Trump tricked with prank call on Air Force One
Washington, June 30 : A comedian claims to have spoken for several minutes with US President Donald Trump by pretending to be Senator Robert Menendez while on board Air Force One.
Comedian John Melendez said he claimed to be Senator Menendez and a fake assistant. Then he spoke to the President's son-in-law Jared Kushner and received a call back from Trump on Thursday.
"I am shocked ... I mean we did this as a goof, I'm a comedian," Melendez, better known as Stuttering John, told CNN on Friday. "I just could not believe that it took us an hour-and-a-half to get Kushner and Trump on the phone from Air Force One."
Menendez is a Democratic senator from New Jersey and a long-time campaigner for immigration reform.
Melendez recorded his conversations with the President and uploaded on his podcast. At the start of the purported call, the voice that is purportedly Trump congratulates Menendez on his acquittal in a federal corruption case, saying: "You went through a tough, tough situation, and I don't think a very fair situation. But congratulations."
The senator was accused of accepting gifts from a Florida eye doctor in exchange for political influence.
The two also discuss the upcoming Supreme Court vacancy, according to the audio on the podcast. The voice that sounds like Trump promises the fake Menendez he'll nominate a new justice in "10 to 14 days".
The prank caller said that his plan could have easily gone wrong. "All they had to ask me is what party affiliation is Senator Menendez, or what state is he a senator of, and I would not have known. But they didn't ask me any of this," Melendez told CNN.
Melendez said that they initially called the White House and were honest about their identity, but officials said Trump was busy and hung up. So they called again, but this time as "Shawn Moore," a fake assistant to Menendez.
Later, when the White House made inquiries with Menendez's office about the conversation Trump thought he had with him on Thursday, the senator's staff were befuddled, reports said.
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One dead, 20 rescued after tourist boat capsizes off Calangute beach in Goa
Panaji, Dec 25: One person died and 20 others were rescued after a tourist boat capsized in the Arabian Sea off Calangute beach in North Goa on Wednesday, police said.
The incident occurred around 1.30 pm, they said.
"A 54-year-old man died and 20 others were rescued and taken to a nearby hospital for treatment after the boat they were travelling in capsized," a senior police official said.
Except for two passengers, all others were wearing life jackets, he said.
The passengers included children as young as six year old and women, he said.
Spokesman of Drishti Marine, a government-appointed lifesaving agency, said the boat capsized around 60 metres away from the coastline, resulting in all the passengers falling off into the sea water.
A family comprising 13 members from Khed in Maharashtra were among the passengers on board, he said.
On seeing the boat getting capsized, a personnel of Drishti Marine rushed to aid and called for backup, he said.
"In all, 18 on-duty lifesavers rushed to the aid of the struggling passengers and brought them to shore safely," he said.
The injured passengers were administered first aid, while those who were found to be critical were rushed to a medical facility in an ambulance, the spokesman said.
"Of the 20 passengers, two children aged six and seven each, and two women aged 25 and 55 each, were revived and hospitalised," he said, adding that two passengers on the boat were not wearing life jackets.
Goa is a popular tourist destination, especially during the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
The incident occurred a week after a speeding Navy craft undergoing engine trials lost control and crashed into passenger ferry 'Neel Kamal' off the Mumbai coast, killing 15 persons. The ferry, carrying more than 100 passengers, was on its way from Gateway of India to Elephanta Island, a popular tourist attraction famous for its cave temples.
