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Into the category of Things You Never Thought You’d See, enter CNN hosting a town hall with Donald Trump. “They made me a deal I couldn’t refuse!” he posted at Truth Social. However, he also posted “Or could it turn into a disaster for all, including me.”
For Republican viewers who were looking for Trump to seriously discuss policy, the town hall was indeed a disaster.
St. Anselm College in New Hampsire hosted the event, which included both local Republican voters and undecideds in the audience. CNN chose anchor Kaitlin Collins to moderate, although rather than interview the former president, she used the town hall to bait him. And Trump, being Trump, responded aggressively to her needling questions. At one point he even called her a “nasty person:”
Trump: Can I talk? Do you mind? It’s very simple to answer.
Collins: That’s why I asked it.
Trump: You are a nasty person, I tell you.
Donald Trump has no filter, but Kaitlin Collins was the wrong person to question the prickly former president.
After the town hall, Bill O’Reilly and Chris Cuomo of News Nation debated her interview style. Cuomo, having previously worked at CNN, defended his former colleague. O’Reilly, on the other hand, nailed her motive: as a young anchor, she was out to impress her Trump-hating colleagues at the network.
Straight out of the box, Trump refused to say that he lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden. Instead, he launched into his 2020-election-was-stolen routine:
We did fantastically we got 12 million more votes than we had in, as you know, in 2016 actually we did far better in that election. Got the most that anybody’s ever gotten as the President of the United States. I think that when you look at that result, and when you look at what happened during that election, unless you’re a very stupid person, you see what happens a lot of the people, out of the people in this audience and maybe a couple that don’t — but most people understand what happened. That was a rigged election. And it’s a shame that we had to go through it.
Collins pushed back, telling him that even his election officials didn’t find evidence of widespread fraud. But then an audience member — a man who had voted for Trump in 2020 — asked him if he would suspend his “polarizing talk” about election fraud.
Trump apparently got the hint. Maybe.
Yeah, unless I see election fraud… I think I have an obligation to say it.
Aaaand, then he went right back into spinning the fraudulent election narrative:
And you know what we went through a short while ago has really put our country in a big problem. I hope to do that. I hope we’re gonna have very honest elections. We should have voter ID, we should have one-day elections. We should have paper ballots.
Trump’s obsession with the 2020 election gave a Pro-DeSantis group an opening to strike:
On the same day Ron DeSantis was assailing Joe Biden’s border crisis, Donald Trump was on CNN attacking DeSantis and lying about finishing the border wall. The CNN townhall was, as expected, over an hour of nonsense that proved Trump is stuck in the past.
You know that Trump could not appear on CNN without facing questions about the January 6 riots. At least he came prepared, reading the day’s tweets in which he admonished his supporters to keep demonstrations “peaceful.” But then Kaitlin Collins asked him why he waited three hours to ask the crowds to leave the Capitol. Trump’s response was to deflect and blame others:
Nancy Pelosi and the mayor are in charge. I assume they were able to do their job… if you remember I made a video right outside the Oval Office in the Rose Garden, and I’m very proud of that video I didn’t have a script, I don’t need scripts like a certain person …
Yet the protesters “had love in their hearts,” Trump claimed:
I’ve never spoken to a crowd as large as this. That was because they thought the election was rigged. And they were there proud. They were there with love in their heart. That was an unbelievable and it was a beautiful day.
Well, it wasn’t a beautiful day for Vice President Mike Pence, who was moved for his safety to a loading dock beneath the Capitol, although he refused to leave the building. So what did Trump say about his VP on CNN?
He told Kaitlin Collins that Pence didn’t deserve an apology:
No, because he did something wrong. He should’ve put the votes back to the state legislatures and I think we would’ve had a different outcome.
Aaaand … it was back to the stolen election again. Once again insisting that he won Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, Trump went on:
Mike had the right to do it, they [attorneys Pence consulted] convinced him they didn’t and it was horrible thing for our country. He did have the right to do it and that’s why they changed the law taking the right away.
But as for rioters who were convicted of federal charges, Trump said he would probably pardon them. “I am inclined to pardon many of them,” he said, although not all.
Once again, Trump threw down the “rigged” card, this time regarding Tuesday’s sentence in the E. Jean Carroll sexual assault case in which a judge ordered him to pay $5 million in damages. He again denied knowing Carroll:
I don’t know her, I never met her, I don’t know who she is. I had a picture taken years ago with her husband, a nice guy named John Johnson.
