Hell hath frozen over: At the White House the other day, Donald Trump «was launching a charm offensive, directed mainly at Goldberg,» as in Jeffrey Goldberg, the Atlantic’s editor-in-chief. «There was none of the name-calling or hostility he regularly levels at our magazine.»

That’s according to Atlantic reporters Ashley Parker and Michael Scherer, who wrote the magazine’s cover story, which was posted yesterday.

For all the insights gleaned from the interview, nothing is more fascinating than how it came about.

They called the president on his cell phone. (Wha? Who do I have to court to get that? The reporters ain’t saying.)

Trump says he did the initial phone interview to see if the liberal magazine could be fair.

PRESIDENT TRUMP TELLS THE ATLANTIC HE RUNS THE COUNTRY ‘AND THE WORLD’

So I’m here to pronounce that the entire, seemingly endless piece is fair. The president hasn’t taken a shot at it on Truth Social, at least so far.

He has, however, ripped new polls from the «Failing New York Times» and «ABC/Washington Post» as «FAKE POLLS FROM FAKE NEWS ORGANIZATIONS,» saying they should be «investigated for ELECTION FRAUD, and add in the Fox News Pollster while you’re at it.» His lowest approval rating, in the Post-ABC survey, was 39 percent.

Meanwhile, we may now look back on Trump’s 2024 victory as inevitable, but after Jan. 6 it was anything but. On the cell call, «The president seemed exhilarated by everything he had managed to do in the first two months of his second term.»

And then came the transaction: «As ever, Trump was on the hunt for a deal. If he liked the story we wrote, he said, he might even speak with us again.»

Goldberg describes the session: «What I found in this particular meeting was a Trump who was low-key, attentive, and eager to convince us that he is good at his job and good for the country. It isn’t easy to escape the tractor beam of his charisma, but somehow we managed, and we asked him what needed to be asked. 

«But squaring Trump the Charmer with the Orcish Trump we more frequently see is difficult…Trump posted on the social-media platform he owns that Ashley is a ‘Radical Left Lunatic’ (she is not) and that Michael ‘has never written a fair story about me, only negative, and virtually always LIES’ (also false). It is our task at the Atlantic not to be bullied by these sorts of attacks.»

STATE OF WAR: HOW TRUMP IS FIGHTING A 9-FRONT BATTLE

The most interesting Trump sound bite is his comparison of the two terms:

«The first time, I had two things to do—run the country and survive; I had all these crooked guys. And the second time, I run the country and the world.»

Parker and Scherer did many other interviews, such as with Steve Bannon. «Our reality is that we won,» and he cited the conspiracy theory that the FBI had incited the crowd on Jan. 6. The reporters said that was simply untrue. 

«Now, here’s the interesting thing,» Bannon said. «Who’s won that argument? I think we have…

«This time it’s ‘Hey, f**k you, Greenland’s ours…When you’ve come back from such long odds, you clearly feel, ‘I can do anything.’ »

What about the four criminal investigations, including the conviction on the weakest one – Alvin Bragg’s hush money case? Trump says his numbers kept going up.

INTERVIEWING DONALD TRUMP: A LAST-MINUTE BLITZ AND NEW CLOSING MESSAGE

«Shockingly, yes,» Trump said. «Normally, it would knock you out. You wouldn’t even live for the next day. You know, you’d announce your resignation, and you’d go back and ‘fight for your name,’ like everybody says—you know, ‘fight for your name, go back to your family.’ …Yeah, it made me stronger, made me a lot stronger.»

He also said in the phone interview: «I got indicted five different times by five different scumbags, and they’re all looking for jobs now, so it’s one of those things. Who would have thought, right? It’s been pretty amazing.»

After the 2016 election, Trump told oil executives at Mar-a-Lago:

If I’m not president, you’re f***ed. Look at your profit-and-loss statements. You realize what would have happened to you if she was president? What’s wrong with you?») She was Kamala Harris, of course.

Referring to the criminal cases against him – including the charges brought forth by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Trump said «it made [him] stronger.» (Fulton County Sheriff’s Office via AP / Trump-Vance Transition Team)

One turning point: When he went to East Palestine, Ohio after the derailment of a train carrying toxic chemicals, while Joe Biden didn’t do squat.

