Stephen Miller's heated interview with CNN's Jake Tapper earns Trump's praise
President Trump praised adviser Stephen Miller and blasted CNN following a heated appearance by Miller with CNN's Jake Tapper that at times devolved into an on-air shouting match.
Miller appeared on Tapper's "State of the Union" program Sunday morning to defend the president from charges leveled in the new book "Fire and Fury" by journalist Michael Wolff about dysfunction in the White House. The interview became so contentious that Tapper cut the interview short and said Miller was wasting his viewers' time.
"There's only one viewer you care about," CNN's Jake Tapper tells Trump aide Stephen Miller during fiery interview #CNNSOTU https://t.co/22AbdbBeSk pic.twitter.com/YPp4h6z9sB
— CNN (@CNN) January 7, 2018
Mr. Trump, however, defended Miller, tweeting shortly after it aired that his aide "destroyed" Tapper during the appearance. He urged his followers to "watch the hatred and unfairness of this CNN flunky!"
Jake Tapper of Fake News CNN just got destroyed in his interview with Stephen Miller of the Trump Administration. Watch the hatred and unfairness of this CNN flunky!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 7, 2018
Mr. Trump returned back home to the White House Sunday morning following a retreat to Camp David with GOP leaders in Congress. Earlier, he hailed the series of meetings as a success but still panned "Fire and Fury" as a "Fake Book."
Leaving Camp David for the White House. Great meetings with the Cabinet and Military on many very important subjects including Border Security & the desperately needed Wall, the ever increasing Drug and Opioid Problem, Infrastructure, Military, Budget, Trade and DACA.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 7, 2018
"Leaving Camp David for the White House. Great meetings with the Cabinet and Military on many very important subjects including Border Security & the desperately needed Wall, the ever increasing Drug and Opioid Problem, Infrastructure, Military, Budget, Trade and DACA," the president tweeted, giving few details as to any concrete work accomplished over the weekend.
Late Saturday, Mr. Trump laid out the administration's 2018 legislative agenda while flanked by top-ranking House and Senate Republicans. He also spoke about potential diplomatic talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, following reports that Kim would be willing to send a delegation to the upcoming Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Asked if he would be willing to engage in a phone conversation with the North Korean leader, Mr. Trump said, "I always believe in talking."
"Our stance, you know what it is. We're very firm," Mr. Trump continued. "But I would be -- absolutely, I would do that. No problem with that, at all."
On Sunday he took another jab at Wolff's book:
I’ve had to put up with the Fake News from the first day I announced that I would be running for President. Now I have to put up with a Fake Book, written by a totally discredited author. Ronald Reagan had the same problem and handled it well. So will I!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 7, 2018
He also compared the questions of his mental fitness to that of President Ronald Reagan, who had suffered from Alzheimer's disease toward the end of his presidency. Mr. Trump wrote that Reagan "had the same problem and handled it well. So will I!"
On NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday, Wolff defended his book, explaining how exactly he was allowed such access to gain interviews from inside the Trump White House.
"I literally kind of knocked on the door and said, 'Can I come in?' and they said 'OK', I came in. I sat on the couch, and that's the point of view I wrote this book from. The point of this book is to have reader's sit on the couch and watch what's happen in the West Wing," said Wolff.
He added, "I came in to this with no agenda. I have no politics when it comes to Trump. This is about human nature."
The president defended his mental stability in a series of tweets during his time at Camp David, saying he is "like, really smart" and "a very stable genius."