Melendez left Howard Stern’s program in 2004 and has drifted around the entertainment world since. He’s now hosting a podcast called “The Stuttering John Show,” probably a wise choice since it’s a field where the barriers to entry aren’t just low but non-existent. Ah, but how to capture an audience? Well, how about prank calling the White House and getting through to the president?
That’s exactly what Melendez did, all by posing as scandal-plagued New Jersey Democrat Sen. Bob Menendez — a canny choice, since members of neither party seem to have been spending much time with him these past few years and it’s unlikely any of them could pick out his voice, or at least would admit to it. The prank not only procured Melendez an instant audience, but it created a buzz among Serious People in Washington that the president was acting dangerously.
According to The Hill, Melendez-as-Menendez called the White House and got a callback from the president from Air Force One.
After exchanging pleasantries, the president congratulated “Menendez” on beating a federal corruption rap.
“You went through a tough, tough situation. And I don’t think a very fair situation, but congratulations,” Trump said.
“Menendez” brought up his concerns about immigration during the call and asked the president what he was going to do for his “constituents.”
“But I have to ask, what can I tell them you’re going to do moving forward?” Melendez said.
“I think we could do a real immigration bill. We have to have security at the border. We have to have it,” Trump responded.
That’s it. That’s the prank call. Not even a desultory Prince Albert in a can joke, although presumably Air Force One is a non-smoking flight. – READ MORE
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