The White House is denying President Trump\u2019s gushing remarks about Rep. Elise Stefanik at an Oval Office event Friday are a new move toward a primary endorsement.<\/p>\n
Stefanik scored the prime position behind the president in an Oval Office photo op Friday, celebrating the US Olympic hockey team\u2019s \u201cMiracle On Ice\u201d<\/a> in Lake Placid, which is part of her congressional district. <\/p>\n The congresswoman was positioned just behind the president, standing out among a group of cowboy hat-wearing former college athletes who pulled off the ultimate upset against the Soviet Olympic team in 1980.<\/p>\n President Trump gushed Friday about Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) in the Oval Office Friday, saying she was \u201cdoing phenomenally well\u201d REUTERS<\/p>\n Trump talked up Stefanik<\/a> and mentioned her race against Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman \u2014 tipping the scales a tad against the Trump friend who launched his own campaign<\/a> just four days earlier.<\/p>\n \u201cEverybody knows Elise, she\u2019s doing phenomenally well and she\u2019s running for a little position called governor of New York. She\u2019s got a hell of a shot at it, it\u2019s all I can see,\u201d Trump said of her bid to upend Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY). <\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s got a little competition with a very good Republican, but she\u2019s a great Republican,\u201d Trump added. <\/p>\n \u201cHe thinks highly of her,\u201d a senior White House official told The Post afterward, while denying it signified a new primary position. \u201cIf he didn\u2019t think highly of her, he wouldn\u2019t have nominated her to be ambassador to the UN. She was very helpful during the campaign.\u201d <\/p>\n On Wednesday, Trump dodged the question when The Post asked him if he had told Blakeman not to run for governor. \u201cHe\u2019s a friend. She\u2019s a friend. These are two great people running. In a way, I hate to see them running against each other. I hope they\u2019re not going to be damaging each other,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n Stefanik was standing right behind the president as he met with members of the famed US Olympic team that beat the Soviets in the storied \u201cMiracle On Ice\u201d at Lake Placid in 1980, inside her congressional district REUTERS<\/p>\n He was vague when asked if he would step in with an endorsement later. \u201cI\u2019ll probably have to do what I want to do,\u201d Trump said. <\/p>\n The precise nature of Trump\u2019s role is proving to be a sensitive subject. The New York Times ran a correction to a Dec. 10 story where it said it \u201cinaccurately\u201d reported on a call from Trump to Blakeman, saying that he \u201cstopped short of explicitly\u201d telling Blakeman not to run, but that he did try to \u201cdissuade\u201d him from running.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with all you need to know\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMorning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \u201cI know President Trump appreciates competition and I\u2019m sure that he feels that nobody should be coronated \u2013 that there is a process. And he\u2019s probably figuring out which is the better candidate, which is the smart thing to do,\u201d Blakeman told The Post in an interview before he threw his hat in the ring. <\/p>\n That prompted a reproach from the White House.\u00a0\u201cNobody should speak for President Trump, unless authorized by President Trump,\u201d White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told The Post.<\/p>\n Hats off to you: The White House said the event had been planned long in advance, but it came just days after primary rival Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman announced his run REUTERS<\/p>\n \u201cCounty Executive Blakeman made it clear that he was not speaking for the president but based on President Trump\u2019s history as an outstanding athlete and former professional football team owner, it is widely known and public knowledge that he is the ultimate competitor and enjoys competition,\u201d Blakeman Communications Director Chris Boyle said in response.<\/p>\n \u201cNew data shared by the President shows that while illegal immigrants make up approximately 4% of New York\u2019s population, they account for roughly 14% of the state\u2019s prison and jail population,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n \u201cBruce Blakeman is very grateful that President Trump has referred to him as \u2018great\u2019 and \u2018fantastic,’\u201d the statement said. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The White House is denying President Trump\u2019s gushing remarks about Rep. 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