President Donald Trump vehemently denied claims in Bob Woodward’s new book on his administration in an Oval Office appearance with the Emir of Kuwait.
“The book means nothing. It is a work of fiction,” Trump declared, pointing to statements from Secretary of Defense James Mattis and White House Chief of Staff John Kelly rebutting attributed quotes. Kelly is alleged to have called Trump an “idiot” while Mattis is said to have likened to him to a grade schooler.
“The book is a work of fiction. Look back at Woodward’s past. He likes to get publicity, sell some books,” Trump continued, adding, “It was put out to interfere, in my opinion, with the Brett Kavanaugh hearings.”
The president specifically rebutted a claim in Woodward’s book that he ordered the killing of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad in April 2017: “You look at what he said about President Bush, what he said about President Obama — big scandalous thing, lasted about a day, never contemplated, nor would it be contemplated, and it should not have been written about in the book. It’s just more fiction. The book is total fiction.”