Trump’s fairy tale quickly fell apart
The controversy began during Trump’s unhinged Mar-a-Lago press conference when asked about Willie Brown, the first black mayor of San Francisco, who briefly dated Harris in the 1990s. Trump told the story of a helicopter ride with Brown during which Brown allegedly told him “horrible things” about Harris. The flight was memorable, Trump said, because the vehicle almost crashed and had to make an emergency landing. The story quickly fell apart when Brown noted he had never been in a helicopter with Trump, nor had he ever spoken to him about Harris. It has since been confirmed that Trump did take a helicopter ride with former California Governor Jerry Brown, who is white. However, Brown stated there was no emergency landing on their flight, nor did they discuss Harris.
“I guess we all look the same.”
A new wrinkle has emerged when a third man, Nate Holden, emerged as the person who experienced an emergency landing with Trump. The 95-year-old black politician from Los Angeles, who previously served on the Los Angeles City Council and the California State Senate, confirmed to Politico that he had flown a helicopter with Trump in 1990 that required an emergency landing. Trump’s apparent confusion amused Holden.
“Willie is the little black guy who lives in San Francisco. I’m a big black guy who lives in Los Angeles,” Holden told Politico. He laughed, “I guess we all look the same.”
Holden, who was not with Harris, also noted that she was not mentioned during the helicopter ride. Barbara Res, a former executive at Trump’s construction company who was also on the helicopter, confirmed to Politico that Holden was the man who took the helicopter ride, which she previously wrote about in her book.
Trump doubles his bet and threatens to sue
Although many people contradict his story, Trump has gone one step further and is now threatening to sue The New York Times for its coverage of the story. The newspaper reported that Trump called one of its reporters on Friday to complain about their coverage. He claimed he had flight records to prove his story and said he would “probably sue” the news network. When asked to turn over the records, Mr. Trump “responded derisively, repeating the request in a sing-song voice” but did not give them to him, the newspaper reported.
Overall, Trump’s story has painted him as a notorious liar, or someone who cannot remember basic details of his past or distinguish between the different people he has interacted with. By continuing to spread his story of lies, the Republican presidential candidate is ironically extending the story that continues to embarrass him.
