Wilbur Ross calls Syrian missile strike Mar-a-Lago's 'after-dinner entertainment'
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross made light of the U.S. missile strike against Syria last month, telling an audience at the Milken Institute Global Conference on Monday that the assault, which took place during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to President Trump's private Mar-a-Lago resort, served as late-night amusement for guests, free of charge.
"Just as dessert was being served, the president explained to Mr. Xi he had something he wanted to tell him, which was the launching of 59 missiles into Syria," Ross said. "It was in lieu of after-dinner entertainment." This garnered laughs from the crowd, Variety reports, and Ross continued: "The thing was, it didn't cost the president anything to have that entertainment." Ross is right — Trump didn't spend a dime on the missiles, but the U.S. military did, to the tune of around $59 million. Don't expect Ross, a billionaire investor, to have his own set at the Chuckle Hut anytime soon.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
