Former President Trump said at a rally on Friday that he thought CNN’s presidential debate hosts Dana Bash and Jake Tapper treated him “very fairly” on Thursday night.
“I don’t think we should blame CNN, because I thought they treated me very fairly last night. They were both very professional. Jake and Dana treated me very fairly,” Trump told an audience in Virginia. Highlighted by Mediaite.
Trump told the audience that CNN has slandered him for years, but said he thought it was “great” that Tapper and Bash treated him “fairly” on Thursday.
Some liberals criticized the moderator for not fact-checking the candidates, allowing them to make false statements.
The former president spent the afternoon at a rally, where he criticized President Biden and his shaky performance, which became the talk of the night. Biden’s debate performance sparked widespread fears among Democrats and prompted calls for Biden to step aside and bring in someone new to take on Trump in the fall.
But Republicans praised CNN and its management of the debate following Biden’s performance.
Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson (Republican) Said online He said the debate was “fair, informative, well-controlled and first-rate”.
“The format worked well. There were a lot of intense exchanges, but it made it more watchable for the audience,” he said. “Well done.”
The former president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., said he liked the format, which included muting the candidates’ microphones when they weren’t speaking.
“I actually like this format for my dad. It keeps him disciplined and focused. He’s dismantling Biden’s disastrous, failed policies one by one.” He posted On social media platform X.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk also weighed in on CNN.
“I have to say @CNN ran the debate well. The questions were reasonable and not partisan. There was no bias towards either candidate.” Musk said. “This is what the public wants from the media.”
