Donald Trump Says CNN Town Hall ‘Could Turn Into A Disaster For All’

Ahead of his first appearance on CNN in years, former President Donald Trump said his decision to take part in a prime time town hall Wednesday night “could turn into a disaster for all, including me.” Writing on his Truth Social platform, Trump urged his supporters to watch, saying “I’ll be doing CNN tomorrow night, LIVE from the Great State of New Hampshire.” CNN This Morning co-host Kaitlan Collins will moderate the event, which will feature questions from New Hampshire Republican and undecided voters.

Trump, who regularly attacked CNN as “fake news” and an “enemy of the people” during his term in the White House, said he decided to accept the network’s offer to appear because “they made me a deal I couldn’t refuse.” Still, Trump couldn’t resist taking a shot at CNN, saying the town hall wasn’t a journalistic decision, but was motivated by CNN being “desperate to get those fantastic (TRUMP!) ratings once again.”

CNN has been harshly criticized for its decision to host Trump again, with MSNBC’s Joy Reid dismissing the town hall as “a pretty open attempt to push itself to the right and make itself attractive and show its belly to MAGA
MAGA
and to conservatives, hoping that they will tune in.” Reid went on to say “this is not journalism. This is entertainment.” Media Matters president Angelo Carusone called the town hall “odious” and “a transparent attempt to goose their ratings.”

Critics of the network say CNN’s willingness to devote extended air time to Trump’s campaign rallies during the 2016 presidential race fueled his victory and showed the network’s ability to sacrifice journalism for the entertainment of Trump’s wildly off script rally speeches, which drew strong ratings.

David Zaslav, chief executive of CNN parent company Warner Bros, defended the Trump town hall, saying “we need to hear both voices.” In an interview with CNBC last week, Zaslav said Trump was “the frontrunner” in the 2024 presidential race, and therefore “he has to be on our network.”

Trump seemed to agree, suggesting that his return to CNN “could be the beginning of a New & Vibrant CNN, with no more Fake News, or it could turn into a disaster for all, including me. Let’s see what happens? Wednesday Night at 8:00!!!”