Trump to Chuck Todd: ‘I liked what Jon Stewart did,’ but no, I won’t smear Mitch McConnell

President Trump admitted he liked what Jon Stewart had to say on continued funding of a 9/11 fund but refused to take the bait on bashing Mitch McConnell.

The president was “very impressed” with Stewart’s emotional speech before Congress earlier this month on reauthorizing the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund, as he noted during an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday.

Host Chuck Todd, however, was after more than Trump’s thoughts on what the former host of “The Daily Show” did.

“He’s frustrated with Mitch McConnell,” Todd said, citing Stewart’s accusation that the Senate Majority Leader is “standing in the way” of moving the bill to pass in his chamber.

“You’re a New Yorker first, I know that in you,” Todd told Trump. “I gotta think Jon Stewart got to you.”

“I liked what Jon Stewart did. I actually did. And I actually have a meeting on that subject next week. So we’ll see what happens,” Trump said. “You know it’s a very complicated subject?”

“I understand that,” Todd replied but pressed the president on whether Stewart had a point that Congress had not done enough for the 9/11 responders.

“I have a meeting with that, on that subject,” Trump said. “Well, when you say Congress, billions of dollars have been passed.”

Todd countered that the memorial fund is “about to run out” of money.

“Memorials have been built​,” Trump said. “Tremendous amounts of money. But there are still people that are sick. I have a meeting on it next week.​”​

Todd’s repeated efforts to pin the blame on McConnell and to get Trump to criticize him were to no avail as the president stuck to the simple message that the issue was going to be addressed in a forthcoming meeting.

McConnell had wondered why Stewart was so “bent out of shape” over the fund after the entertainer called him “the White Whale” of “getting 9/11 bills passed.”

“We’ve never failed to address this issue. And we will address it again,” McConnell said in a “Fox & Friends” interview last week. “I don’t know why he is all bent out of shape but we will take care of the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund.”

In his fiery speech before the House Judiciary Committee, Stewart lambasted Congress during the hearing focused on the re-authorization of the September 11th Victims Compensation Fund, shaming the lawmakers who did not even attend the hearing for creating “a stain on this institution.”

“Your indifference costs these men and women their most valuable commodity: time. It’s the one thing they’re running out of,” he said, expressing his frustration with the length of time it has taken to address the legislation, asking why “this is so damn hard and takes so damn long.”

“They responded in five seconds. They did their jobs with courage, grace, tenacity, humility,” he said. “Eighteen years later, do yours!”

McConnell is reportedly set to meet with 9/11 first responders this week, according to John Feal, a Ground Zero recovery worker who lost part of his foot.

“Listen, we come in peace. But we also — we’re prepared for anything, whether it’s a street fight or Mitch McConnell saying yes,” Feal told the New York Post.

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Frieda Powers

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