Post by Joe Cocker on Oct 4, 2012 12:58:22 GMT -5
First there was Clint Eastwood's now-infamous conversation with an invisible President Obama, and now a video was released showing Donald Trump upbraiding and firing an actor impersonating the commander-in-chief.
On Tuesday, Trump has confirmed to NBC that the video was produced on behalf of the Republican Party for last month's national convention, but was never shown to delegates.
The short film -- a take on Trump's show 'The Apprentice' -- was scheduled to be aired on the first day of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida, but that day's program was cut because of the looming threat from Hurricane Isaac.
In the video, the gregarious real estate mogul talks back to televised clips of Obama, including one where the president said the 'private sector is doing fine.'
'The private sector's dying!' Trump responds.
The clip begins with the millionaire magnate sitting behind a desk in front of a black actor who is only seen in snippets showing the lower portion of his face and his left hand bearing a wedding band similar to the president's.
'Let's see what you've been up to,' Trump tells the Obama stand-in. 'This is your review.'
Trump opens what is meant to represent the president's work file, from which he picks out his perceived 'failures.'
'You had some clear objectives,' Trump says. 'You promised hope and change. How did you do there?'
In response, the sound of crickets is heard in the background.
'You've run up almost as much debt as every other president combined,' the mogul continues. 'I know, I know, It wasn't your fault. It's never anybody's fault. You're inherited it, right?'
The video concludes with Trump dismissing the president with his signature jabbing hand gesture all too familiar to 'Apprentice' viewers.
'The fact is the American people want results,' he says. 'President Obama, You're fired!'
Trump has long been a staunch and vocal critic on the president, standing at the helm of what has come to be known as the 'birther' movement.
The media-savvy businessman and other like-minded conservatives on the far right have questioned the legitimacy of Obama's presidency after claiming that the commander-in-chief was born is Kenya.
Seeking to put the false allegations to rest, the Obama administration released the president's birth certificate showing that he was born in Hawaii, but some on the right have dismissed the document as a forgery.