He also called her a “wack job,” and asked “what kind of a woman meets somebody and … within minutes you’re playing hanky panky in a dressing room?” — to the merriment of his supporters in the audience.
Trump also accused the judge of not letting him present evidence against Carroll, including his claim that she had a cat named “Vagina.” (So if he never met her, how would he know such an odd detail about her cat? Hmm…)
Well, some. But he was pretty light on details.
On abortion, Trump said that “getting rid of Roe v. Wade was an incredible thing for pro-life because it gave them something to negotiate with.” But when Collins pressed him for what sort of pro-life federal bill he might support — like the point in a pregnancy when abortion should be illegal — he had no answer. “I would negotiate so that people are happy,” he said.
I’m sure pro-life supporters were encouraged with that response. *rolls eyes*
As for what to do about inflation? “Drill, baby, drill.”
And as for the war in Ukraine: Trump boasted that he would settle it in one day. “If I’m president, I will have that war settled in one day — 24 hours.”
How? Former NJ Gov. Chris Christie had thoughts, tweeting:
Donald Trump says he would end the war in Ukraine in 24 hours tonight on CNN. Despite how ridiculous that is to say, I suspect he would try to do it by turning Ukraine over to Putin and Russia.
Oh, harsh.
As I wrote above, this wasn’t an event that contributed information about a presidential candidate. It was slog fest, with both Trump and Collins talking over each other, neither one willing to let up on their squabbles.
If Kaitlin Collins thought her performance would earn her the adoration of her fellow media liberals, she was completely off base.
For example, MSNBC’s Mehdi Hasan tweeted:
CNN put their own reporter Kaitlan Collins in a room full of Trump fans and now they are consistently laughing at his jokes and clapping his attack lines – including on her.
While Wajahat Ali from the Daily Beast remarked at Twitter:
Trump calls Kaitlin Collins a “nasty person” after she simply did a follow up. The audience laughed and clapped. Congrats, Chris Licht and CNN leadership. Bravo. What a way to treat your employees.
The hardcore Trump supporters cheered and laughed uproariously at Trump’s comments. However, he provided very little of substance for those who want to understand his political vision. Other than that Trump is “the only one who can stop the forces from destroying our country,” as the post-town hall statement from his campaign read.
That’s not reassuring at all.
In a statement, the Ron DeSantis Super PAC Never Back Down called for a pox on both their houses:
A candidate who has lost his luster appearing on a network that’s lost its ratings. Both ignore a key fact: 2024 isn’t 2016. The old gimmicks and tired lines don’t work anymore.
Buckle your seat belts. It’s going to be a bumpy campaign season.
Featured image: Gage Skidmore/flickr/cropped/CC BY-SA 2.0.
Kevin says: I’ve said this a hundred times, “The 280 pound malignant tumor has a mental illness.” What else explains why a person, in the face of overwhelming evidence,, facts, undisputed facts, simply keeps repeating bold-faced lies (plural … because there are many) … his election loss, the hundreds of people convicted of violence on January 6 who are “good people” and did nothing wrong, and his sexual assault on E. Jean Carroll saying, “I don’t even know her” after a jury looked at the evidence (where he presented nothing) and convicted him. There will be other court battles for other crimes and given his poor track record with the courts (aside from using them as a “delay” tactic), he will continue to lose no matter the judge and their political leanings.
He displayed a clear choice between electing a leader for “Crazy Nation” because the only thing that would happen if he were to occupy the White House again would be insanity. If you thought it was a bit chaotic the first time, the second time around would be unbridled chaos. The only people who would work for this lunatic, who could never get confirmed by the Senate so we would be back to “acting” division/department leaders, are just as invested in the destruction of 250 years of precedent to let a insane man re-shape this nation. It’s unrecognizable now because of him; it’ll be burned to the ground if he walks back into the White House.
The pathological liar George Santos did the same thing yesterday at his court arraignment, yelling from the top of his lungs in front of the New York court house, “This is the biggest witch hunt in America’s history” referring to the Justice Department’s list of charges against him.
We are living in dystopian times … all because of a minority of hard right leaning “Taliban like” lunatics see a mentally ill malignant tumor as their savior. Thankfully, the 280 pound malignant turmor’s appearance on CNN refreshed the minds of a nation what would be in store should he return to power. No person with a conscious, ethics or morals would agree to work for this person again. Former tRump appointees wrote book after book about his reckless, insane behavior … When someone tells you who they are, believe them.
