President Trump nuked CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday after he attempted to turn an interview memorializing Senator Lindsey Graham, who died on Saturday night, into a political hit job on Trump’s Iran strategy.
Graham passed away from heart complications on Saturday night, following news that the US military executed a third round of strikes against Iran in response to Iran’s attack on a commercial vessel in the Strait of Hormuz.
The United States military continued strikes on Sunday night, hitting dozens of Iranian targets “to degrade Iran’s ability to continue attacking international shipping flowing through the Strait of Hormuz,” US Central Command announced.
On Sunday morning, President Trump joined CNN’s State of the Union to discuss Lindsey Graham’s sudden death. But Tapper changed the topic, noting that Graham was “very supportive” of the war and asking the President, “Are we back at war? And who controls the Strait of Hormuz?”
“Out of respect for Lindsey, I’m not talking about that,” Trump responded, noting that the US did “hit them very hard” on Saturday. “We had a deal with them yesterday. They were giving up everything. And then, all of a sudden, two hours after that, they hit a ship with a drone,” Trump said. “But I’m talking about a man who had nothing wrong with him. And that’s Lindsey Graham.”
Tapper then tried to press him on whether the Strait of Hormuz is closed, as Iran claimed on Saturday. Trump responded, “It’s open as far as we’re concerned. Don’t talk about it. Talk about the reason that you asked me to speak.”
The leftist CNN anchor then tried to recover, asking the President for his final word about Graham before noting that he wants to have the President back on to answer “a lot of other questions.”
Trump agreed to a future appearance, telling Tapper, “We’re trying to have CNN go on a normal path, and we will do that.” Tapper then claimed, “I’m on a normal path right here, sir.”
WATCH:
Transcript:
TAPPER: He obviously was very supportive of the strikes against Iran. The U.S. and Iran have been engaging back and forth in strikes over the last few days and overnight. Are we back at war? And who controls the Strait of Hormuz?
TRUMP: Well, I don’t want to — out of respect for Lindsey, I’m not talking about that. We hit them very hard last night. So I don’t want to talk about it, but I will say, we hit him very hard last night. We had a deal with them yesterday. They were giving up everything. And then, all of a sudden, two hours after that, they hit a ship with a drone. And I said, these people, there’s something wrong with them. But I’m talking about a man who had nothing wrong with him. And that’s Lindsey Graham.
TAPPER: Iran has declared the Strait of Hormuz closed. Is that true, Mr. President?
TRUMP: It’s open as far as we’re concerned. Don’t talk about it. Talk about the reason that you asked me to speak.
TAPPER: OK. We appreciate your time, sir.
TRUMP: But it’s open.
TAPPER: Before I let you go, is there any other final word that you want the American people to know about Lindsey Graham? What was it about…
TRUMP: No. I think his finest moment was his defense of Brett Kavanaugh, who is a terrific guy and was treated very, very unfairly by the Democrats, very unfairly. I have never seen anything like it, maybe the worst I have ever seen anyone treated. That includes me. Well, maybe not me. But it includes just about everybody. He was treated so unfairly. And Lindsey, as you remember, had that moment. And I will tell you, Jake, I think it was a top 10, maybe a top five moment in the history of the Senate. It was an incredible display. And he did it from the heart. He felt strongly about Brett, and he did it from the heart. And it turned that whole thing around. He was really amazing. That was a — that was one they should replay.
TAPPER: Well, I know you don’t want to talk about any other issues out of respect for Lindsey Graham, but we would love to have you back sometime, because I do have a lot of other questions for you, sir.
TRUMP: Sure. we’ll do that. We’ll do that.
TAPPER: Thank you for calling in.
TRUMP: We’re trying to have CNN go on a normal path, and we will do that.
TAPPER: Well, I’m on a normal path right here, sir, and I appreciate your time.
The post WATCH: “Talk about the reason that you asked me to speak” – Trump Nukes Jake Tapper Following Shameless Attempt to Hijack Interview About Lindsey Graham, Says CNN Needs to Go on “Normal Path” appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.