Pool Reports of June 10, 2025

In-Town Pool Note #1: Sarah Huckabee Sanders Gaggle

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders was at the White House this morning and gaggled briefly in the driveway.

She told reporters that she was on campus to "meet with administration officials" to see how her state can be "supportive of the president" and further coordinate with the White House "on all of the great things that they've been doing."

SHS also condemned the LA riots as "absolutely absurd," accusing California leadership of picking "crazy over normal."

See this Otter transcript that comes courtesy of Toby Capion of EWTN:
https://otter.ai/u/keNT17TddkSNuTmk3bm_xGJYf60?utm_source=copy_url&tab=chat&view=transcript

In-Town Pool Note #2: Pool Gathered for Oval

In-Town pool was just called to the Oval. We are gathered now. Updates to follow.

In-Town Pool Note #3: Oval/Wildfire Briefings

President Trump is seated behind the Resolute Desk. Agriculture Sec. Rollins is to his right. Interior Sec. Burgum is to his right as are OMB Director Vought and DHS Sec. Noem.

Topic is wildfires.

Otter is live. Follow along.
https://otter.ai/u/V0lpXG3FeJ9wdDW0iEnWUjNwDJc

In-Town Pool Note #4: Wildfire Briefing Ongoing

The event is being live streamed on White House socials, I'm told.

Notably, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Sanders is here watching.

The president said, "we want to wean off of FEMA, and we want to bring it down to the state level, a little bit like education." He vows also to "clean the forests" as part of forest management "and get rid of dead wood."

Conversation remains about wildfires and is ongoing.

In-Town Pool Report #5: Trump on Insurrection Act/Newsom

When asked if he would invoke the Insurrection Act, President Trump told your pooler, "if there's an insurrection, I would certainly invoke it. We'll see. But I can tell you, last night was terrible. The night before that was terrible."

Asked about what amounts to an insurrection in his estimation, Trump told your pooler, "there were certain areas of Los Angeles" last night that "you could have called it an insurrection. It was terrible."

POTUS says he spoke with Gov. Newsom "a day ago" to tell him to "do a better job."

He notes that the Olympics are coming to LA. Check quotes.

In-Town Pool Note #6: Oval Ends

The Oval Office gaggle ended at approximately 12:44.

As pool was exiting, the president spotted Gov. Sanders standing in the back of the room and signaled for her to come visit. Also spotted in the Oval Office: Corey Lewandowski.

WH out-of-town pool report #1 rolling

Good afternoon,

I'm your print out-of-town pool reporter for President Trump's trip today to Fort Bragg in North Carolina.

Trump excited the Oval Office at 12:52 pm ET and boarded the beast. We rolled out at 12:53 pm.

As the pool waited in vans, we could see ongoing renovations of the Rose Garden (see attached photo) and a blocked off area where a flag pole is going on the South Lawn.

WH out-of-town pool report #2 arrived at JBA and boarded

President Trump arrived at JBA at 1:15 pm ET. He boarded AF1 at 1:19 pm without talking to reporters.

He smiled and gave a fist pump with his right hand as he walked of the plane's steps.

The ride here was uneventful. A large group of tourists watched the motorcade whiz by from the National Mall before the motorcade got on the interstate.

From the WH:

AF1 Travelers:
Secretary Pete Hegseth
Secretary Doug Collins
Senator Thom Tillis
Senator Ted Budd
Representative Richard Hudson
Representative Pat Harrigan
Michael Whatley
Susie Wiles
Karoline Leavitt
James Blair

WH out-of-town pool report #3 wheels up

We are wheels on AF1 up at 1:28 pm ET

Fox News is playing on the AF1 televisions.

See you in North Carolina.

WH out-of-town pool report #4

Air Force landed at Fort Bragg at 2:17 pm ET after an uneventful flight.

President Trump did not come to the back of the plane to gaggle during the flight.

WH out-of-town pool report #6 army demo begins

Marine One landed at the Holland drop zone at Fort Bragg at 2:50 pm ET.

Trump walked off the helicopter at 2:54 pm ET. Trump walked by some military equipment that he will be receiving a demo regarding.

An Army officer tells me they Trump is watching demonstrations on Artillery pieces, a rocket, a Howitzer, other small-arms weapons and a paratrooper in a parachute.

The pool was kept at a nearby building as Trump and other WH official disembarked — so we didn't get a chance to ask questions.

From the White House:

THE PRESIDENT arrives Holland Drop Zone
Met by:

GEN Andrew Poppas
Commanding General, United States Army Forces Command
LTG Gregory Anderson
Commander, 18th Airborne Corps
LTG Jonathan Braga,
Commander United States Army Special Operations Command
MAJ Tim Flynn
Major, 18th Airborne Corps
MAJ Samuel Wilkinson
B/23 Company Commander

President Trump is watching from a canopy shelter with army and other officials as the military rocket demonstrations are getting underway.

The first rocket — which made a very loud noise and bright lights above — was a Himar.

The pool is about 100 yards from Trump, so it is hard to see his reaction

Feom the WH:

MILITARY DEOMSTRATION (HOLLAND DZ)
PARTICIPANTS: THE PRESIDENT
Secretary Pete Hegseth, Department of Defense
Secretary Doug Collins, Veterans Affairs
The Honorable Dan Scavino, Deputy Chief of Staff
Secretary Daniel Driscoll, United States Army
GEN Andrew Poppas, Commanding General, United States Army Forces Command
LTG Gregory Anderson, Commander, 18th Airborne Corps
LTG Jonathan Braga, Commander United States Army Special Operations Command
MAJ Tim Flynn, Major, 18th Airborne Corps
MAJ Samuel Wilkinson, B/23 Company Commander

M142 HIMARS Initiate Firing Sequence

2. F-15 Rocket Demonstration

3. United States Special Operations Command Initiate Demo

4. Airborne Troop Drop Initiate

5. DIVARTY Initiates Fires Demo

WH out-of-town pool report #8 600 paratroopers, artillery display

With Trump, Hegseth and other officials watching, a handful of US troops crawled in marsh holding their guns, helicopters soared above and drones buzzed by.

Trump has been watching the military demonstrations for about 38 minutes. We were then ushered away.

Inside the bunker where he watched, Trump was shown video footage of inside the various aircrafts, an army officer told me.

A particularly loud and large helicopter or chopper made a deep buzz sound as it flew above the president.

One excercise appeared to involve mock kidnapping someone.

Next up, 600 paratroopers from the 82nd airborne division parachuted on the tarmac where Trump is watching. They flew in on C-17 and C-130 planes. It took several minutes for all the paratrooper to finish the exercise.

The troopers jumped from the planes after bundles of goods with parachutes were dropped beforehand.

The last demo involved howitzers and other long-range artillery, which went off about 100 or so yards away where Trump watched. The cannons made large boom noises that shook the ground.

WH out-of-town pool report #9 off to the rally

The military demos watched by Trump ended with two F-15 jets that flew over.

The pool then went back to the helicopter we arrived in while Trump boarded Marine One.

We lifted up at 3:56 pm ET. Your pooler wasn't about to watch Marine One lift.

We are now headed to the Trump rally here at Fort Bragg.

WH out-of-town pool report #10 rally beginning soon

The pool's helicopter landed on another part of Fort Bragg at about 4:04 pm.

We are now in a field where several stands have been erected. Members of the Army are sitting in the stands. The ground level has both military and civilian spectators. There's a few thousand people here. No empty seats.

President Trump will be speaking with a big "250" logo behind him for the army's 250th birthday celebration.

Secretary Hegseth has just taken the stage to ACDC's "Thunderstruck."

WH out-of-town pool report #11 Trump begins speaking

President Trump took the stage at 4:23 pm ET.

Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA" played and fireworks erupted in the sky.

There were then dozens of helicopters that flew over.

Trump is wearing a maroon hat, the color of Fort Bragg.

He was introduced by Secretary Hegseth, who gave short remarks on "restoring the warriors ethos" in the military and ending "wokeness" in the army.

Trump's speech is live-streamed on c-span and other places, so I won't be giving a full transcript.

WH out-town-pool report #12 Trump makes news on fort names

We aren't getting good internet service in this field, so forgive any late pool feeds.

In his remarks — which are still ongoing — President Trump talked about his administration renaming the fort back to Fort Bragg and touted some of the military weapons he just saw during the demonstration.

"Fort Bragg is in — the name. And Fort Bragg it shall always be," Trump said.

Trump made some news, announcing he will rename other forts back to their original names. He listed them off. Some of the names I caught:

Forts Pickett, hood, Gordon, bunker, polk, Robert E. Lee

WH out-of-town pool report #13 Trump finishes speech

President Trump stopped speaking at 5:18 m after a 53-minute speech. The village people's "ymca" then started playing and Trump did his famous dance.

I checked the names of the forts that Trump mentioned earlier in his speech.

I have them as: "We are also going to be restoring the names to Fort, Pickett, Fort Hood, Fort Gordon, Fort Rucker, Fort Polk, Fort AP Hill and Fort Robert E Lee."

Trump addressed the riots and protests in Los Angeles during his remarks, calling the rioters "animals" who have dropped concrete on cars from bridges.

"They proudly carry the flags of other countries, but they don't carry the American flag. They only burn it."

Trump said anyone who burns the American flag should go to jail for a one year. He called on the two NC senators in attendance to help him get that done.

"In the Trump administration, this anarchy will not stand," Trump said.

Trump referenced Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, prompting boos in the crowd including some military members.

Trump talked about his crackdown on migrants at the border, pushed for approval of his OBBB and touted his seven swing-state victories.

"We will not be deterred and the mob in Los Angeles or anywhere else will not. They don't even have a little chance."

Trump mentioned Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, mocking his 2024 debate performance against JD Vance.

"I think he's running for president, but he's a radical lunatic," Trump said of Walz.

During the middle of his remarks, one spectator who was standing appeared to pass out. It's pretty warm out here. The individual received assistance from medical staff and appeared to be fine.

Some of the civilian spectators sat in their seats as trump continued speaking. Army officers distributed bottled of waters to people in attendance.

The bulk of the speech was devoted to tracing some of the finest moments of the US army's history and soldiers who displayed heroism in combat.

Trump recognized an army major in attendance who is a descendant of Francis Scott Key and a grandson of Army Col. Gerald York.

"The weapons of war have changed with every generation, but the unflinching loyalty of the American soldier has always been made the same," Trump said.

"No soldier ever volunteered for the army to be lectured about transgender diversity or inclusion," Trump said. "We don't do that. America's patriots joined the Army to kick down doors, storm beaches, kill terrorists."

WH out-of-town press pool #14 rolling again

Trump left Fort Bragg's makeshift venue, and we are rolling out at 5:23 pm ET back to AF1.

WH out-of-town pool report #15 wheels up

President Trump boarded AF1 at 5:30 pm. Pool vans had just arrived at the tarmac at Fort Bragg when Trump was boarding, so there were no opportunities for question.

Wheels up at 5:39 pm ET heading back to JBa.

WH out-of-town pool report #16 Trump takes questions

Air Force One touched down at 6:18 pm ET. after an uneventful flight.

Trump disembarked AF1 at 6:30 pm and took questions from reporters for 8 minutes and 21 seconds next to AF1. He was mostly asked about LA protests and riots as well as Gov. Newsom.

Here's the otter. I will send some quotes later.

https://otter.ai/u/Nss0VN4sQ3y0wIaMc7i-2JdEHv0

WH out-of-town pool report #17

President Trump arrived back at the WH in the motorcade at 7:02 pm. Your pooler did not see Trump exit the beast or enter the WH.