The more I look at these articles, the more I wonder whether “Kevin” is simply an alias for “Kim.”
Stephen C says: You never see them together.
Txcon says: I suppose it’s too much to ask how Trump intends to stand up to the “deep state” when he got rolled by Tony Fauci and gave him a medal for it.
Lloyd says: Trump is his own worst enemy. I truly hope he does not become the Republican candidate for president. And, I hope as well that daffy Biden is not the Democrat candidate. America needs/deserves new leaders.
JAW3 says: I watched it and frankly, President Trump stood up to the harassment by Collins and was far more compos mentis than Biden would have been if he were to face a hostile interviewer. If you tuned in to see serious policy statements, go to Trumps website. And Trump got a standing ovation at the end! MAGA!
The one thing about Trump is that he ANSWERS the question that he is ASKED. He might be wrong, he might not phrase it well, but he answers the QUESTION. With what he ACTUALLY knows or thinks. You only have to watch anything by Biden or his flacks to know just how rare this is.
OF COURSE, the media is going to ask ONLY the questions where they think they’ll manage a GOTCHA! They’ll also ONLY report the answers where they think they got their desired response. (I include “right” media in this – just take a look at Breitbart’s reporting on the town hall.)
Mad Celt says: Further evidence America needs to boot the duopoly to the curb or suffer more of the same old same old.
Kelly says: Despite the braggadocio about ending the Ukraine War in 24 hours, Trump was absolutely right to propose a negotiated settlement. He noted that Ukraine and Russia have clear strengths and weaknesses and the interests of both are served by ending the war, which has become an old-fashioned stalemate that neither side can win. As a retired military officer, it appears to me that the war has devolved into an incredible sink of US money and weapons that puts our country at a strategic disadvantage with China. So it is not in the US interest to keep the war going either.
Other than DeSantis, who largely parrots Trump on this issue, no other US politicians on the Left or Right have seriously considered a negotiated end to the hostilities. It may take another year for US policy to catch up to Trump, but the cost will eventually turn Europe and the US against continued hostilities. Hopefully we will negotiate a reasonable cease-fire, rather than pull out abruptly and allow the Russians to overrun Ukraine.
Kim Hirsch says: Thank you for your thoughtful response.
I agree with you and the former President that a negotiated settlement would be ideal — in the best of all worlds, that is. However, that means Putin is one of the parties with whom you would have to negotiate. Could we believe this man who has invaded a sovereign nation, targeted civilians, kidnapped children, doesn’t regard Ukrainians as having their identity, and has jailed and murdered even his own civilians who oppose him — to keep his word in a settlement?
That’s the problem, isn’t it?
Kelly says: Trust has always been a problem with the Russians, and the Soviets before them. Reagan’s adage ‘trust, but verify’ rings true here. In this case, verifiability of troop movement is more straightforward than a verifying nuclear agreements in the 1980s based on numbers of launchers, RVs, and the like.
Any negotiated settlement would have to require the Russians to pull back their troops to a clearly identifiable demarcation line. Troop movements, armored personnel carriers, tanks, etc. can easily be verified by satellite. In return, we should nix Ukraine membership in NATO. This would give Putin an out to claim that he achieved one of his objectives (and thus would be the carrot). The US would never accept a Mexican or Canadian alliance with China, so too should we recognize that it is reasonable for the Russians to view NATO on its doorstep as a direct threat.
The stick would be the establishment of a strong NATO quick reaction force based in Poland that could counter a Russian incursion into Ukraine. These forces should include a mix of special ops, aviation, and conventional ground with the capability to respond rapidly, but also to use stealth to interdict infrastructure within Russia itself.
If the war were to end, then Russia writ large would have to deal with the aftermath. Who knows if his allies within Russian government and oligarchs would maintain their support for Putin as their true losses become public? The end of the war might hasten the downfall of Putin.
Codex says: Ah, another quisling who helps make “conservative” a dirty word. There is no question the election was rigged. The only reasonable debate at this point is over “how much?” and “how to reclaim our elections?”
Selling out your country, and (in Mr. Pence’s case, his oath to the Constitution) because the Orange Man is icky… Bah. She probably thinks Ashley Babbit had it coming.
Conservatives like Mx. Kim are why Mr. Trump is, sadly, no better than we deserve.
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