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A comedian pretending to be Sen. Bob Menendez called President Trump on Wednesday and got a callback from Air Force One. They chatted and the comedian posted the conversation.

But this is not the real story. The real story is that the competent people in the White House—and there are still a few left—called Menendez’s office and were told that the senator hadn’t tried to reach Trump. So they killed the call. But the comedian also managed to talk to Jared Kushner, who was fooled and sent the message along. That’s why Trump called back.

Jared Kushner is an idiot. He knows nothing about politics; nothing about policy; nothing about proper security; and has no apparent skills aside from being married to Ivanka Trump. I guess that makes him a pretty good fit for the Trump White House.

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BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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