Donald Trump fields voter questions at CNN town hall a day after sexual abuse verdict
Donald Trump addressed Republican and undeclared voters at a CNN town hall in New Hampshire on Wednesday night, just one day after a New York jury found him liable for sexual abuse and defamation.
The former president faced questions from moderator Kaitlan Collins and voters about everything from the debt ceiling to abortion access and the war in Ukraine.
The town hall turned combative as soon as it began, with Trump repeating his lies about the 2020 election as Collins repeatedly interjected to remind viewers that the former president has never presented any evidence substantiating his claims of widespread fraud.
Pressed by Collins on whether he would acknowledge Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 election, Trump refused to do so.
“Most people understand what happened was a rigged election,” Trump said. “And it’s a shame that we had to go through it. It’s very bad for our country.”
The former president and current frontrunner in the 2024 Republican primary was also pressed on his wide array of legal liabilities as he seeks to return to the White House.
On Tuesday, a New York jury concluded that Trump had sexually abused the advice columnist E Jean Carroll 27 years earlier, ordering the former president to pay her $5m in damages for her battery and defamation claims.
During the CNN town hall, Trump repeatedly attacked Carroll and raised baseless doubts about the objectivity of the judge who oversaw the case. Trump was cheered on by a friendly crowd, who laughed when Collins noted that the former president had been found liable for sexual abuse.
The verdict in Carroll’s case came a month after Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 felony charges of falsifying business records in connection to a hush-money scheme during the 2016 election, and the former president also faces potential criminal charges in Georgia and Washington.
Trump has made clear that he intends to continue his presidential campaign as he fends off these legal threats, and he remains the frontrunner in polls of the Republican primary field.
A number of commentators had criticized CNN for agreeing to host the town hall in light of Trump’s ongoing efforts to spread baseless lies about widespread fraud in the 2020 election. Those critics cited the contentious beginning of the town hall as confirmation of the network’s poor judgement in moving forward with the event.
“CNN should be ashamed of themselves,” progressive congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said on Twitter. “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.”
But CNN defended its decision to host the town hall, arguing voters deserved the opportunity to hear from the current frontrunner in the Republican presidential primary.
“Our job, despite his unique circumstances, is to do what we do best,” a CNN spokesperson said in a statement on Wednesday morning. “Ask tough questions, follow up and hold him accountable to give voters the information they need to sort through their choices. That is our role and our responsibility.”
Source: The Guardian US
