Inside Politics with Hugh Linehan The Taoiseach in the court of the mad king
Mar 18, 2026
Pat Leahy, Irish Times political editor reporting from Washington. He narrates the Taoiseach’s tightly choreographed St Patrick’s Day visit. Short takes on Oval Office chaos, managing Trump’s unpredictability, misgendering incident, diplomacy over Gaza and Iran, trade talks on LNG, and the Doonbeg invitation’s political risks.
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St Patrick’s Visit As Irish Soft Power
- Leahy argued the visit is a unique soft power asset that gives a small nation's leader outsized access to the US president for a full day.
- He traced that leverage to the historic strength of the Irish‑American political lobby and deep economic links.
Chaotic Oval Office Press Circus
- Pat Leahy described the cramped Oval Office press setup with about 50 journalists, ropes, Secret Service and aides on couches.
- He called the shouting-and-picking process for questions a deeply unsatisfying way to conduct a press conference.
Trump As Unpredictable Courtly Figure
- Leahy likened Trump's briefings to a monarch's court where the president's mood dictates the event and unpredictability rules.
- He observed Trump was grumpy that day, driven by breaking news like a public resignation and recent Truth Social posts attacking NATO.