On the Kennedy Center: «I didn’t really get to go the first time, because I was always getting impeached or some bulls**t, and I could never enjoy a show.» So he fired the Democrats and made himself chairman.

All right, enough quotes. Wait, one more that captures the tone of the piece:

«I got 38 percent of the male Black vote. Nobody knew that was possible. That’s a lot. I got 56 percent of Hispanics. How about that one? Every county along the Texas border is Hispanic. I won every one of them.» Though every single number he cited was wrong, the general thrust of his observation was correct.»

The reporters chronicled how things have gone south for the president, especially on tariffs and the economy, and how he pressured Hill Republicans into backing his nominees with primary threats. 

SUBSCRIBE TO HOWIE’S MEDIA BUZZMETER PODCAST, A RIFF ON THE DAY’S HOTTEST STORIES

After the March phone interview, the reporters tried Trump’s cellphone again. Just got voice mail. But at 1:38 am, he tried them back. No message.

Trump believes he can win over even his worst enemies. In 2015 or 2016, I watched him make a beeline in the New York green room for Karl Rove, who was very rough on him. At worst, he thinks, he can neutralize the person. Or soften him or her up for the next time. He enjoys the challenge.

The mainstream media almost uniformly can’t stand Donald Trump. He does invite some of his own negative headlines, while providing unprecedented access, but much of the press is back in Resistance mode. 

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Still, the Atlantic’s original pitch is undeniable, that he’s «The Most Consequential President of the 21st Century.»

Marcha silenciosa

La islamofobia en Francia

La mezquita Khadidja, donde murió la víctima. Foto: Reuters

Las declaraciones de Macron

Una comunidad en alerta

El hermano de Aboubakar Cisse. Foto: EFE

Ser musulmán

La media luna de la mezquita Khadidja. Foto: Reuters

Jean-Luc Melenchon. Foto: Reuters

A lawsuit filed in the Southern District of New York last month claims the leaders of several radical anti-Israel groups involved in 18 months of disruptive, violent and antisemitic protests on campuses and in the streets of New York City are «accountable for aiding and abetting Hamas’ continuing acts of international terrorism.»

In purported violation of the Antiterrorism Act and the Alien Tort Statue, the defendants are said to have «acted as Hamas’ foot soldiers in New York City,» and may have had foreknowledge of the designated foreign terror organization’s devastating Oct. 7 attacks.

Defendants in the case are Within Our Lifetime and its founder Nerdeen Kiswani, Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and its representative Maryam Alwan, Columbia-Barnard Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and its representative Cameron Jones, and Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD) and its representative Mahmoud Khalil, who is currently in custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The lawsuit asserts that the associational defendants have «distribute[d] Hamas-created and affiliated propaganda, incite[d] fear and violence, and attack[ed] critical academic, economic, and infrastructure centers in New York City,» as well as having «repeatedly terrorized and assaulted Jews across New York City and on Columbia University’s campus, physically assaulted Columbia University employees, and illegally seized and damaged public and private property.»

DUFFY SLAMS MTA OVER ‘FACT CHECK’ ON ANTI-ISRAEL MOB’S GRAND CENTRAL TAKEOVER

The details of the allegations are thorough. To demonstrate how the defendants «resoundingly and knowingly answered Hamas’ call to action» on and after Oct. 7, the lawsuit cites how the defendants knowingly «obtain[ed] and disseminat[ed]» a Hamas propaganda document, which contained directions created by the Hamas Media Office for spinning the narrative of their deadly attacks. By «painstakingly follow[ing]» the document, the lawsuit alleges defendants «directly responded to, and followed orders from, Hamas.» 

The lawsuit also supplies several indicators that defendants may have had foreknowledge of the heinous Oct. 7 attack, to include «a highly suggestive social media post published moments before the October 7 attack began» in which Columbia SJP posted on Instagram «We are back!!» after a months-long hiatus. 

On Oct. 7, Kiswani utilized marketing materials that «would not be released until the next day» in a National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP) «Toolkit» demonstrating how SJP organizations across the country could support the Gazan «resistance.» 

