Sen. Menendez reacts to comedian’s prank call to Trump

<p>Sen. Bob Menendez says a comedian who made a prank call to President Donald Trump while posing as him touched on serious issues but also highlighted presidential security shortcomings.</p>

News 12 Staff

Jul 4, 2018, 2:36 AM

Updated 2,363 days ago

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Sen. Bob Menendez says a comedian who made a prank call to President Donald Trump while posing as him touched on serious issues but also highlighted presidential security shortcomings.
Comedian John Melendez, known as "Stuttering John" from his years on "The Howard Stern Show," got through to the president, who was aboard Air Force One, by pretending to be Sen. Menendez.  The comedian released audio of the call on his podcast last week.
Menendez said that while the call may have seemed like a joke, the subject matter was very serious.
“The dividing of children from their parents, a Supreme Court nominee who will make a generational difference in the court against the interests of affordable health care, against the interests of reproductive rights,” Menendez said. “And then lastly, the security breach that would allow someone like him to get the president of the United States.”
A spokesperson for the White House said in a statement, “[President Trump] wants to be accessible to members and likes engaging them and wants them to have the opportunity to connect. The downside of that is sometimes the channels are open too widely, and mistakes like this happen."
Melendez’s attorney says that he has been in touch with the Secret Service about the call.