New York Times reporter Jonathan Swan was asked about the new viral AI image going around showing President Donald Trump kissing his top White House aide while on the golf course.
Swan recently co-authored a book with colleague Maggie Haberman, that only interviewed White House staff, not Trump, about the new administration. There were revelations about the aide, Natalie Harp, and her "obsession" with Trump. Harp is the aide who posts Trump's comments to social media and travels with a battery-operated printer to print things out the president asks for something.
The Bulwark's Tim Miller asked for more information about Harp specifically and her relationship with the president.
"I mean the mash notes, the love notes. Maggie did duck the question that I had about whether Trump is impotent or not," Miller said.
A disgusted Swan reacted, "Oh, god. Dude!" Swan ultimately asked, "What are you Howard Stern?"
"Well, I think it's noteworthy that Trump spent his whole career sexually assaulting people for like 30 years. He has like — dozens of women have accused him of sexual assault and now none," Miller said. He said he didn't want Swan to speculate; he wanted to know if there was actual reporting about Trump's health in that regard. Swan said he did no know.
Moving on, Miller asked what might be going on with Harp and the president. "Just, I kind of think it's weird; this is kinda my point. It's weirder than" questions about Trump's virility.
"I think it's uh the story of a young woman who is completely devoted and obsessed with the president," Swan said.
Swan also addressed members of Trump's Cabinet causing him problems, like Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who's facing accusations of corruption after his department handed a contract to a company working with his sons. That, combined with his association with trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, is making Trump look bad.
Swan said that Lutnick recently gave $25 million to the Trump library. "And Trump, in meetings in front of Lutnick and others, would say, 'You know, the only reason I'm putting up with Howard's bull—— is that he gave me $25 million.'"
Swan said that Trump will comment things like, "How great is Howard? You know, I asked him for the money, he gave it straight away."