Emaciated Israeli hostages, from left, Ohad Ben Ami, Eli Sharabi and Or Levy are taken by terrorists to a stage before being handed over to the Red Cross in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on Feb. 8, 2025. (AP/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Following Oct. 7, Within Our Lifetime promoted a «Day of Rage» in New York City while Columbia SJP and Columbia JVP promoted their own «Day of Resistance.» The mere announcements of these events forced closures of Jewish schools and institutions, and «even forced Columbia University – a non-Jewish institution – to close its campus as a safety precaution,» while Jewish students «were advised to lock their doors and remain inside for their own safety,» according to the lawsuit. 

The lawsuit names Khalil as the purported leader of Columbia SJP’s Day of Resistance.

COLUMBIA’S ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTERS SAY TRUMP PULLING $400 MILLION IN GRANTS FROM UNIVERSITY IS A ‘SCARE TACTIC’

In November 2023, the suit describes how a «’Shut it Down for Palestine’ event descended into – as planned – anti-Jewish and vitriolic hatred and threats,» with speakers shouting «Death to Jews!» and «encourage[ing] Hamas and… comrades across Columbia’s campus to hunt down and assault pro-Israel students.» 

The next day, Columbia University suspended Columbia SJP and Columbia JVP, at which time «Khalil and former members and/or organizers of Columbia SJP became leaders of CUAD.» As a result, CUAD «became the primary organizer of the violent and antisemitic protests that would foment terror, sow discord, and disrupt campus life at Columbia for over a year.» 

Hamas terrorists kidnap a bloodied Israeli woman into the Gaza Strip. (Hamas-Telegram)

Khalil would later become the lead negotiator of the Columbia encampment, which the lawsuit notes was «well-supplied with identical tents, toiletries, food, and professional signage.» Based on a statement from Shlomi Ziv, a plaintiff in the lawsuit who was held captive by Hamas for 246 days following his kidnapping at the Nova Music Festival, «Hamas and [American Muslims for Palestine (AMP)]/NSJP provided financial, organizational, and other support… for the Encampment.»

Ziv alleges that his «Hamas captors bragged about having Hamas operatives on American university campuses,» and even «showed him Al-Jazeera stories and photographs of protests at Columbia University that were organized by Associational Defendants.»

APPARENT ANTI-ISRAEL ACTIVISTS SPLASH RED PAINT ON HOMES OF JEWISH OFFICIALS AT BROOKLYN MUSEUM 

Anti-Israel demonstrators attend a protest at Columbia University in New York City, just days after the Hamas slaughter in southern Israel, Oct. 12, 2023. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)

Given the «legal chasm between independent political advocacy and coordinating with a foreign terrorist organization to seed pro-terror propaganda throughout America’s largest city,» the lawsuit alleges the defendants’ «actions violate the Antiterrorism Act and the law of nations.»

According to the Jerusalem Post, the National Jewish Advocacy Center, Greenberg Traurig LLP, the Schoen Law Firm, and the Holtzman Vogel Law Firm filed the suit on behalf of plaintiffs who include Ziv, several Columbia University students who have served with the Israel Defense Forces, and a number of American and Israeli citizens whose family members, most of whom are believed dead, remain in Hamas captivity. 

People protest the banning of Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace at Columbia University on Nov. 20, 2023 in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

The lawsuit especially states that Khalil, «on information and belief, directly coordinates with Hamas, AMP/NSJP and/or other agents and affiliates of Hamas and related terrorist organizations.» The filers state that his detention by ICE in March may have been «based on many of his actions described in this Complaint.»

Khalil’s involvement in the Columbia protests was cited as a rationale for his removal during his April 11 hearing, when Judge Jamee Comans ruled that Khalil may be deported. Khalil also withheld past employment with the Syrian office in the Beirut British Embassy and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) as well as his membership in the CUAD when applying for a green card.

This withholding of information, according to federal officials, made Khalil «inadmissible at the time of his adjustment.»

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Disruptive events in New York City show no signs of abating. In March, students stormed a classroom at Columbia University and took over a building in affiliated Barnard College, where they assaulted an employee. A Within Our Lifetime protest on April 7 «took over» the main concourse of Grand Central Station.

Fox News Digital reached out to CUAD, Columbia SJP, Within Our Lifetime, and Columbia-Barnard JVP for comment about the allegations contained within the lawsuit, but received no response.