ArticleComments (92)Share.Donald Trump fires back after White House aide declares that he has 'zero chance' to be President
BY Lukas I. Alpert
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Originally Published:Sunday, April 10th 2011, 12:48 PM
Updated: Sunday, April 10th 2011, 4:46 PM
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The White House stopped just short of dismissing Donald Trump as a clown Sunday - calling him a "sideshow" act with "zero chance" of becoming president.
Chief Obama adviser David Plouffe unleashed a barrage of stinging comments on Trump, who has recently trafficked in fringe conspiracy theories about Obama's place of birth while taunting America with hints of a presidential run.
"There is zero chance that Donald Trump would ever be hired by the American people," President Obama's chief adviser David Plouffe told ABC's "This Week with Christiane Amanpour."
Plouffe noted Trump's surprise second place showing in a recent poll of New Hampshire voters with glee.
"I saw Donald Trump kind of rising in the polls and given his behavior and spectacle the last couple of weeks, I hope he keeps rising," Plouffe said.
Trump's focus on the wingnut obsession by so-called "birthers" with Obama's birthplace is way out of line with what Americans are really concerned with, Plouffe said.
"There may be a small part of the country that believes these things, but mainstream Americans think it's a sideshow," he said. "That's not leadership, that's kind of sideshow behavior."
Trump countered that he represents Obama's biggest nightmare in the 2012 race and that the White house is running scared.
"I know for a fact that I am the only candidate they are concerned with," Trump told The Daily News. "They are very concerned because I am challenging him as to whether or not he was born in this country where there is a real doubt."
"He should focus on properly dealing with the Chinese, the Saudis and all of the other nations that are ripping off the United States instead of making up quotes about Donald Trump," the "Apprentice" host blustered on. "Barack Obama has done a terrible job as president."
While Trump is not viewed as having a real chance at winning the presidency, experts say his remarks cut to the core of what irks the White House the most, which explains the hostility behind Plouffe's diss.
"There is no issue that irritates the White House more than the birther issue," said Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia's Center for Politics.
"They view it as a symbol for those who refuse to acknowledge Obama as a legitimate president," he said. "The fact that someone as prominent as Trump is bringing this up is a source of real frustration."
Sabato predicted that despite the noise Trump is making, he would soon fade away.
"It doesn't mean a thing," he said. "Trump may be the only person who believes he is a serious candidate, but it all seems to be some attempt at self-promotion."
Professional clowns were not offended by the aspersion that Trump was one of them - they say it's only natural.
"The association between clowns and politics goes back a long way, so we don't tend to get bothered by it," said Earl "Orky the Clown" Tempkin, of the World Clown Association.
"Besides, Trump would fit in pretty well - with his hairstyle he wouldn't need a wig," Tempkin said. "It's pretty hard to take a lot of these politicians seriously."
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