Trump's praise of Palmer's genitals is “fun”

Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson defended Donald Trumps open admiration for the late American golf champion Arnold Palmer's genitals as part of the “fun” he has at rallies.

The pro-Trump congressman also claimed this in his interview on CNN State of the Union with Jake Tapper that the former president's lengthy rants were proof that his “endurance” was still strong.

In an opening question about the presidential campaign, Tapper referenced comments made by Trump hail Palmer's penis at a rally.

“They are working hard to get Republicans over the finish line in this election,” Tapper said. “They talk about substantive issues. “Is that really the final message you want voters to get from Donald Trump’s stories about Arnold Palmer’s penis?”

“Well, listen, I think the headline I read yesterday about the rally in Pennsylvania was the big question,” Johnson replied, avoiding Tapper's question entirely in a sign that he was unable to talk about to talk about the sensitive topic.

“And it's the question that Kamala Harris couldn't or wouldn't answer, which is: Are you better off now than you were under the Trump administration four years ago? And no one can answer this question with yes. I mean, nobody. And that’s why Kamala Harris herself is avoiding the question.”

He continued by insisting that voters should instead “look at the record of these two candidates.”

“This shouldn’t be about personalities,” Johnson said. “It should be about politics and I think people are taking that seriously and that’s why I think we’re going to win.”

Tapper, however, was determined not to let Johnson get away with dodging his pointed question.

“I'm sure you think a policy debate would be better than a personality debate, but if President Biden had gone on stage and talked about the size of a pro golfer's penis, I think you would be on this show right now “Say you were shot in the hallway, and you would suspect that that was evidence of his cognitive decline,” Tapper said, justifying his questioning.

“I know you want to talk politics and I respect that, but the reason Donald Trump hasn't gone up 10 points is because of comments like this where people have concerns about his fitness, his acumen and his stability have. Why is he talking about Arnold Palmer's penis in front of Pennsylvania voters?

Instead of directly addressing Tapper's arguments about Trump, Johnson instead said caustically: “Jake, you seem to like that sentence a lot.”

“Let me say something: I don’t want to talk about it, do I? “Donald Trump is out there saying it,” Tapper replied.

“I’ll address it,” Johnson replied. “Okay, don’t say it again. We don't have to say it. I understand it. At a rally there are lines. When President Trump is at a rally, he sometimes speaks for two hours. They question his stamina, his mental acuity. Joe Biden couldn't do it for five minutes. That’s how you started.”

Johnson further defended the comment by saying that Trump often includes crude jokes in his speeches.

“This is not working for the American people,” he said. “They want to change, and they see that in Donald Trump. So he has fun at the rallies. He says things that are off the cuff. I took part in these events. I've been to these arenas and people have a great time there. So you can pick a few words or lines from a two-hour event.

“We can do that with Kamala Harris after a 20-minute event because she makes word salad, and she couldn't do that, she couldn't hold court like that without a teleprompter,” he added.

Meanwhile, Arnold Palmer is said to “horrified” was said to have been the subject of Trump’s jokes in 2016, shortly before his death.