In a recently leaked recording, former President Donald Trump was heard making disturbing jokes regarding the death of firefighter Corey Comperatore at a fundraiser dinner with wealthy donors. The event, which took place on August 10 in Aspen, required attendees to contribute between $25,000 and $500,000 per couple to participate. The Guardian acquired a 12-minute recording of Trump’s speech at the dinner, highlighting troubling remarks that have sparked widespread outrage.
During the dinner, Trump recounted an incident from a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where a gunman attempted to assassinate him, resulting in the death of Comperatore and injuries to two other Trump supporters. He mentioned that members of his Mar-a-Lago club contributed to a fund for Comperatore’s widow, stating, “I said absolutely, and they gave me a check for a million dollars. That’s a lot of money. Maybe even more impressively, we put out a GoFundMe, and we raised more than $6 million for the group that got hurt, which is essentially three people.”
Trump then proceeded to joke about meeting Comperatore’s wife, Helen. “So they’re going to get millions of dollars, but the woman, the wife, this beautiful woman, I handed her the check—we handed her the check—and she said, ‘This is so nice, and I appreciate it, but I’d much rather have my husband.’ Now, I know some of the women in this room wouldn’t say the same,” Trump quipped, prompting laughter from a roomful of guests that included notable figures like casino owner Steve Wynn and Texas Governor Greg Abbott.
His remarks took a more callous tone as he added, “I know at least four couples… that I know, and you’re not one of them. At least four couples here would have been thrilled, actually.” Notably, this was not the first time Trump had made such a joke; he had previously used it during an August 1 rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The context of a private dinner filled with affluent donors contrasted starkly with the gravity of Comperatore’s tragic death, raising ethical concerns about Trump’s insensitivity.
Moreover, Trump made disparaging comments about immigrants at the dinner, fabricating a story about 22 individuals allegedly released from prison in the Democratic Republic of the Congo who purportedly came to the U.S. He recounted, “We said, ‘Where do you come from?’ They said, ‘Prison’. ‘What did you do?’ ‘None of your fucking business what we did.’ You know why? Because they’re murderers,” before stating, “I hate to use that foul language.”
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The leaked recording has drawn sharp criticism from various quarters, calling into question Trump’s judgment and the appropriateness of his comments in light of the somber subject matter. As the political landscape continues to shift, such incidents may have repercussions on Trump’s public image and future political endeavors.