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One particularly awkward moment played out when CNN\u2019s Wolf Blitzer welcomed a group of reporters from The Wall Street Journal to the stage to accept an award for their \u201ccourageous reporting on President Trump\u2019s past relationship with financier Jeffrey Epstein\u201d that \u201ctriggered the release of the so-called Epstein files.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr. Blitzer reminded the crowd that \u201cTrump quickly filed a $20 billion lawsuit against the Journal, revealing reporter Khadeeja Safdar\u2019s home address. Her family had to be relocated. The Journal was kicked off of Air Force One.\u201d<\/p>\n
As the reporters took their awards, Mr. Trump threw his hands in the air theatrically, as if to say, Oh well, what can you do. <\/em>Nervous <\/em>laughter rippled across the ballroom.<\/p>\nThe dinner was smaller, easier to secure, and the Waldorf made for a ritzier room. Mr. Trump reminded the crowd that he owned the place not so long ago. \u201cIt\u2019s a luxury room,\u201d he said. \u201cSee those beautiful chandeliers? I can tell you everything about them, if you\u2019d like to know.\u201d<\/p>\n
He told some jokes about his administration.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope that everyone finally got to enjoy their entire very delicious beef tenderloin, very special beef,\u201d he said, winding up. \u201cAnd I want you all to know that Bobby Kennedy, who\u2019s right here, personally ran over the cow in his car, and he cut it up and he brought it here for you to eat tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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About the nation\u2019s health secretary, the president added: \u201cHe is a very different kind of a person.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moments of presidential self-deprecation were few and far between.<\/p>\n
As the hour stretched on, his speech turned harshly political and quite vicious. He mocked the appearances and careers of individual reporters, some of whom were in the room, but much of the speech had little to do with the press. He widened the aperture to target his longtime political enemies, politicians and celebrities who had nothing to do with the dinner.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hate some people,\u201d Mr. Trump said as he started in on Adam Schiff. Others who came in for a drubbing included Rosie O\u2019Donnell, Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, Chris Christie and Jerry Nadler. The president wasn\u2019t telling jokes so much as he was repeating attack lines one hears at a standard MAGA rally.<\/p>\n
There was little laughter in the room as the president\u2019s speech took on a harder edge. Not many people chuckled when he compared the \u201creally beat-up faces\u201d of UFC fighters with those of Bette Midler, Jane Fonda and Bruce Springsteen.<\/p>\n
Mr. Trump seemed to realize he was losing the room. After a joke he told about the gerontocracy on Capitol Hill bombed, he said: \u201cThat was actually the only thing I thought was good in this whole fricking stupid speech. It was the only good one, and that went down with not exactly great laughter.\u201d<\/p>\n
He threw his arms up in exasperation and people started to laugh again.<\/p>\n
As his speech reached its conclusion, he pulled out a hat and with a theatrical flourish plopped it on his head. It said, \u201cTrump 2028.\u201d Some clapped. Others laughed. Most of the reporters just stared straight ahead.<\/p>\n
Reporting was contributed by Michael M. Grynbaum.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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