President Donald Trump and Sen. Bob Corker dramatically escalated their feud on Tuesday, with the president accusing Corker of blocking tax reform efforts and the Tennessee Republican warning Trump that his legacy will be the debasement of America. “Corker dropped out of the race in Tennesse [sic] when I refused to endorse him, and now is only negative on anything Trump. Look at his record!” 
 
 Corker quickly responded, lamenting on Twitter the "same untruths from an utterly untruthful president. Corker has consistently argued that Trump not only asked him to run again but offered to endorse him and campaign with him. "Four times he encouraged me to run and told me he would endorse me. Corker then notched up his rhetoric even further during an interview on CNN, saying Trump will most be remembered for "the debasement of our nation." "At the end of the day, when his term is over, I think the debasing of our nation, the constant non-truth telling, just the name calling, the things — I think the debasement of our nation will be what he'll be remembered most for, and that's regretful," Corker said. In another two-post missive, Trump lobbed more criticism, resurrecting a nickname he pinned to the Tennessee Republican weeks earlier: "Sen. Corker is the incompetent head of the Foreign Relations Committee, & look how poorly the U.S. has done. "The shame of it is, there are some some really good people around him, and if he would stay out of their way and let them perform, people like (Rex) Tillerson and (James) Mattis and others, we could really make progress on things that matter greatly to our country." While the war of words built expectations for a face-to-face clash at Tuesday's lunch, Corker called the meeting "uneventful” and that references to the feud did not come up. He said on MSNBC that his earlier back-and-forth with the president was "to express concerns about, you know, the conduct and just what it means to America and Americans and what it means to the world. Trump replied with a Twitter barrage, launching his claim that the senator had opted to retire only once a presidential endorsement had been taken off the table. Trump also said he had rejected Corker as a possible secretary of state and said the senator was "largely responsible for the horrendous Iran Deal!” Corker was quick with a sarcastic retort, writing that "it's a shame the White House has become an adult day care center. "Many of us, me included, have, you know, tried to, you know — I've intervened, I have had private dinner, you know, been with him on multiple occasions to try to create some kind of aspirational approach, if you will, to the way that he conducts himself, but I don't think that that's possible," Corker said. "I think that he's proven himself unable to rise to the occasion ...
– President Trump heads to Capitol Hill on Tuesday for a meeting with GOP senators, but his feud with one of them in particular heated up in advance. In appearances on morning talk shows, Bob Corker said the president should leave senators alone to work on a tax plan. “I would recommend that, based on recent history and just interactions,” Corker said on Today, per the Washington Post. “I think that’s the best way for us to have success.” Trump quickly responded on Twitter. "Bob Corker, who helped President O give us the bad Iran Deal & couldn't get elected dog catcher in Tennessee, is now fighting Tax Cuts," Trump wrote. "Corker dropped out of the race in Tennesse [sic] when I refused to endorse him, and now is only negative on anything Trump," he added. "Look at his record!" After which, Corker returned fire on Twitter, criticizing the "same untruths from an utterly untruthful president" and, notably, using a hashtag of "AlertTheDaycareStaff." (The Post agrees that Trump is stretching the truth on both Iran and the endorsement issues.) Politico notes that the attacks and counter-attacks come just hours before what is supposed to be a "unity" meeting at which Trump and Republicans will talk about changes to the tax system and health care. Corker, meanwhile, doubled down on his Trump insults in a CNN interview. "I don't know why he lowers himself to such a low, low standard, and debases our country in a way that he does, but he does." In fact, he added that Trump's legacy as president will be the "debasing of our nation." CNN analyst Chris Cillizza rounds up and provides commentary on more of Corker's slams.