'I run the country and the world,' Donald Trump says in Atlantic interview
WASHINGTON ― President Donald Trump declared that he runs the world as he reflected on what's different during his second White House go around in an interview with The Atlantic magazine.
“The first time, I had two things to do ‒ run the country and survive; I had all these crooked guys,” Trump said in the interview, published April 28. “And the second time, I run the country and the world.”
Trump has pushed the boundaries of the presidency during his first 100 days back in the White House, signing more than 140 executive orders to unilaterally achieve his policy aims and seek retribution against his political adversaries.
Trump's sit-down interview came as his approval rating has taken a considerable hit, falling to 39% in a new poll from The Washington Post, ABC News and Ipsos, amid concerns about the economy and his aggressive use of tariffs.
Nevertheless, Trump agreed with an observation than he's having more fun ‒ blowing up Washington "with a twinkle in his eye," as one close ally ‒ so far during his return to the White House.
"I’m having a lot of fun, considering what I do,” Trump said. “You know, what I do is such serious stuff.”
Trump remarked on the friendly reception he's gotten from many in the billionaire class, including Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, during his second term.
“It’s just a higher level of respect. I don’t know,” Trump said. “Maybe they didn’t know me at the beginning, and they know me now.”
The interview, conducted April 24 by Atlantic reporters Ashley Parker and Michael Scherer, took place after Trump broadcasted on his social media platform Truth Social that he agreed to take part "out of curiosity, and as a competition with myself, just to see if it's possible for The Atlantic to be 'truthful.'" Trump ripped the publication in a social media post weeks earlier as he denied the magazine's request for an interview, only to later change his mind.
Trump has a long-running feud with The Atlantic that dates back to the magazine reporting that Trump referred to U.S. soldiers who died in combat as "suckers" and "losers."
Also in the Oval Office for the interview was Jeffrey Goldberg, The Atlantic's editor, whose inadvertent inclusion in a Signal chat of top Trump national security officials exposed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sharing plans for U.S. airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen in the commercial messaging app.
Trump on Hegseth: 'He's gonna get it together'
Asked about the embattled Hegseth, Trump told The Atlantic: "I think he’s gonna get it together."
Hegseth is facing renewed scrutiny following reports revealed he shared the timing of U.S. air strikes on Houthi rebels with his wife and brother in a separate Signal chat. A former top Pentagon spokesman described a "month of total chaos" under Hegseth's leadership. And last week, CBS News reported Hegseth had a make-up room installed for him next to the Pentagon briefing room. Hegseth has fired multiple Pentagon "leakers" he's accused of being responsible for unflattering stories about him.
"I had a talk with him, a positive talk, but I had a talk with him," Trump said of Hegseth.
Trump was also asked about the possibility of seeking a third term in the White House ‒ an idea he keeps floating, even though the Constitution says explicitly no one can be elected more than twice to the presidency.
Trump told the Atlantic that he has not tasked the Justice Department to look into the legality of running again, but as he has done for weeks, left the door open to it.
“That would be a big shattering, wouldn’t it?” Trump said with a laugh. “Well, maybe I’m just trying to shatter.”
Despite Trump's public hostility toward the media ‒ who he again labeled the "enemy of the people" in a Truth Social post Monday ‒ Trump also sat down recently for an interview with Time magazine and will take part in an interview Tuesday by ABC News marking his first 100 days in office.
(This article has been updated to clarify Trump’s comments.)
Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.