Brian Barrett: Our best and brightest.
Leah Feiger: Yes. And I just say, no, no, no, it’s definitely not just about technology. It’s about showing very specifically who Trump’s allies are and being able to position himself in front of a country and a leader he hasn’t spent much time with lately.
Zoë Schiffer: While we’re still talking about who he’s going to China with, what do we know about why Jensen Huang was removed from the list and then added back in at the last minute? Because when I saw it, I thought, “oh, it’s about export controls and they think it’s going to be kind of weird and complicated to have him travel.” But of course he’s on a journey now.
Leah Feiger: So someone I can’t name told me, “Oh, I think the president just forgot about him,” and I laughed.
Zoë Schiffer: Oh, you remembered Brett Ratner and forgot?
Leah Feiger: No, I thought, “That’s not true.” It’s not even true to the point where I thought, “I’m sorry, you expect me to entertain this now?”
Zoë Schiffer: I would absolutely believe that Trump had forgotten about this man, but I was like, “Trump has other people around him.”
Leah Feiger: This team has not forgotten this man.
Zoë Schiffer: Yes, please.
Leah Feiger: No, there is no way on earth. I was like, “Uh-huh. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Keep doing it.” And of course guys, we need to talk about the Musk of all this. I know Elon has been returning to various events at or around the White House, but I think this is an critical moment for him to be back on the international stage alongside Trump.
Zoë Schiffer: Did you know that Elon Musk’s mother is a modest celebrity in China?
Brian Barrett: Maye Musk, international model, Maye Musk.
Leah Feiger: Wait, fresh information. Tell me more.
Zoë Schiffer: People are obsessed with her there.
Leah Feiger: What?
Zoë Schiffer: Just a little fun fact.
Brian Barrett: I also want to take a moment to not run away from Maya Musk. We can talk and talk about Maya Musk all day long. About a year ago, when the Pentagon arranged for Musk to give a war briefing on what would happen if the United States went to war. Do we remember this?
Leah Feiger: I do.
Zoë Schiffer: Oh my God, I completely forgot about that. Yes.
Brian Barrett: The Pentagon invited Musk to see what the war plans would be if we went to fight China over Taiwan, which apparently was scuttled before he left. It was a Modern York Times report, but it shows how far we’ve come and how far. I don’t know. If I’m China, I don’t think I’d want to see Musk anywhere near this coalition. And if I’m Musk, I feel pretty good about the level of influence I have now. One more time, and then maybe I’ll have a chance to look at these war plans again. Maybe I can sweet talk Pete Hegseth.