He may abandon Kavanaugh anyway. Trump said the reason he has stuck with Kavanaugh is that people have been telling him “for 10 years” that Kavanaugh should be on the Supreme Court. He could, however, replace Kavanaugh with a woman, he said, in what is likely a nod to Amy Coney Barrett, an appeals court judge.

Mr. Kurd: Trump pointed to a journalist in the crowd and said, “Yes, please, Mr. Kurd, go ahead.” The reporter, Rahim Rashidi, who works for a Kurdish television station, asked a question about US aid to the ethnic group. #MrKurd was soon trending on Twitter. Rashidi was reportedly thrilled, not insulted.

Admitting he might have obstructed justice. Trump wasn’t asked directly about the FBI investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential election, but he brought it up anyway. ”I’m in Wisconsin, I’m in Michigan. We’re not doing well, let me call the Russians to help. Does anyone believe that?” he asked.

Still, he admitted that how he “fought back” during the investigation might constitute obstruction.

Trashing Justin Trudeau. Trump hasn’t hid his disdain for the Canadian prime minister in recent months, as the two countries negotiate an update to the North American Free Trade Agreement. Today, he said he had turned down a request to meet with Trudeau, and said the US doesn’t like the country’s “negotiating style” or their “representative,” a personal slam that may be aimed at foreign minister Chrystia Freeland, who has been spearheading negotiations for Canada.

Letting Rod Rosenstein off the hook. Trump was due to speak with the deputy US attorney general tomorrow (Sept. 27) about Rosenstein’s future. But the meeting may be postponed, Trump said, so he can watch scheduled Senate hearings on Kavanaugh and his accusers. Despite reports that Rosenstein might be fired, Trump said, “my preference is to let him stay.”

Laughing with me. Trump’s boast in front of the United Nations yesterday about his accomplished presidency sparked laughter inside the General Assembly. The world leaders in attendance weren’t laughing at Trump, he insisted, “they were laughing with me.” Any other reports are “fake news,” he said. “People had a good time with me, we were doing it together. We had a good time.”

The reaction in the US to Trump’s press conference, predictably, split along partisan lines. “In Dumpster Fire Presser, Trump Admits His Own Sexual Assault Is Why He Stands With Kavanaugh,” wrote Politics USA, a left-leaning website. Anthony Scaramucci, the short-lived Trump press aide, called it “great.” Trump was “New York Funny Trump,” he said.

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