This is what having "no adults in the room" looks like. This is what a president surrounding himself with yes-men (and a few yes-women) while firing anyone who tells him "No" truly looks like. Donald Trump is president, but it now appears he doesn't just want to be a king, he wants to be an emperor. He wants to revive the American empire worldwide by the addition of several properties (by force, if necessary). His new bright idea was unveiled last night -- he now wants to own the Gaza Strip. It wouldn't become the 51st American state, but more like the 54th (behind Canada, Greenland, and the Panama Canal, assumably). This idea is so bonkers it staggers the imagination just to even consider it. But, because the president of the United States introduced it, people now have to think about it.

Last night, at a joint press conference with Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump proposed evacuating Gaza (using the U.S. military to do so, if necessary) and displacing the approximately two million Palestinians living there to other countries, where they can "live out their lives in peace and harmony." The U.S. would then clear all the rubble and turn it into "the Riviera of the Middle East" and build lots of big beautiful buildings (and, assumably, a few golf courses, because why not?). Then "the world's people" (those who can afford to buy apartments in the new big, beautiful high-rises, assumably) will be able to move in and it "could be so magnificent."

This would amount to ethnic cleansing, of course, and would be breaking international law. It would be a war crime, plain and simple. Not that Trump cares about such niceties, but others still do. And the U.S. would actually own Gaza from that point on, meaning all the profits would be for those who built all those big, beautiful buildings. It's a real estate developer's childlike view of the world, in essence. Move the people out (by force, if necessary), bulldoze the rubble, get rid of the unexploded bombs, and built on the ashes. Then sit back and make lots of money off the whole scheme.

Because this is such a stunning (and stunningly insane) thing to propose, I searched out a transcript of the press conference because I think it's important for people to read exactly what Trump had to say about it (this is an unofficial transcript from the media, since the official transcript has not been posted on the White House website yet):

I also strongly believe that the Gaza Strip, which has been a symbol of death and destruction for so many decades and so bad for the people anywhere near it, and especially those who live there and frankly who's been really very unlucky. It's been very unlucky. It's been an unlucky place for a long time.

Being in its presence just has not been good and it should not go through a process of rebuilding and occupation by the same people that have really stood there and fought for it and lived there and died there and lived a miserable existence there. Instead, we should go to other countries of interest with humanitarian hearts, and there are many of them that want to do this and build various domains that will ultimately be occupied by the million Palestinians living in Gaza, ending the death and destruction and frankly bad luck.

This can be paid for by neighboring countries of great wealth. It could be one, two, three, four, five, seven, eight, twelve. It could be numerous sites, or it could be one large site. But the people will be able to live in comfort and peace and we'll get -- we'll make sure something really spectacular is done.

They're going to have peace; they're not going to be shot at and killed and destroyed like this civilization of wonderful people has had to endure. The only reason the Palestinians want to go back to Gaza is they have no alternative. It's right now a demolition site. This is just a demolition site. Virtually every building is down.

They're living under fallen concrete that's very dangerous and very precarious. They instead can occupy all of a beautiful area with homes and safety and they can live out their lives in peace and harmony instead of having to go back and do it again. The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it too.

We'll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, level the site and get rid of the destroyed buildings, level it out. Create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area. Do a real job, do something different.

Just can't go back. If you go back, it's going to end up the same way it has for years. I'm hopeful that this ceasefire could be the beginning of a larger and more enduring peace that will end the bloodshed and killing once and for all. With the same goal in mind, my administration has been moving quickly to restore trust in the alliance and rebuild American strength throughout the region and we've really done that.

At this point, Trump was asked by a reporter whether the U.S. would "send [American] troops to secure the security vacuum." Here was his response:

As far as Gaza is concerned, we will do what is necessary.

If it's necessary, we'll do that. We're going to take over that peace and we're going to develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs. And it will be something that the entire Middle East can be very proud of.

But everybody feels that continuing the same process that's gone on forever over and over again and then it starts and then the killing starts, and all of the other problems start, and you end up in the same place and we don't want to see that happen. So, by the United States, with its stability and strength, owning it, especially the strength that we're developing and developed over the last fairly short period of time, I would say really since the election, I think we'll be a great keeper of something that is very, very strong, very powerful and very, very good for the area, not just for Israel, for the entire Middle East.

It's very important and we'll again have thousands of jobs. And there will be jobs for everyone, not for a specific group of people, but for everybody.

Trump then got the most intelligent question of the session: "Mr. President, you are outlining something that is really quite striking. You are talking about... you are talking tonight about the United States taking over a sovereign territory. What authority would allow you to do that? Are you talking about a permanent occupation there, redevelopment?"

So Trump went ahead and clarified:

I do see a long-term ownership position and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East, and maybe the entire Middle East. And everybody I've spoken to - this was not a decision made lightly. Everybody I've spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs with something that will be magnificent in a really magnificent area that nobody would know.

Nobody can look because all they see is death and destruction and rubble and demolished buildings falling all over. It's just a terrible, terrible sight. I've studied it -- I've studied this very closely over a lot of months, and I've seen it from every different angle. And it's a very, very dangerous place to be and it's only going to get worse. And I think this is an idea that's gotten tremendous -- and I'm talking about from the highest level of leadership, gotten tremendous praise.

And if the United States can help to bring stability and peace in the Middle East, we'll do that.

That's the heart of it. Trump did say one more thing worth noting, that is nothing short of delusional (unless he's just talking about Netanyahu and other extreme-right leaders in Israel):

I can tell you, I spoke to other leaders of countries in the Middle East and they love the idea. They say it would really bring stability and what we need is stability.

Since Trump floated this grand scheme, it has been pretty universally condemned by all other world leaders -- especially those in the Middle East. Even one "longtime Trump advisor" anonymously told Axios last night: "He's moving the goal posts on crazy." Sounds about right.

Today, his White House press secretary walked back major parts of Trump's harebrained and half-baked idea:

It's been very made very clear to the president, that the United States needs to be involved in this rebuilding effort, to ensure stability in the region for all people. But that does not mean boots on the ground in Gaza. It does not mean American taxpayers will be funding this effort.

She also walked back (or "refined" to be charitable) the idea of clearing all the Palestinians out, saying they would only need to be "temporarily relocated" -- even though Trump talked of moving them all out so that "they could live out their lives in peace and harmony" in their new "beautiful area."

In Trump's first term in office, he did have advisors who knew the state of the world, and international and domestic law, and were grounded in reality. They're all gone now. So when Trump gets a bee in his bonnet, nobody's there to tell him: "Uh, Mr. President, with all due respect, that would be a monumentally stupid idea." Nobody's going to threaten to make a big public stink by resigning and then telling the media precisely why they're resigning. Trump dreaming up some grandiose (and completely unworkable) pipe dream is only going to result in lots of people telling him: "Wow, that's a great idea! You're such a genius! Why hasn't anybody else thought of that before now?!?"

Welcome to Week 3 of Trump's second term. This won't be the last time this sort of thing happens. With no adults left in the room, Trump's inner child will roam free. Maybe next time (since he seems to have gone full-expansionist "rebuild the American empire" now) he'll get the idea for the American military to take Cuba back. Or the Philippines. At this point, it wouldn't surprise me in the least.

-- Chris Weigant

Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant