Reliable Sources with Brian Stelter at CNN email

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Stone and the wall

When you think about it, there are several remarkable connections between Friday's two big stories. And not just the obvious one -- that President Trump's capitulation to the Democrats briefly diverted attention away from Roger Stone's arrest and indictment.

#1: Stone built the rhetorical "wall." In interviews, he has taken credit for coining Trump's "build the wall" phrase, calling it a "rhetorical flourish." Sam Nunberg has said that he and Stone share credit. As the NYT noted recently, the "wall" talking point was originally just "a memory trick for an undisciplined candidate," to keep Trump talking about immigration. Stone recently told Real Clear Politics about this. And what led Trump to force a shutdown? Funding to "build the wall."

#2: Trump followed "Stone's rules." One of the dirty trickster's sayings is "Admit nothing, deny everything, launch counterattack," and Trump certainly didn't admit defeat when he surrendered and agreed to reopen the government on Friday afternoon. "Attack, attack, attack—never defend" is another of Stone's sayings, and that's what Trump did, stoking fear of immigrants and swearing to use his "powers" to "address this emergency."

#3: The FBI agents who arrested Stone were working without pay due to the government shutdown. Enough said.

#4: Both Stone and Trump like to put on a show, and both did just that on Friday. Stone seemed to savor the scene outside the courthouse, with both supporters and hecklers fighting for attention. And Trump had his aides on hand to applaud him despite his defeat. Trump's speech "was just right out of 'Alice in Wonderland,'" Jim Acosta said afterward.

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