George Conway: Schumer Tricked ‘Dim-Witted’ Trump Into Owning Shutdown

In this Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017 file photo, President-elect Donald Trump adviser Kellyanne
AP Photo/Matt Rourke
Joshua Caplan

George Conway, an attorney and the husband of White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, mocked President Donald Trump’s handling of negotiations with Democrat leaders over the partial government shutdown in a series of tweets Thursday morning.

Reacting to Never Trump blogger Bill Kristol quoting the President Trump on December 21 about his willingness to close the government over border wall funding, Conway touted the video of the exchange in which, according to the attorney shows the president’s “attempt at machismo,” and Senate Minority Leader Schumer’s “superhuman efforts to avoid bursting into laughter at Trump’s imbecility.”

Moments later, Leah McElrath, a left-wing political commentator, responded to Conway’s tweet by posting a three-second video of the exchange showing President Trump telling Schumer: “I will be the one to shut it down. I’m not going to blame you for it.”

“It really is something to watch. Kudos, Senator, for keeping it together,” Conway replied. “Most people wouldn’t have been able to do it.”

Conway, still fixated on the exchange, shared a 48-second video snippet, which includes President Trump saying he would be “proud to shut down the government.” He then lauded Schumer for using the president’s “narcissism” to own the shutdown and keep his composure when he is “dim-witted enough to take the bait.”

“But of course Trump is,” he added.

Conway’s remarks come as the White House is eagerly watching Thursday’s Senate votes on two bills to end the shutdown. Officials think it will be harder for Democrats to keep sticking together amid President Trump’s offers, according to a person familiar with White House thinking who was not authorized to speak publicly. They are hopeful for defections by Democrats who may cross party lines to vote with the president. President Trump is asking for $5.7 billion for the wall in exchange for some temporary protections for immigrants facing deportations.

Meanwhile, President Trump said Wednesday that he is postponing his State of the Union address until the partial government shutdown ends, yielding after a weeklong showdown with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. “As the Shutdown was going on, Nancy Pelosi asked me to give the State of the Union Address. I agreed. She then changed her mind because of the Shutdown, suggesting a later date,” the president tweeted. “This is her prerogative – I will do the Address when the Shutdown is over.”

“I am not looking for an alternative venue for the SOTU Address because there is no venue that can compete with the history, tradition and importance of the House Chamber. I look forward to giving a ‘great’ State of the Union Address in the near future!” he said.

The gamesmanship is still unfolded as the Senate prepared to vote this week on dueling proposals on the shutdown. A Republican one would give President Trump money for the wall while one from Democrats would re-open government through February 8, with no wall money, giving bargainers time to talk about it.

Both proposals were likely to fail to reach the 60-vote threshold needed in the Senate, where Republicans hold a 53-47 majority. As well, House Democrats are putting forward a new proposal, aiming to lure the president away from his demand for a border wall by offering billions of new dollars for other border security measures.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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