how long he'll give Putin. "It takes two to tango you understand that." "We'll see what happens. I think in two weeks we'll know which way I'm going because I'm gonna go one way or the other and they'll learn which way I'm going."

"I think I'll know the attitude of Russia and frankly of Ukraine, it takes two."

"Well then I'm going to make a decisions as to what we do. It's going to be a very important decision. And that's whether or not it's massive sanctions or massive tariffs or both. Or do we do nothing and say it's your fight."

"I'll see whose fault it is. If there's reasons why I'll understand that, I know exactly what I'm doing.  We're going to see whether or not they have a meeting that will be interesting to see and if they don't why didn't they have a meeting because I told him to have a meeting, but I'll know in two weeks what what I'm going to do"

Re: morning raid on John Bolton's home
"I haven't spoken to Pam and the group yet but I will be. I saw that just like everybody else.  I try and stay out of that stuff, I'm allowed to be and I'm chief law enforcement officer, believe it or not, you know I don't like to go around saying that but I am that's a position, but I purposely don't want to really get involved in it. I'm not a fan of John Bolton I thought he was sleaze bag actually.  And he's suffers major Trump derangement syndrome, but so do a lot of people and they're not being affected by anything we do."

Re: Canada removing retaliatory tariffs
"Which I though was nice and we're going to have another call soon." "We want to be very good to Canada. I like Carney a lot. I think he's a good, good person and we had a very good talk yesterday" 

Re: Epstein files being sent to House oversight committee 
"People shouldn't be hurt but I'm in support of keeping it totally open. I couldn't care less. You got a lot of people that could be mentioned in those files that don't deserve to be people because he knew everybody in Palm Beach. I don't know anything about that but I have said to Pam and everybody else give them everything you can give them because it's a it's a Democrat hoax it's just a hoax.

Full Otter link: https://statics.teams.cdn.office.net/evergreen-assets/safelinks/2/atp-safelinks.html

And h/t to the inimitable Rob Crilly for pointing out Trump has been involved in a soccer draw previously https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzO8SKEC-no

In-town pool report 18: lunch lid

Lid until 3:30. Announced via song by unnamed wrangler

In-town pool report 19: Full Trump/Intel quotes from Oval

Some bonus quotes from Trump's earlier Oval spray on Intel. (h/t to Haley Bull for the assist!)

Trump says he "met a man who was a very nice man. And I called, for his removal because I saw something by a man named Tom Cotton."

"I said well if that's right he should resign and he came in and he saw me we talked for a while. I liked him a lot. I thought he was very good. I thought he was somewhat a victim but you know nobody's a total victim I guess, and I said, you know what, I think the United States should be given 10% of Intel. And he said, I would consider that. I said, well, I'd like you to do that because Intel's been left behind as, you know, compared to Jensen. And some of our friends Nvidia."

"I said I think it would be good having the United States as your partner. He agreed. And they've agreed to do it and I think it's a great deal for them and I think it's a great deal."

In-town report 20: Lid

and we have a lid for the day. have a great night everyone