Welcome back to Barf Bag, the Monday edition. Start off your week with a “what the fuck?” and a round-up of the barf-worthy moments you may have missed over the weekend.
Despite his crappy fashion and horrible cabinet finishes, Donald Trump claims he’s got a knack for interior design. “There’s never been a president that’s good at ballrooms,” he crowed in July, when the White House announced its new plans for a $200 million extension to the East Wing. “I’m good at building things.” The president also has a gift for timing—because every time he’s been asked about the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk at a college campus last week, he’s used the moment to promote his new ballroom.
During a Fox News & Friends segment on Friday morning, Trump recounted how he’d first heard about the shooting at a college campus in Utah (this quote is slightly translated to help you understand the garbler-in-chief): “When I heard it? I was in the midst of building a great—for 150 years they’ve wanted a ballroom at the White House, right? They had to use tents on the lawn for President Xi when he comes over, if it rains, it’s a wipeout. And so I was with the architects that were designing—it’s gonna be incredible—and they came in and they said Charlie Kirk is dead.”
Trump on Charlie Kirk: “Oh, when I heard it? I was in the midst of building a great — for 150 years they’ve wanted a ballroom at the White House, right? They have to use tents for President Xi when he comes over. If it rains, it’s a wipeout. And so I was with the architects …… pic.twitter.com/wBV5yz2nUC
I mean, my dude… read the room. This is not the time for plugs, Mr. President! However, it clearly runs in the family: Eric Trump, when asked about Kirk’s death, responded by promoting his memoir. The snub was clearly not an accident, though, because the same thing happened again a few hours later.
On the White House lawn, a reporter approached Trump, saying, “My condolences on the loss of your friend, Charlie Kirk. How are you holding up?” Trump responded: “I think very good. And by the way, right there you see all the trucks? They just started construction of the new ballroom for the White House, which is something they’ve been trying to get for about 150 years. And it’s gonna be a beauty. It’ll be an absolutely magnificent structure.”
Q: My condolences on the loss of your friend Charlie Kirk. How are you holding up?
TRUMP: I think very good. And by the way, right there you see all the trucks. They just started construction of the new ballroom for the White House, which is something they’ve been trying to get… pic.twitter.com/Jrw4j2fnVZ
The response has generated heat from both sides of the aisle, because there’s something particularly creepy about apathy over the death of a long-time ally. “To pivot a question like that to wanting credit about constructing a ballroom… did you not hear that in your own head, how wrong that sounds?” Tommy Vietor, one of the co-hosts of the liberal podcast Pod Save America, asked in response to the clip. (A day after Kirk was shot, the president was also criticized for dancing to the “Y.M.C.A.” at a Yankees game.)
Trump’s White House renovations have included plans to pave over Jackie Kennedy’s rose garden, erect an octagon cage on the lawn for a UFC cage fight, and lace every detail and frame with tacky gold. The ballroom, however, is the most ambitious, and the president and his administration have insisted the changes will be paid for by him and “other patriot donors.” (Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington President Noah Crew told the New York Times that the funding plan is “highly unusual,” saying “there is certainly a risk that donors to this project, which [Trump] has made clear is important to him, could see it as a way to curry favor with the administration.”)
Meanwhile, on Saturday, the president announced further updates to his White House ballroom, saying it would be a “little bigger” than it was originally intended. (According to the new plans, it will seat 900 people, instead of the original 650.) Expect that $200 million bill to go up—and plenty more awkward deflections about how “beautiful” the project is.
Senior administration officials—such as Karoline Leavitt and RFK Jr.—paid homage to Kirk at a vigil at the Kennedy Center. Donald Trump was not present. [Daily Beast]
J.D. Vance will host The Charlie Kirk Show on Monday. [The Independent]
Megyn Kelly blames modern political violence on Barack Obama. “We just haven’t felt like ourselves for years now.” [Sky News Australia]
At least 33 people have lost their jobs or are under investigation for their social media posts in response to Kirk’s death. [NPR]
We’re probably heading toward a government shutdown—unless Congress can agree on a bipartisan deal. [Politico]
Brian Kilmeade apologized for suggesting that homeless people who are mentally ill and refuse help should be euthanized. [Politico]
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul endorsed Zohran Mamdani in the race for New York City mayor, despite being “unlikely allies.” [New York Times]
Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) announced he will not be running for reelection, warning Americans of a looming “World War III.” [Politico]
Headline alert: “GOP staff on Capitol Hill hated Stephen Miller so much they spread rumors he likes playing with dolls, report says.” [The Independent]
Trump broke with his typical anti-immigration furor to say foreign experts are “welcome” in the U.S., after hundreds of South Korean workers were imprisoned by ICE after following a raid at an EV battery plant in Georgia. [Axios]
Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Israel, calling him an “extraordinary friend.” [NYT]
Another headline alert: “Women’s suffrage is apparently up for debate again in America.” [The Guardian]
