Welcome to the Jim Acosta Morning Memo on a Thursday morning in an America where you’re happy if you’re grass. Grab some coffee, find some shade, and let’s get into it!
Helipad Madness: Trump held a truly bonkers photo op on Wednesday, taking reporters on a tour of the helipad construction that’s underway on the South Lawn of the White House.
Aaron Rupar put together a supercut, but there were a few standout moments.
Happy Grass: Trump riffs about the secret life of grass more than he talks about lowering prices, but this version was extra-nuts.
You know, grass has a life like humans have a life. This has all been redone, it's all topsoiled. Lot of good ingredients. If you're grass, you're very happy. It was given, free of charge, by Scotts Miracle-Gro. They actually contributed to my campaign. So I wanna thank Scotts Miracle-Gro.
What The Fuck Is He Talking About Files: This riff about the presidential seal would have triggered the 25th Amendment under any other president.
And the Granite Top says, “The Seal of the United States of America.” That’s the exact term.
If you look at, uh, the seals of the presidents, (GESTICULATING) “The Seal of the President of the United States of America,” meaning the president is in the White House.
He also went on a riff that concluded with the declaration “I’m very good at flagpoles!”
NoKo Shot: Trump gushed about his relationship with Kim Jong Un at two events yesterday, and appears to have revealed something sensitive — the oddly-specific detail that North Korea possesses 57 “very powerful” nuclear weapons. Whoever passed that along is gonna be pissed.
He also made another humiliating statement about our ally, South Korea.
I didn't like the fact that we're doing these massive military exercises really against North Korea when I'm friendly with him.
Chaser — Kim Gives Not A Single Fuck: North Korea fired ballistic missiles pretty much simultaneously with Trump’s fanboying, and Kim’s sister Kim Yo Jong told Trump where he could shove his diet military drills.
"We think it's not worth making comments on that and we have no interest in it at all," Kim Yo Jong said in a statement carried by state media. "The provocative, aggressive nature of the drills won't change even though their duration and size were reduced."
Harp Friction: The Natalie Harp story keeps rising like a rocket. MS NOW’s Jake Traylor and Jacqueline Alemany have an exclusive about Harp refusing to apply for a security clearance for over a year while she worked in and around the Oval Office.
An under-the-radar detail is that four Trump insiders ratted Harp out to MS NOW, which is a through-line to all of these devastating deep dives. The calls are coming from inside the house!
Speaking Of Which: In the midst of the Harp drama and anonymous insiders trying to rope Melania Trump into it, her PR operation appears to be working hard to get some positive spin on her low-key second term.
A fluffy CNN profile makes no mention of the story of the week, nor does the NBC News “analysis” of Melania’s scaled-back public presence.
Twisting The Knife: Nobody does it better than Rosie O’Donnell, who hit Trump where it hurts Wednesday night.
A special hello to those of you watching from home and from the White House. I do have some bad news for President Petty Roosevelt. That's all I'm gonna say about you tonight sweetheart. You got to realize it's time to hang up your wig and let Natalie tuck you in.
Fuck Your Feelings:
