OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Former President Donald Trump is proposing that CNN host him again for another town hall event while calling out one of the network’s political analysts and former Trump White House staffer Alyssa Farah Griffin, who also co-hosts ABC’s “The View.”
As reported by Deadline, Trump was a ratings bonanza for little-watched CNN with some 3.3 million viewers tuning in to watch last month’s event hosted by the network’s newest prime-time addition, current morning show co-host Kaitlin Collins.
In a post on Truth Social on May 20, Trump called the town hall “absolutely lovely” and added that it was one of CNN’s “biggest rating nights in years.”
He also proposed doing another town hall event.
“Wow! Word is that they are revolting at the ‘View’ and CNN, and want Farrah [sic] OUT! Much more to come. She tried to delete out her words, but we got them ALL. I don’t see how she lasts because this ‘stuff’ shows what a phony she is. MUCH MORE TO COME! They won’t be able to take the Radical Left Heat, just as CNN wants to fire the ‘boss’ because of the absolutely lovely Town Hall they just put on. One of their biggest ratings nights in years, & they are begging for mercy. CNN, let’s do another one?” he wrote.
Trump went on to share a video of Farah Griffin praising her former boss and calling him a “remarkable man” and “strong leader for our nation.” The video showcases the political commentator reflecting on her initial meeting with Trump, which took place during her time working for then-Vice President Mike Pence.
“Backbencher in the Trump Administration, Alyssa Farah, like so many other sleazebags, had only glowing reviews of the Trump Administration until long after she left. A loser then, and a loser now! More to follow,” Trump posted.
After the January 6 U.S. Capitol attack in 2021, Farah Griffin chose to separate herself from Trump and subsequently resigned from the administration. Since then, she has successfully secured a position as a co-host on ABC’s The View, where she offers perspectives from a semi-conservative standpoint. Additionally, she maintains a regular presence on CNN as a contributor.
After the network hosted Trump’s town hall, she defended the decision, writing: “America got to see who he is last night: a ranting, raving lunatic, who sided with Vladimir Putin.”
Trump also shared another video of Farah Griffin in which she criticized the mainstream media for always portraying Trump in a negative light.
“So cool to watch her twist,” the former president captioned the video post.
Many liberals sounded off on CNN for hosting Trump for the town hall ahead of the 2024 presidential election and spent most of the night raging and complaining.
New York Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez flamed CNN, tweeting: “CNN should be ashamed of themselves. They have lost total control of this “town hall” to again be manipulated into platforming election disinformation, defenses of Jan 6th, and a public attack on a sexual abuse victim. The audience is cheering him on and laughing at the host. This falls squarely on CNN. Everyone here saw exactly what was going to happen. Instead they put a sexual abuse victim in harm’s way for views. This was a choice to platform lies about the election & Jan 6th w/ no plan but to have their moderator interrupted without consequence.”
The CEO for Warner Bros Discovery, which owns CNN, also defended the decision, however, when he appeared on the CNBC show “Squawk Box” with co-host Joe Kernan.
“I want to talk about CNN, and I want to talk about the cable news wars and what, former President Trump is going to be on CNN?” Kernan asked David Zaslav.
“Yeah, he should be,” the CEO said. “We have a divided government. Right? We need to hear both voices.”
