Former Trump aides lay waste to president’s 'bananas' Kennedy fixation

Republican operatives and media representatives David Urban and Alyssa Farah Griffin spent a good ten minutes one-upping each other on CNN Tuesday over President Donald Trump’s ‘bananas’ obsession with putting his name on the Kennedy Memorial Center.

It was CNN anchor Anderson Cooper who first described Trump’s “nutty” threat to withhold money to the Kennedy Center if he fails to put his name on the front of a building — which was built as a memorial to another president. But it was Griffin and Urban who grabbed the ball and ran with it.

“I just can't believe someone hasn't gotten in the president's ear and said, ‘this looks ridiculous,’ but it kind of reminds me of the president's posture on a lot of things,” said former Trump White House communications director Elizabeth Griffin. “Just last week, when giving remarks, he said that if Republicans win the midterms, he'll send out $5,000 checks to all Americans. Now he's saying we will repair the Kennedy center, but only if ‘my name is on it.’ This is the way he operates. He wants to get what he wants to get. And it honestly feels like a toddler. It feels like he's throwing a temper tantrum because a judge blocked his name from being put on.”

“So, this is his way of pushing back,” continued Griffin, and it's even more silly in a moment when the American public is begging for him to care about the cost of living, to care about gas prices, and instead he's bickering over this.”

Former Trump campaign adviser David Urban piled on even more rancor, joking that he resented Cooper dragging him onto the show to “defend the indefensible.”

“Of course it doesn't make sense, right? It doesn't make sense. As Alyssa said, I'm not quite sure who suggested to put his name on there to begin with” said Urban.

“Oh, I wonder,” interrupted Cooper. “I wonder who suggested it? I can't imagine.”

“Well, I mean, I've got some ideas who suggested it, but I'm not going to say it on air,” said Urban. “But, you know, I don't think the administration understands there's a clear statute that says the Kennedy center, no other names can be put on it. I mean, if you just read the law itself, it's pretty clear in its statement and its intent. … As soon as president Trump leaves office, the next administration will take those letters down just as quickly as they put them up. So, I'm not quite sure why they're even bothering to fight this fight.”

“Any victory they win will be a pyrrhic victory,” added Urban. “It’s short lived. So, to your point, I think there are a lot of other things to be talking about and putting your energy towards that a lot of House members who are out in tough races would like to see time being spent on instead.”

“I can just picture advisers around him, telling him to ‘focus on other things, focus on the midterms,’” said Griffin. “We're like less than 50 days out, but this is the fight he wants.”

“And by the way, there are Republicans who will someday build monuments to him, probably like I'm sure somewhere in Florida, they will build him something and call it the Trump Center. But this is going to, to David’s point, be taken down as soon as he leaves office. It's a pointless fight,” Griffin conceded.

- YouTube youtu.be