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One of the most fun parts of Trump being president is how much influence uninformed billionaires have over life-or-death matters like healthcare, foreign policy, the environment, immigration, taxes, social services—you name it, rich people who don’t really give a shit control it. Much of that influence comes from folks Trump’s actually installed in the White House, but every so often it appears the President turns to, say, Barry Billionaire in the E.F. Hutton Suite at Mar-a-Lago, and asks, “Hey Barry, what do you think I should do about North Korea? Nuke it, or nah?” That exact conversation probably hasn’t taken place (yet!), but considering a recent report that Trump surveyed Mar-a-Lago guests to see if he should act on gun control, it’s really just a matter of time.


Indeed, on Sunday the Washington Post published a long story on Trump’s latest little Twitter meltdown at his Mar-a-Lago resort re: the Russia probe, and hidden somewhere amid the tweet-screaming and the alleged sex affairs was this little nugget:

The president also surveyed Mar-a-Lago Club members about whether he ought to champion gun control measures in the wake of last week’s school massacre in nearby Parkland, telling them that he was closely monitoring the media appearances by some of the surviving students, according to people who spoke with him there.


While I’m sure there are people vacationing in West Palm Beach with strong opinions on gun control, it seems just a tad concerning that the President of the United States is asking his hotel guests for advice on one of the most pressing policy issues of our time. I suppose am glad Trump is at least thinking about supporting stricter gun control measures, considering he’s spent more time complaining about how unfair the mean FBI is to him than addressing the 17 lives lost in Parkland last week, but I am not convinced a roomful of people who pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to watch Trump eat overcooked steak will help spark any meaningful change.

Note that Trump reportedly once asked his hotel guests to help him pick a Secretary of State, which didn’t go well for anyone.

In other news, WaPo says Trump spent the weekend “watching cable news, venting to friends about the Russia investigation and complaining that it has been driving so much press coverage.” I am exhausted.