COLUMNS

Trump to U.N.’s Annan: ‘You’re fired’

  • The Washington Examiner
  • |
  • July 26, 2005

by Karen Feld

buzz

The Donald wants to fire Kofi Annan, secretary-general of the United Nations, for suspected mismanagement of finances in construction of the new U.N. building. Trump says he wants the job the U.N.’s Italian architect has – complete with its $44 million salary. Who wouldn’t? The Donald wondered aloud at a Government Affairs subcommittee hearing on United Nations reform last week if the architect plans to commute from Italy every time he’s needed. Emphatically insisting that the U.N. doesn’t know what it’s doing, the Donald says this is one job he does not want as a developer, but one for which he will gladly volunteer as a patriot who loves America.

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With the lovely new Mrs. Trump – Melania Knauss – at his side, the outspoken, brash New York kid who grew up to rule the Big Apple’s skyline sided with Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., and Rep. Vito Fossella, R-N.Y., demanding accountability for monies paid to date. Trump said if he were in charge, the job would be completed by the U.N.’s projected date. While telling a tale of meeting with a head man for the U.N. renovations and quizzing him about the type of heating the building would have, Trump shook his famous head of hair and said this man knew nothing, not even about NYC’s famous steam heating.

Did he utter those famous words? Yes. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-OK., said he could not let the “Apprentice” star leave the chamber without uttering, “You’re fired,” which Trump gladly did – only to be mobbed outside the hearing room by what Trump described as “potential ‘Apprentice’ candidates,” according to photojournalist Carrie Devorah. One young, starry-eyed intern swooned: “Who cares about being on the show? I got my picture taken with him.” As the Trumps exited the Dirksen Building stage left, people were still pondering his controversial proposal to build the new U.N. on the hallowed grounds of the World Trade Center.

Birch, Buchanan to spar on gay channel

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Birch

Elizabeth Birch, an activist and attorney who was the well-respected executive director of the Human Rights Campaign, has signed to do a candid talk show – “Birch & Company” – on here! TV, the new gay and lesbian cable network available to 42 million households. Surprisingly, conservative commentator Pat Buchanan has agreed to do a one-on-one with Birch, who lives in D.C., for the second show. The well-connected and outspoken Birch has also confirmed Democratic National Chairman Howard Dean, Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., former Sen. Chuck Robb, D-Va., Al Gore, conservative commentatorsLaura Ingraham and Tucker Carlson, MSNBC’s “Hardball” host Chris Matthews, and Melissa Etheridge for half-hour one-on-ones on “Birch & Company,” premiering Aug. 12 with Rosie O’Donnell as her guest. The focus will be hot issues facing the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. No doubt Elizabeth and Rosie will include some insights into parenting styles – Birch and her partner, Hilary Rosen, who ran the Recording Industry Association of America, are parents of 6-year old twins.

Magazine Group has its Day

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Buchanan

When Peter Abrahams, former publisher of The Washington Flyer, moved to publish the soon-to-be-launched Modern Luxury, he left big shoes to fill at The Magazine Group, the boutique publishing house owned and operated by the husband-wife team of Jane Ottenberg and Richard Creighton. Kenny Day, 35, a native of Prince George’s County, Md., who worked his way up the ranks at Roll Call, has been tapped to fill them.

Day, who joined Roll Call in 1994, took a break to help Bill and Renay Regardie start the now-defunct Regardie’s Power magazine before going back to The Economist Group as head of commerce for Roll Call’s European sister, European Voice, in Brussels, Belgium. That’s where Day met his charming Flemish wife, whom he brought back to D.C. in 2003, when he took over business development at Roll Call.

Set to fly

If you aren’t familiar with The Magazine Group yet, you will be. Peter Cherukuri has moved over from Congressional Quarterly to head up its marketing and branding activities. Working together, Day and Cherukuri will surely make the D.C.-based publishers a household name. The group publishes some 70 custom publications. “Bigger, better distribution” is the goal, says Day. “The 130,000 copies [of The Flyer that] we print fly off the racks before the end of the two-month shelf life. Hotels, embassies, Capitol Hill, top-notch retail locations … they’re all going to get copies.” Day added, “It will be interesting to see the ‘luxury’ entries into the market duke it out, while The Flyer stealthfully goes about our business.”

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Blunt

Georgetowners enjoy “Hairspray”

House Majority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo., and his attractive lobbyist wife, Abigail Perlman; developer Herb Miller and his wife, Patrice; and Roll Call’s Mort Kondracke and his gal pal, Marquerite, who have just bought a house in Georgetown, watched the hit musical from the presidential box at the Kennedy Center on Saturday evening.

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