President Donald Trump, 79, confounded his audience during an executive order signing Monday in the Oval Office, rambling about an imaginary governor named “Kristi Whitman.” “You know, I did a favor for Kristi Whitman,” Trump said, seated behind the Resolute Desk. “Whitmer,” he added moments later, in what seemed like a fleeting moment of self-correction—though he still appeared to be referring to a nonexistent “Kristi Whitmer.”
He then immediately segued into fish. Referring to a memorandum from back in May that stressed his administration’s commitment to “protecting” the Great Lakes from invasive species of Asian carp, “With the fish, the carp, the China carp —you ever hear of it? China carp, and it’s taking over your Great Lakes.”
Trump may have confused the Michigan governor’s name with that of former New Jersey Gov. Christine “Christie” Todd Whitman, a harsh Trump critic who served as Environmental Protection Agency administrator under George W. Bush.
The blunder adds to the president’s history of fumbling key names, including a time when he confused former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and ex-United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley, a mistake he brushed off as “purposely” interposing names.
Earlier this month, Trump confused Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem with LPGA golfer Cristie Kerr while Noem was standing off to his side.
No comments:
Post a Comment