WH out-of-town pool report #18 lid called

WH called a travel/photo lid at 7:12 pm.

Good night, folks.

WH out-of-town pool report #19 Trump gaggle quotes

Here's some of the comments from Trump's gaggle outside AF1. As always, check the video tape to match quotes.

These are not Trump's full remarks but cover the gist.

Trump started off by calling the Fort Bragg rally and military display "incredible," adding that it was "an honor to see it."

Question: Is there something you think you can do to de-escalate the tension with Gov. Newsom?

Trump: "I mean, I've always had a good relationship with him. He just doesn't do a very good job. He should have never been allowed to start. And if we didn't get involved, Los Angeles would be burning down right now, just like the houses burned down."

Question: Are you concerned about anything that could go wrong by having the military there?

Trump: "No, it can only go right by having the military de-escalate. That way is the only way. These people are agitators and troublemakers. I believe many of them are paid. I watch them breaking up the sidewalk with a big hammer. … Somebody is paying for that. I watch total professionals. Watched total professionals. He's banging the curbs, banging the granite, banging the concrete. They lined up like totally professionals, and they dropped it on the soldiers. They dropped it on the Los Angeles police. These are insurrectionists. They're agitators."

Question: Mr. President, Gov. Newsom says he did not speak to you a day ago, as you said in the Oval Office earlier. What's your response to that?

Trump: "It wasn't a day ago, a little longer than that, and I presented the phone conversation to Fox News' John Roberts and Molly Line at Fox News, because they were the ones that said it. And we actually spent 16 point something minutes on the phone. And I told him, he's got to get his act together. …. We had a pleasant conversation. …. I'm sure you all saw it. You saw them, yeah? But why would you ask me that question if you saw it?

Question: Do you believe the LA mayor and governor paid the agitators?

Trump: "I didn't say the governor or the mayor. I said, somebody's paying them, I think. And if they're not, they just troublemakers. What can I tell you? But I believe somebody's paying them."

Question: What impressed you most about the military demonstration?

Trump: "I think all the love for the military. I mean, I was with the generals there explaining the different maneuvers and the love they have for the army. The military is beautiful. They're really great people, and I've never seen anything quite like that. I don't think any other president has either. You know, they really, they really put on a good show. I asked them, 'Did you do that for Biden?' They said, 'No.' I wonder why.

Question. There could be some really big protests this weekend. Are you —

Trump: "I don't know. As long as we have the military there, the protests won't mean anything. Last night, If we weren't there, they would have burned down the city, but they did not do a lot of damage, other than they broke up a lot of concrete looking for weapons. You know those are weapons. If that hits somebody in the head, the person's dead. You know that, right?

Question: What did you mean when you said protesters would be met with a "very heavy force?"

Trump: "The military will be a very heavy force. I'm very proud to tell you that. They might as well turn around. Some of them will end up in jail for a long period of time."

Question: Do you think you will be successful Thursday in the first hearing in the case brought by Newsom?

Trump: "Well, even Senator Fetterman said very strongly that this is horrible, what they're doing, and that the Democrats are making a big mistake by not talking about it. And I agree with that."

Question: What rules of engagement do you want for the military?

Trump: "It's a very simple rule of engagement. If they're dangerous, if they're throwing concrete or bricks, if they're spitting in the face of the police or whoever's in front of them, if they're punching people, if they're doing all of the things that you see done for the last three nights, that I would say is engagement.

"I want to save Los Angeles, and Newsom is totally incompetent. Look at the fires he had. He had fires where half the city had seen burned down. What was it, 25,000 houses? All because he wouldn't take water.

"There's something wrong with these people. All I want in terms of engagement — I just want to see peace. If there's peace, we get out. If there's even a chance of no peace, we stay there until there's peace."

With that … have a great night