Donald Trump ripped off his microphone and stormed out of an interview with NBC’s Kristen Welker, telling her “Thank you darling, have a good time” after she pressed him on his election claims. The President, speaking from a barn in Wisconsin as a violent rainstorm battered the roof, called Welker “crooked or stupid” and accused the networks of being “one-sided crooked networks”. He then walked out, despite Welker having travelled “all the way” for the sit-down.
During the interview, Trump claimed that as a result of the current war, Iran’s military had been wiped out: “Their navy is gone. Their air force is gone. Their anti-aircraft is gone.” But NBC’s own analysis shows that around half of Iran’s unconventional navy – small fast boats – remains intact after weeks of bombing. When Welker reminded him of his campaign pledge not to start new wars, Trump retorted: “I didn’t guarantee no war. Why would I have built the strongest military in the world?”
“Trump storms out of interview after Iran claims; Freedom 250 cage fight snubbed by celebrities as 51% disapprove.”
The outburst came as Trump faced another setback: his Freedom 250 cage fight, scheduled for 14 June – his 80th birthday – was being snubbed by the A-list celebrities he had invited. UFC president Dana White told Time magazine that 300 invitations had been sent, including to Adam Sandler, Jared Leto, Jason Statham, Guy Ritchie, Tom Brady and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. But a source close to The Rock told Vanity Fair he would not attend, and representatives for Sandler and Leto confirmed they would not be present.
A YouGov survey found that 51% of Americans disapprove of the cage fight celebration, which is being staged on the White House South Lawn with 4,500 seats. The event is funded by a public-private partnership involving Trump-aligned firms Palantir, Oracle, Deloitte and Lockheed Martin. Consumer advocacy group Public Citizen has called for congressional investigations after The New York Times reported that donors were offered access to the president in exchange for $1m contributions.
Trump’s interview meltdown and the celebrity exodus from his birthday event underscore a week of mounting challenges. As he marked his 500th day back in the White House, the President who once promised “I will not send you to fight and die in stupid foreign wars” now stands by his air assault on Iran – a decision that, as his own interview performance showed, has left him defending claims that do not match the facts on the ground.