‘Winners don’t turn down an opportunity to win again’: Mary Trump on Trump’s debate performance

>> OKAY. THAT IS DONALD TRUMP WITH REPORTERS COMPLAINING ABOUT DEBATE MODERATORS AND SAYING HE HAS NO PLANS TO ENGAGE IN A SECOND DEBATE WITH VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS UNLESS HE GETS IN THE RIGHT MOOD, MAYBE. JOINING ME NOW IS MARY TRUMP, NIECE OF DONALD TRUMP AND AUTHOR OF A SECOND BOOK ON THE TRUMP FAMILY, THE TITLE IS "WHO COULD EVER LOVE YOU?" IT IS A FAMILY MEMOIR. I WISH YOU COULD HAVE HEARD ME EXTOL THE VIRTUES OF THIS BOOK. IT IS EXTRAORDINARY, MARY, VERY COMPELLING READ. IS IT SURPRISING, MARY, HE SAYS HE WON'T DO ANOTHER DEBATE UNLESS THE MOOD STRIKES HIM, FOR WHATEVER THAT'S WORTH? WOULD YOU HAVE EXPECTED HIM TO TAKE EVERY POSSIBLE OPPORTUNITY TO GO TOE TO TOE WITH VP HARRIS. DO YOU THINK HE IS AFRAID OF HER BEATING HIM A SECOND TIME? >> FIRST OF ALL, ALEX, IT IS WONDERFUL TO BE WITH YOU. IT HAS BEEN A LONG TIME. BUT I THINK DONALD SHOWED HIS HAND, WELL, DURING THE DEBATE FOR SURE, BUT IMMEDIATELY AFTERWARDS, WINNERS DO NOT SHOW UP IN THE SPIN ROOM AND WINNERS DO NOT TURN DOWN AN OPPORTUNITY TO WIN AGAIN. SO HE KNOWS HE LOST THIS DEBATE. HE KNOWS HE WILL LOSE THE NEXT ONE. AND THE ONLY MOOD THAT WOULD STRIKE HIM TO GET HIM TO DEBATE AGAIN WOULD BE DESPERATION. IF HE FELT THE ONLY THING HE COULD DO WOULD BE TO TRY TO DO BETTER NEXT TIME BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, ONE, HE CAN'T DENY, ON THE OTHER HAND, I THINK THIS IS ONE OF THE REASONS HE WENT TO THE SPIN ROOM, HE THINKS THAT JUST BY VIRTUE OF HIS SHOWING UP, HE CAN CHANGE THE NARRATIVE. HE IS ALWAYS THE SMARTEST PERSON IN THE ROOM SO I THINK THAT WILL BE OPERATIVE, IF THE POLLS ARE CHANGING IN VICE PRESIDENT HARRIS' FAVOR, ETC., ETC. RIGHT NOW, I THINK IT WOULD BE THE MOST FOOLISH THING HE COULD DO WOULD BE TO SHOW UP FOR A SECOND DEBATE. >> I GUESS WE WILL SEE, AGAIN, IF THE MOON STRIKES HIM. ONTO THE NEXT THING. HE HAS ALSO DEFENDED HAVING FAR RIGHT ACTIVIST LAURA LOOMER IN HIS LITTLE ENTOURAGE, EVEN AS HIS ALLIES ARE PRESSING HIM TO DITCH HER. DO YOU KNOW TRUMP TO BE SOMEONE WHO IS PRONE TO CONSPIRACY THEORIES LIKE THE ONES FLOATED BY LOOMER ON SOCIAL MEDIA? DOES HE ACTUALLY THINK THAT WAY OR DOES HE ALLOW OTHERS TO INFLUENCE HIM? DOES HIS BRAIN WORK THAT WAY? >> IT IS ACTUALLY WORSE THAN THAT. DONALD HAS ABSOLUTELY NO IDEOLOGY. HE HAS NO, QUOTE, UNQUOTE, PHILOSOPHY, EXCEPT THAT HE WILL DO WHATEVER IS GOOD FOR HIM. SO HE WILL ATTRACT PEOPLE WHO ARE WILLING TO DEBASE THEMSELVES TO SUPPORT HIM. HE HAS MADE IT VERY CLEAR. THE APPEAL TO HIM OF PEOPLE LIKE LAURA LOOMER IS NOT THE HATRED SHE SPOUTS, ALTHOUGH THAT IS DEFINITELY A SIDE BENEFIT, IT IS THAT SHE SUPPORTS HIM. THAT IS REALLY ALL IT TAKES TO GET HIM TO EMBRACE YOU AND MUCH, MUCH WORSE FOR US, ELEVATE YOU. WE HAVE SEEN THIS. NOTHING IS NEW HERE, ALEX. I THINK WE NEED TO TAKE A STEP BACK SOMETIMES AND REMIND OURSELVES OF THIS. DONALD HAS BEEN DOING THE SAME THING FOR ALMOST 10 YEARS NOW. HE SURROUNDS HIMSELF WITH THE WORST OF US. HE IS SPOUSES THE MOST DANGEROUS, VILE RHETORIC AND CONSPIRACY THEORIES, NOT BECAUSE HE BELIEVES THEM BUT BECAUSE IT MAKES A CERTAIN SEGMENT OF OUR POPULATION SUPPORT HIM MORE. HERE WE ARE 10 YEARS LATER AND IT IS THE SAME THING, BUT THE DANGER IS INHERENT IN WHAT HE IS DOING. ALL WE NEED TO DO TO KNOW THAT IS TO LOOK AT HOW MUCH WORSE THE PEOPLE SURROUNDING