President Trump jabbed CNN host Chris Cuomo not long before he is set to meet with his brother, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
The president and the governor are scheduled to meet Thursday afternoon to discuss some of the issues facing the state of New York. Prior to the meeting, Trump made fun of the CNN host over a viral confrontation he had with a man who called him “Fredo,” a reference to the “weak brother” from The Godfather.
“I’m seeing Governor Cuomo today at The White House,” the president tweeted. “He must understand that National Security far exceeds politics. New York must stop all of its unnecessary lawsuits & harrassment, start cleaning itself up, and lowering taxes. Build relationships, but don’t bring Fredo!”
I’m seeing Governor Cuomo today at The White House. He must understand that National Security far exceeds politics. New York must stop all of its unnecessary lawsuits & harrassment, start cleaning itself up, and lowering taxes. Build relationships, but don’t bring Fredo!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 13, 2020
In August, Chris Cuomo was filmed threatening a Trump supporter who called him Fredo, shouting, “Fredo was from The Godfather. He was a weak brother. And they use it as an Italian aspersion. Are any of you Italian? Are you Italian? It’s a f—ing insult to your people. It’s an insult to your f—ing people.”
The host of Cuomo Prime Time also claimed “Fredo” was the equivalent of the N-word to Italians, adding, “Is that a cool f—ing thing?” After the incident went viral, he thanked his competitors on Fox News for defending him and saying he should not have been confronted in public.
His brother Andrew also responded to the incident, saying, “Italian Americans are not Mafia. Don’t you dare liken my family to the family you saw in The Godfather or The Sopranos.”
Trump has referred to the CNN host as “Fredo” before. In September, he said that his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani “took Fredo to the cleaners” after a heated interview between the two.
