“Oh my god! Oh my god…” utters Samantha Bee.
I’m on the phone with the brilliant host of the TBS late-night hit Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, which received an Emmy nod in its first year for Outstanding Writing, and we’re discussing the latest icky development in the Anthony Weiner-has-issues saga: that the former Democratic congressman was busted—again—sexting with a woman, only this time the creepiness factor was drastically augmented as in one of the offending images he’s posing with his young son.
Of course, as is his wont, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump released a statement shortly after the New York Post broke the news (in a tasteless cover, as is their wont) essentially blaming Hillary Clinton for the whole scandal. You see, Weiner’s wife, Huma Abedin, is Hillary’s closest adviser, whom she’s referred to as a “second daughter,” so candidate Trump took it upon himself to blame the best friend of a woman for the woman’s husband’s misdeeds.
ADVERTISEMENT
“I actually have not seen [Trump’s reaction],” says Bee. “I’m in the Catskills and the internet is really bad, so that’s the greatest blessing that I could ask for right now. What was Trump’s reaction to it? Was it tasteful and thoughtful? Really well-thought-out? Did it add a human touch to it that made it all seem better?” she laughs. So I gave her the gist of Trump’s statement, which read as follows:
“Huma is making a very wise decision. I know Anthony Weiner well, and she will be far better off without him,” wrote Trump in a statement. “I only worry for the country in that Hillary Clinton was careless and negligent in allowing Weiner to have such close proximity to highly classified information. Who knows what he learned and who he told? It’s just another example of Hillary Clinton’s bad judgment. It is possible that our country and its security have been greatly compromised by this.”
Yes, you read that right: Trump is claiming that our *national security* is under threat because Anthony Weiner got busted sending another dick pic. You’d think that, as a man who once not only donated to Weiner, but also reportedly carried on an affair with Marla Maples while his wife Ivana took their three young children to church (ultimately resulting in their split), he’d have a bit more sympathy for the Weiner family’s plight. But who are we kidding? This is Donald Trump!
When I fill Bee in on Trump’s reaction to the Weiner news, she laughs for about 30 seconds straight.
“Ah. Is it not… That is absurd. That is absurd,” she says, before continuing her uproarious laughter. “Oh my god! I’m sorry, I actually can’t stop laughing! I can’t. That he could blame Hillary for Anthony Weiner sending more dick pics to more randos…” she cracks up again. “OK. OK… I gotta think about this for a second. This is unbelievable.”We joke about how, if Trump himself was busted sending dick pics, he’d probably find some way to blame Hillary for it—since she is apparently responsible for all the ills of the world.
“He probably would. You’re probably right,” she chuckles. “Please don’t ever let that happen. It will be so bad. I don’t think that will be survivable for me! Honestly, you’re making me want to retreat into the forest. I may not ever leave the Catskills now. I might just find a nice, cool cave and set up shop with my kids for the next couple of months. Someone will come and find us in the spring, after the thaw.”
This is part of a longer interview with the great Samantha Bee that will run later this week on The Daily Beast.
