Bloomberg News reports.
Audio of an exchange with Trump and the pranksters was posted online by “The Stuttering John Podcast” and features the president speaking with a comedian, who pretends to be Menendez. In a three-minute conversation, the two men discussed the Supreme Court, the debacle over immigrant family separations and Menendez’s corruption trial.
The White House did not refute the authenticity of the audio, and declined to comment.
What a screwup by Trump's call screeners, but Trump just sounds like typical Trump in the recording. So it's not as juicy as
the prank call that got through to Governor Scott Walker in February 2011, at the height of the Wisconsin protests:
I never thought Scott Walker’s people would be dumb enough to put me through....
I told Keith Gilkes, who was then Walker’s chief of staff, that the governor couldn’t return my call because “my goddamn maid, Maria, put my phone in the washer. I’d have her deported, but she works for next to nothing.” (In reality, I was calling with a free Skype number and couldn’t receive calls from a land line at the time.)
In my business, that’s called tipping your hand. All ethical liars do it. It’s the ridiculous, implausible hints that separate the ethical prankster from the confidence man, the satirist from the unrepentant political hack. But they didn’t get the joke, and soon Walker and I were comparing notes on how he could break the backs of those pro-union demonstrators....
At the appointed hour, Walker and I enjoyed a friendly chat during which I suggested that he physically intimidate his Democratic opposition with a baseball bat, whip up a good counter-protest by dressing hobos in suits and most disturbing: that he ought to plant troublemakers to discredit the pro-union demonstrators.
“[W]e thought about that,” Walker replied, and eventually added, “My only fear would be if there’s a ruckus caused is that would scare the public into thinking maybe the governor has to settle to avoid all these problems.” So it wasn’t morality, but a cynical calculation, that saved the public from that particular ruse.
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I know there’s a deeper truth in there somewhere.
The narrative is Trump is an idiot and he is surrounded by idiots and incompetents. Ignoring, of course, his string of victories and great judicial appointments.
What the prankster didn't realize was that it was actually Alec Baldwin on the other end.
The narrative is Trump is an idiot and he is surrounded by idiots and incompetents. Ignoring, of course, his string of victories and great judicial appointments.
They did the same things to Reagan. Dogs...caravan....
When I was in college, we called Khruschev person to person, which you did in those days.
We actually got as far as the Kremlin where the person told us "The Chairman is asleep."
The call to Hillary wasn't made public, because they got through and she asked for a quarter million dollars before she suggested killing political opponents and eating their hearts raw, to steal their mojo.
OT: Reporter caught lying for The Narrative.
At least he was fired. I'm kinda shocked at that. I would think he'd get a promotion for the effort. That's good foot-soldiering, man.
Sen. Menendez must welcome all the attention paid to his recent corruption trial. That will be a big plus in the upcoming election.
The problem is in pretending to be Menendez. It would actually be really cool if real people could just call and talk to the President.
How does Stuttering Bob know it was really Trump?
So what. We get more Trump genius on display at no extra charge. And he gets lots of PR from the Attack Media who don't yet know that all PR is good PR.
Trump just blathers and gives generalities. Supposedly, Kushner was responsible for putting the call through, against the advice of the call screeners.
Which sounds right.
They should have asked him about Bob’s good friend and benefactor, and Trump’s Palm Beach neighbor Epstein, who, like Bob “likes ‘em young”
Berry told the Boston Globe that the tweet was intended to be a “snarky, sarcastic, cynical remark.”
Read the story again more carefully. He was forced to resign for mocking liberal journalists who had gone full Mrs Magoo (Never go full Mrs Magoo) with his way over the top and clearly absurd tweet that the shooter had dropped a MAGA hat before starting shooting. Real “journalists” are supposed to employ more subtlety and deniability in their Trump bashing.
Two things funny to me. I read that screener contacted Sen. menendez's office and we're told he wasn't trying to reach POTUS. And second that Trump conductes a monologs instead of natural opening, "what's on your mind?"
God that was bad typing.
Menendez is a Senator. How would a member of Trump's staff determine the call was authentic? In such a situation, you just put him through rather than take the risk of offending him. It isn't like every politician in D.C. has a specific number to be used to dial up the president.
Trump called back after first vetting.
Stuttering John is John Melendez, who is best known for being part of The Howard Stern Show from 1988-2004. Given Trump's many appearances on Howard Stern, he knows Stuttering John.
To those quite not so credulous, how likely is some random person to be able place a call to Air Force One?
The report of Trump being spoofed is more fake news.
It doesn't matter, Readering- the Senator's office didn't know for certain, they just thought the Senator wasn't the guy calling. This has to be the case since, as you say, Trump called back on the number from the initial call.
The recording just makes Trump look good.
The first president in a long time to say the same things in public he says in private.
Unlike the last 3 presidents who were obvious fake pieces of shit.
"Trump just sounds like typical Trump in the recording." writes Althouse. I agree that he sounds just as stupid on this recording as he does proclaiming anything.
But somehow everyone misses the part of the Trump words where he congratulates "Sleaze Bob" Menendez, US Senator from NJ (Dem), on beating 18 counts of bribery, fraud and corruption involving nearly $1 million in gifts and donations. Menendez and Dr. Salomon Melgen, 63, are on trial on charges that the senator did official favors for the ophthalmologist in exchange for lavish gifts, including all-expense-paid vacations and $750,000 in campaign contributions.
Menendez and Dr. Salomon Melgen, 63, are on trial on charges that the senator did official favors for the ophthalmologist in exchange for lavish gifts, including all-expense-paid vacations and $750,000 in campaign contributions. Salomon Melgen, got caught overbilling Medicare to the tune of $90 million. So Sleaze Bob got him bailed out. In return, Bob and his girlfriend flew all around the world along with Menendez's son and his supposed lady bookkeeper aboard Melgen's jet - and Bob forgot to claim $60K in income for his free travel.
But last fall's trial ended in a hung jury and the Trump Justice Department decided not to retry the case. This all goes to show that real evidence is not nearly as important as trial-by-congressional hearing where accusations are better than proof.
This is what you've become, leftists.
Enjoy the wilderness.
For a bit of context, the transcript of the prank call to Walker.
"The Poor Man's LLR Chuck" gadfly: "........(stuff)......"
You really had no idea where to go with this, did you?
LOL
Michael K said. . .
When I was in college, we called Khruschev person to person, which you did in those days.
You should have asked him if he said "Will will Barry you" or "We will bury you." We could have been ready.
You should have asked him if he said "Will will Barry you" or "We will bury you." We could have been ready.
We got as far as the Kremlin, which we considered a pretty good caper.
Telephones in those days could be played with. The fraternity house had a gong that made the sounds of coins dropping in the pay phone. The phone company would come around and the box would be empty.
Then we would do a scam where someone would put up a phone number. Everybody coming by the phone would call it and ask for "Ed." Of course there was no Ed there and the people would get really tired of the calls. Then one guy would call and say, "This is Ed. Any calls for me ?
Harmless fun.
It was much more difficult to call the President of the United States in the old days
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