HIM ARE. LAURA LOOMER IS ONE OF THE MOST VILE HUMAN BEINGS ON THE PLANET AND HOW MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE AND TARGETED HIS DOMESTIC TERRORISM IS. WE SEE THAT IN SPRINGFIELD, OHIO WHERE HE AND JD VANCE ARE TERRORIZING A HARD-WORKING COMMUNITY THAT DO NOT DESERVE THE KIND OF HATRED AND BIGOTRY THEY ARE THROWING AT THEM. >> SO LET ME DRAW ON YOUR PHD IN PSYCHOLOGY HERE. I AM CURIOUS WHY YOU THINK HE WOULD REPEAT THESE LIES ABOUT HAITIAN MIGRANTS IN SPRINGFIELD ? DOES IT HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH HIS UPBRINGING, WITH HIS CHILDHOOD? >> WELL MY THING, PARTIALLY, RACISM COMES EASILY TO DONALD TRUMP. HE GREW UP IN A VERY RACIST AND MISOGYNISTIC FAMILY. IT IS NOT A SURPRISE TO ME THAT, AS HE HAS GOTTEN OLDER, MOST OF THOSE THINGS HAVE WORSENED. THIS IS SOMEBODY WHO HAS NO SELF-AWARENESS, WHO HAS NEVER DONE THE WORK TO MAKE HIMSELF A BETTER PERSON BECAUSE HE THINKS HE IS GREAT. SO HE DOESN'T HAVE TO CHANGE ANYTHING ABOUT HIMSELF. SO HE WILL ALWAYS TAKE THE MOST EXPEDIENT ROUTE TOWARDS SHORING UP THE PEOPLE WHO ALREADY SUPPORT HIM WHO, AGAIN, MANY OF THEM ARE JUST THE WORST. THEY ARE THE WHITE SUPREMACISTS AND THE CHRISTIAN NATIONALIST AND THE NEO-NAZIS WHO, OF COURSE, DONALD THINKS ARE VERY FINE PEOPLE, AGAIN, BECAUSE THEY ARE ON HIS SIDE. SO, AGAIN, WE CAN'T LOSE SIGHT OF HOW DANGEROUS IT IS AND HE WILL ALWAYS GO AFTER THE MOST VULNERABLE POPULATIONS IN OUR COUNTRY AND IT IS DESPICABLE, ESPECIALLY IF YOU CONSIDER IT IS ALL IN SERVICE TO HIS EGO AND HIS NARCISSISM AND KEEPING HIM IN POWER AND POTENTIALLY KEEPING HIM OUT OF PRISON. >> SO THIS BOOK, WHO COULD EVER LOVE YOU, IT IS A COURAGEOUS BOOK TO WRITE. IT IS DELVING INTO YOUR PAST. IT'S EMOTIONAL EFFECT ON YOU AND IT ALSO REVEALS AN ASPECT OF YOUR UNCLE'S EARLY LIFE. WAS WRITING IT CATHARTIC FOR YOU? I AM CURIOUS WHAT YOU WANT READERS TO UNDERSTAND ABOUT YOU AND YOUR FAMILY, AND THAT INCLUDES YOUR UNCLE. >> I WISH I COULD SAY IT WAS CATHARTIC. IT WAS QUITE DIFFICULT TO WRITE . NO, IT DID NOT ACTUALLY AFFORD ME ANY SOLACE. IT DID, HOWEVER, FEEL NECESSARY. I GOT TO A POINT TOWARDS THE END OF 2023 WHERE I REALIZED I WAS NOT DOING WELL. I WAS BARELY SUBSISTING, LET ALONE THRIVING AND I COULDN'T FIGURE OUT WHY. I NEEDED TO FIGURE OUT WHY. I REALIZE, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF US ARE EXPERIENCING THE SAME THING. I CAME INTO THIS CRAZY TIME WE ARE LIVING THROUGH ALREADY HAVING COMPLEX POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER, BUT THE LAST NINE YEARS FURTHER MOST OF US HAVE BEEN TRAUMATIZING IN AND OF ITSELF. I THINK IT IS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT TO, ONE, FACE WHAT WE ARE DEALING WITH WHAT DONALD TRUMP IS CAPABLE OF DOING, WHO HE IS, AND HOW IT HAS AFFECTED US AND HOW WE WILL DO THE WORK WHEN HOPEFULLY, AFTER NOVEMBER, WE STABILIZE A LITTLE BIT MORE BECAUSE IN MANY WAYS, WE ARE A BROKEN COUNTRY AND THE BEST EVIDENCE OF THAT IS THAT DONALD TRUMP IS THE CANDIDATE FOR THE PRESIDENCY IN ONE OF OUR TWO MAJOR POLITICAL PARTIES. UNLESS AND UNTIL WE DO THE WORK, WE WILL HAVE TO KEEP FIGHTING THESE BATTLES THAT DON'T GET US ANY CLOSER TO THE IDEAL OF A DEMOCRACY THAT REPRESENTS ALL OF US EQUALLY. WE ARE SO FAR FROM THAT RIGHT NOW. AND I THINK WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S KEEPING US FROM GETTING THERE, HOW WE HAVE BEEN HARMED AND WHAT WE ARE GOING TO DO ABOUT IT.