Bob Corker, the US Senator who branded the White House an “adult daycare centre” has accused Donald Trump of “debasing” the US and has almost immediately been proven right.
During a CNN interview at the Capitol, Corker said the President has “great difficulty with the truth” and is “purposely breaking down relationships we have around the world that had been useful to our nation”.
“It’s amazing. Unfortunately world leaders are very aware that much of what he says is untrue,” Corker continued. “Certainly people here are because these things are provably untrue. They’re just factually incorrect and people know the difference.”
He added: “I don’t know why he lowers himself to such a low, low standard and debases our country in that way but he does, but he does.”
Trump, without any hint of irony, responded with an insult-ridden string of tweets that contained at least one falsehood.
In a statement to the Guardian earlier this month, Corker’s chief of staff, Todd Womack, directly contradicted Trump’s continued assertion about endorsing him.
He said: “The President called Sen Corker on Monday afternoon and asked him to reconsider his decision not to seek re-election and reaffirmed that he would have endorsed him, as he has said many times.”
There was also much curiosity surrounding a rogue apostrophe.
Trump is at the Capitol today to meet with senators and seek consensus on a tax reform plan, reports Reuters.
Although a foreign policy specialist, Corker is also a key player in the tax debate. His support could be crucial as Republicans seek passage of the White House-backed tax plan in the closely divided Senate.
The senator from Tennessee, who recently announced he was not seeking re-election, pulled no punches in his onslaught against Trump, acknowledging that tensions between the two men, once allies, have been building for months.
With the tax plan, Trump is hoping to notch up his first major legislative win - something that has so far eluded him even though Republicans control the White House and both chambers of Congress.