Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-N.J., took offense to MSNBC's characterization of President-elect Donald Trump as a golf-playing slacker, telling Newsmax on Friday that network host Lawrence O'Donnell's assessment "really annoyed the heck out of me."
On Thursday's edition of "The Last Word," O'Donnell suggested that Trump's newly named White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, would be the one really running the country while Trump spends his time out on the golf course.
"Quite frankly, MSNBC, those remarks that he made were ignorant and just absurd," Van Drew told "Newsline." "I mean, nobody has worked harder, even in this campaign, than President Trump. My God, he was only getting a few hours' sleep every night. He was crisscrossing the country. He was everywhere doing everything.
"He's a hard worker. He's one-on-one with world leaders. He's going to be one-on-one with leaders within the House of Representatives and the Senate. And that really just was, I mean, that was foolishness and gross stupidity to me. And I don't usually speak that strongly, but that really annoyed the heck out of me. Don't say things that have no basis in fact at all."
The New Jersey congressman said that reports of Wiles' gatekeeping — protecting Trump’s inner circle from people who might not have the right intentions — is "good" and "something that you have to do."
"The president loves people," Van Drew said. "He's very open. He's very accessible. So, sometimes you need somebody around you that is kind of just keeping an eye and making sure everything is good. That's what a chief of staff does."
He also disputed House Democrat leader Hakeem Jeffries' claim that the GOP is in danger of losing its slim majority in the lower chamber, given that several House races have yet to be decided.
"I understand his point, but the bottom line is we're just about there," Van Drew said. "We only need two more. There's a bunch that are out. I mean, just statistics and odds would teach you that we're going to have the majority. … The question is how big a majority it will be. I'll make a prediction at the end of the day that we have three to five more seats than they will. We'll find out. There are a lot of close races. We've got a little bit to wait on, but I am sure that we're going to keep the majority."
Van Drew added that he is sure the Republicans' majority is "going to be a narrow one," but said "the good news is that we have President Trump."
"So, quite frankly, he is going to be a cohesive force that is able to pull the House of Representatives together and focus them to go in a forward direction," he said.
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