Trump ‘Amazed’ CNN Staffers ‘Traumatized’ by Town Hall

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Donald Trump said he was “amazed” that CNN staffers were “traumatized” by his town hall appearance. CNN staff were horrified as they watched their network conduct the 70-minute town hall, Insider reported. Trump told news outlet The Messenger that CNN should have ignored the backlash and instead bragged about the ratings. Loading Something is loading.

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Former President Donald Trump said he was “amazed” that CNN staffers were “traumatized” during his controversial town hall on the network last week and was “surprised” that the media giant did not boast about the high ratings the events.

“They’re really traumatized,” Trump told news outlet The Messenger in a wide-ranging interview published Monday.

Trump added, “I think instead of acting the way they did, they should have said, ‘We had a tremendous ratings night, one of the best in years, many years,’ and turned up the football, right? ” according to The Messenger.

Insider previously reported that CNN staffers were horrified to watch their network’s 70-minute town hall event Wednesday in which Trump called anchor Kaitlan Collins a “nasty person” and mocked the woman who a jury found him liable for sexual abuse, to laughter from the studio. audience.

“Having people applaud those sexual abuse comments definitely made me question my loyalty to this network,” a network executive previously told Insider.

Trump also told The Messenger that he was “surprised by the level of hostility” he said he received at the town hall.

“I thought they would be neutral and better than that so they could bring back viewers,” the 2024 Republican presidential candidate said. “And they have one of the best [viewership] days in years.”

Trump continued, “And I’m surprised they don’t actually say they had a huge ratings night. It’s really surprising to me.”

The CNN town hall with Trump drew 3.3 million viewers, according to Nielsen ratings, putting it on par with the viewership numbers for Tucker Carlson’s top-rated show before he was fired from Fox News.

The former president’s interview with the newly launched publication came amid a reported media blitz. Trump, who has repeatedly called reporters “the enemy of the people,” returned more to his roots in 2016 as he sought to solidify his early lead in the GOP presidential field.

Politico previously reported that Trump advisers were aware of reporters’ complaints about the lack of interviews with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for now.

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