During his first news conference, former President Donald Trump told a story on Thursday (August 8) to reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort about a helicopter emergency landing with former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown.
However, Brown said that it never happened. It all began when a reporter asked Trump about Vice President Kamala Harris’ previous relationship with Brown and if it helped with her career.
Trump responded by saying he knew Brown “very well” and then told a story about the alleged helicopter event. “I know Willie Brown very well. In fact, I went down in a helicopter with him. We thought maybe this is the end,” Trump said.
“We were in a helicopter going to a certain location together, and there was an emergency landing. This was not a pleasant landing, and Willie was, he was a little concerned. So I know him, I know him pretty well. I mean, I haven’t seen him in years,” Trump continued.
However, Brown told CNN that Trump was “obviously wrong” during a phone call shortly after the conference. “I’ve never been in a helicopter with him in my life,” Brown stated. “He is trying his best to get some way to degrade Kamala. There is no reason why her name ought to be mentioned anywhere near his lies, period.”
The New York Times reported that Trump supposedly mistook Willie Brown for former California Gov. Jerry Brown.
In November 2018, Trump toured wildfire damage by helicopter. However, in that same New York Times article, a spokesperson for Jerry Brown said that “there was no emergency landing and no discussion of Kamala Harris.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who was also present for the wildfire tour in 2018, said Trump made the whole thing up. “I call complete B.S.,” Newsom told the Times. “I was on a helicopter with Jerry Brown and Trump, and it didn’t go down.”
Newsom added that Trump kept bringing up the possibility of crashing during the helicopter ride. Recently, Trump received backlash for comparing the size of his crowds to that of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.