Former President Trump appeared on an episode of "This Past Weekend" with comedian Theo Von for an interview that at times veered far outside the normal campaign trail conversations.
Trump told Von that his youngest son, Barron Trump, is a big fan of the stand-up comedian and encouraged him to accept the invitation. Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White reportedly arranged the interview.
Among the longest segments of the hour-long conversation was their discussion of alcoholism, substance abuse and the over-prescription of pharmaceuticals.
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"I tell people – no drugs, no drinking, no cigarettes," Trump told the comedian. "I tell that to my kids all the time, I say, 'No drugs, no drinking, no smoking.'"
Von, who has made his history of addiction recovery a major part of his public persona, told the former president that he was previously a cocaine user. Trump – a known teetotaler – remarked that Von's past drug use seemed "down and dirty," asking if cocaine gives a greater high than alcohol.
"Cocaine will turn you into a damn owl, homie – you know what I'm saying?" Von laughed. "You'll be out on your own porch. You'll be your own streetlamp."
The pair discussed the opioid crisis, pharmaceutical lobbyists' influence in government, and how Trump's administration would combat rampant drug abuse in the country.
"You could say that if you're an elected official or if you work in government, you can never be a lobbyist," Trump suggested. "You have people that work in government and they give out contracts to the military – then they leave and they work for the people they gave those contracts to."
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Von, who has been a vocal fan of independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., asked Trump if rumors that Kennedy was once under consideration as his running mate were true.
"No," Trump said, clarifying, "I like him, I always liked him."
"He's a good man," Trump continued. "He's in there pitching his stuff. It's a two-party system and he's a third party. It's a tough thing […] And the Democrats have really opposed him vehemently. I haven't, but the Democrats have really opposed him."
Von asked Trump who he believed was responsible for President Biden's resignation from the 2024 presidential election.
"Well I would say Schumer, Pelosi, and numerous other people – the heads of the Democrat Party," Trump speculated, mentioning Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. "And they did – they threatened him violently, I think. And he didn't want to get out, remember he said, ‘Only God will get me out'?"
Von told Trump that Biden's sharp decline in approval among Democrats after his disastrous debate performance hit particularly close to home.
"My dad was really old when I was born. My dad was 70 when I was born. So I don't like seeing senior citizens get taken advantage of," Von told the former president. "It made me really angry because I know [Biden's] not well – it's not fair to pretend that he's well. It's not fair to him because he doesn't know you're pretending. And it just seemed like the cruelest thing you could do."
Von interviewed Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders on an episode of the podcast last week.
