Former U.S. president Donald Trump recounted a story to reporters on Thursday about being involved in a helicopter emergency landing with former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown.
Asked by a reporter about U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris’ previous relationship with Brown and whether it helped her career trajectory, Trump said he knew Brown “very well” and told a story about the alleged helicopter incident.
“I know Willie Brown very well. In fact, I went down in a helicopter with him. We thought maybe this is the end. We were in a helicopter going to a certain location together, and there was an emergency landing,” Trump told reporters gathered at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida for his first news conference since the Democratic ticket was announced.
Brown, however, rejected Trump’s account as “obviously wrong” during a phone call later Thursday with CNN, saying: “I’ve never been in a helicopter with him in my life.”
OK, so Trump was in a helicopter that had some engine trouble and had to do an emergency landing? Why is he trotting out this 30+ year old story like it’s some kind of hero moment? Cool story, I guess?
He’s claiming the ride was with former mayor of San Francisco, Willie Brown, who had a romantic relationship with Kamala Harris and supposedly trash talked her during their shared “this is it” moment of the helicopter going down. Problem is, it wasn’t Willie Brown, and the conversation never happened.