It was a twofer Tuesday at the White House. Early in the day, Kayleigh McEnany delivered her usual elegant evisceration of the press pool jackals. President Trump then tagged and rolled in with a solo performance in a tight and disciplined 26 minutes. Off-camera, he took consequential action with his pen, signing an executive order on the Census. I extensively annotated and selectively bolded the official transcripts, presented below for your consideration. Tuesday’s performance by the president was markedly better, tighter, more disciplined, than many in the past. Or that is my view. I especially welcome feedback from those who have been supportive of his policies but off-put by his presentation manner in press conferences.

[Author’s note: Ricochet members and readers are perfectly able to index and regularly scan official sources, but most of us do not have that interest. I hope that this occasional series of official video and transcripts adds value to Ricochet, as good, factual reporting does elsewhere. Yes, I add my opinion and analysis in and around the official facts of what was spoken. And. This injection of opinion within long transcripts is clearly set off in brackets. You read, you decide. Why transcripts? Because text is so much faster than the spoken word. You can read closely or just skim for highlights so much faster than comprehensible speech. Why video? Because important parts of our communication are tone and physical gesture.]