World News: OnPolitics Today: Trump spends time insulting woman instead of, oh I don't know, doing job

with Josh Hafner

OnPolitics Today: Trump spends time insulting woman instead of, oh I don't know, doing job

So here's where we are in 2017: The man charged with representing the United States of America and its citizens carves time out of his day to mock a woman's intelligence, sanity and appearance on Twitter.

He could, instead of seething over slights on social media, put that time toward helping his party pass its imperiled health care plan, planning his next taxpayer-funded trip to his Mar-a-Lago resort or helping his wife's anti-cyberbulling campaign . (Yes, her chief cause as first lady is stopping cyberbullying.)

President Trump listens as he meets with immigration

But no. The most important matter for the president to attend to was the hurling of insults about a TV host's face.

"Technology has changed our universe," Melania Trump said last November. "But like anything that is powerful it can have a bad side,"

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Republicans call out Trump on tweets

Trump on Thursday morning fired off tweets criticizing the hosts of MSNBC's Morning Joe, including co-host Mika Brzezinski, whom he "heard" had been speaking "badly" of him. Trump, a rational adult who can handle the criticism that comes with the highest office in the land, responded in a mature and measured manner.

"Then how come low I.Q. Crazy Mika, along with Psycho Joe, came ... ... to Mar-a-Lago 3 nights in a row around New Year's Eve, and insisted on joining me. She was bleeding badly from a face-lift. I said no!" Trump said over a series tweets.

Republicans on the Hill responded swiftly, distancing themselves from Trump and criticizing the comment. Sen. Lindsey Graham called it "beneath the office." Sen. James Lankford said Trump's words "do not provide a positive role model."

Sen. Ben Sasse no doubt summed up the thoughts of many: "Please just stop."

Americans 'uneasy' about Washington

Surprisingly, or perhaps not, most Americans said they're "alarmed" or "uneasy" when they think about Trump's Washington. About 11% said they're "excited." That's according to a new USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll, which found that Americans increasingly see Russia investigations tied to Trump as a serious concern.

Latest on health care: GOP may nix tax cuts for the rich

Senate Republicans, desperate to piece together the 50 votes they need to pass a deeply unpopular health care plan, could make a shocking concession: Forgoing tax cuts for the rich. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, a Republican, told constituents Wednesday that he could back leaving some of the Affordable Care Act's taxes in place after one listener called the GOP's Senate bill a "massive tax cut for the affluent."

"We are discussing that," Johnson said, noting out a 3.8% surtax on investment income that could be left in place.

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