The Trump campaign cashes in on the Cuomo incident

Never one to miss a chance to castigate CNN or its employees, Donald Trump was quick to jump on a video of anchor Chris Cuomo berating a man for calling “Fredo” this week.

The term refers to the character of Fredo Corleone in the Godfather movies, seen as the weak-willed older brother. Cuomo himself has a famous family, with his father a former governor of New York and his brother Andrew now serving in the same role.

Cuomo sparked a backlash by claiming the term was “like the N-word” for Italian Americans and has quite rightly said he should have responded better to being challenged in public. CNN said it “completely” supported him.

The president, on the other hand, taunted Cuomo by saying he thought he was “Fredo also” on Twitter and asking whether “red flag” gun laws should be used to stop “crazy” Cuomo owning guns now or in the future.

In doing so, Trump highlighted the hypocrisy he thrives on. The president has spoken often about new gun laws, particularly red flag laws – which allow people to petition to have guns removed from individuals who are thought to pose a danger to themselves and others – as well as background checks. However, he has so far failed to follow through with any kind of gun control legislation at all.

Oddly, Trump’s re-election campaign has sought to cash in on the Cuomo incident, selling T-shirts for $34 (£28) with stills from the video and a “Fredo unhinged” caption, seeking to cash in on supporters who rail with him against members of the “fake news media”.

That money goes directly into Trump’s coffers for 2020. While it is unlikely the T-shirts will make as much, the Trump campaign took in hundreds of thousands of dollars when it started selling plastic straws at $15 a pack as a response to restaurants across America changing to paper straws in an effort to be eco-friendly.

Ultimately, it’s become clear that Trump will look to exploit most situations to his advantage and he cares little as to how hypocritical it makes him look.

Yours,

Chris Stevenson

Acting deputy Premium editor