President Donald Trump walked out of an interview after discussing unsubstantiated claims of “cheating” in the California primary elections.
Trump sat down with NBC’s “Meet the Press” host Kristen Welker on a rainy day in Wisconsin, a crucial swing state for both parties that he won in 2024 and tackled several topics before the president ended the interview, including the conflict in Iran. The interview aired on June 7.
Nearly 40 minutes into the interview, Welker and Trump began discussing the primaries in California.
After Welker noted that “Republicans are doing well in California” following the June 2 primary contests, Trump said “they’re dropping fast because it’s a rigged election.”
Republicans have criticized the dayslong, ongoing counting process in California’s primary races, reported USA TODAY.
Welker then asked Trump if he had evidence to support his claims, and the president responded that “all I have to do is look” and “I listen to people.” The NBC anchor again asked for evidence of election fraud and repeated that the typical dayslong process is “how they count the votes in California.”
Trump then questioned if it’s appropriate to count votes five days after Election Day, and Welker said California officials are urging a quick vote count but have pointed out that the process is slow.
Trump told Welker that “they’re crooked just like you’re crooked, your press is crooked and ‘Meet the Press’ is crooked.” Welker denied the accusations, and Trump said her questions played into “their hands.”
When Welker denied being crooked, Trump replied, “you’re either crooked or you’re stupid.”
Trump on ‘Meet the Press’ YouTube
Watch the exchange below:
USA Today contributed to this story.
Natassia Paloma may be reached at npaloma@gannett.com, @NatassiaPaloma on Twitter; natassia_paloma on Instagram, and Natassia Paloma Thompson on Facebook.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Watch the moment Trump walks out of ‘Meet the Press’ interview
Reporting by Natassia Paloma, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Natassia Paloma, El Paso Times | USA TODAY Network
