Earlier this evening, CNN’s Don Lemon interviewed Donald Trump about the debate on Fox News Channel last night, and set off another Trump-related tempest. After noting that Kelly pushed Trump during the debate, and that she “pushed a lot of people” besides Trump, Lemon asked, “What is it with you and Megyn Kelly?” Trump’s reply was, er … colorful, to say the least [emphasis mine]:
TRUMP: Well, I just don’t respect her as a journalist, I have no respect for her. I don’t think she’s very good, I think she’s highly overrated. But when I came out there, you know — what am I doing? I’m not getting paid for this. I go out there, and they start saying this stuff [garbled]. But you know, I didn’t know there’d be 24 million people. I knew it was going to be a big crowd because I get crowds, I get ratings. They call me the ratings machine. So I have, you know, she gets out and she starts asking me all sorts of ridiculous questions, and you could see there was blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her … wherever. But in my opinion, she was off base.
Kelly did ask Trump tough questions in last night’s debate, but she asked tough questions of Marco Rubio on abortion too, and of other candidates on stage as well. As the front-runner, Trump should have expected tough questions, especially given his track record of supporting nearly every progressive idea at one time or another, including Hillary Clinton being President. Kelly also asked Trump about his remarks about women, which appears to have particularly rankled him — and pushed him into validating Kelly’s premise in asking those questions in the first place. After all, it’s not often when a major party candidate takes a shot at a woman by reminding everyone of her menstrual cycle. I’m certain that will really impress women about their place in the Republican Party.
Trump was scheduled to speak at the Red State Gathering tomorrow, in the final slot at the event. Not long after these remarks, event organizer Erick Erickson announced that he had withdrawn the invitation:
I have rescinded my invitation to Mr.Trump. While I have tried to give him great latitude, his remark about Megyn Kelly was a bridge too far
That will undoubtedly anger some Trump supporters, but after last night’s debate performance and his thin-skinned whining afterward, I wonder if that group wasn’t already in decline. This might fire up the die-hard Trump troops, but suggesting that a journalist went after his target-rich record only because she was menstruating should be a disqualifier for most voters. It’s vastly worse than anything Todd Akin said, and will almost certainly have media outlets demanding responses from the other Republican candidates. It’s practically tailor-made for Democrats to hoist up the Republican War On Women banner, especially Hillary Clinton.
Get ready for plenty of Team Trump dog-in-the-manger, sour-grapes quotes in the morning, if not overnight. There may be some legitimate anger among a small group of RSG15 attendees tomorrow who wanted to see Trump at this event, but Erick has a solid case for not wanting to have this overshadow the event tomorrow, with more presidential candidates on hand to make their pitches. Erick will almost certainly address this in the morning, and we’ll see what the fallout is over the rest of the day.
Update: Carly Fiorina appears to be the first Republican candidate to respond to Trump’s remarks, perhaps fittingly so (via Twitchy):
That’s interesting, because Fiorina actually deflected a Trump question at her presser today at RSG15 by asking why the media wasn’t calling out Obama for his offensive comments about opponents of the Iran deal. Not this time, apparently.
But I also think that while Mr. Trump resonates with a lot of people with his bluntness, including me to a degree, there are just real lines of decency a person running for President should not trust.
His comment was inappropriate. It is unfortunate to have to disinvite him. But I just don’t want someone on stage who gets a hostile question from a lady and his first inclination is to imply it was hormonal. It just was wrong.
I have invited Megyn Kelly to attend in Donald Trump’s place tomorrow night.
Well, that would be interesting. We’ll see if she can swing that.
Carly Fiorina: "I'm the new rising star Lion-ess of GOP Presidential candidates!"
This broad Fiorina is a hologram. A fake. Wolf in sheeps' clothing. A hedge for Jeb. A totally manufactured candidate who is OBVIOUSLY following a script. She's just as manufactured a product as is the fake outrage against Trump. The Megyn Kelly-led "War on Women!" meme, and the un-holy matrimony of FOX News to the effete GOPe is now exposed to the world. How will Republican voters react to this manipulation?
Q: Is there ANYTHING that either FOX News or the GOPe do that isn't contrived, staged bullsh*t?? Their relationship isn't much different than the symbiosis of MSNBC and the Dem Party.
Carly Fiorina: "I'm the new rising star Lion-ess of GOP Presidential candidates!"
Carly is just the ticket for cuckservative RINO's. I'm certain the average vter is just itching to have another president who embraces outsourcing of jobs to Red China, importing more cheap labor.
She backed McCamnesty to the hilt in 2008. The war against Assad promoted by her boy has led to Christian women being sold as sex slaves in Syria. These cuckservatives are sure like the Pharisees went it comes straining the gnat from the soup.
Ruperts RINO babes remind me of the line from the Don Henly song "Dirty Laundry:"
We got the bubble-headed-bleach-blond who Comes on at five She can tell you 'bout the plane crash with a gleam In her eye It's interesting when people die Give us dirty laundry...
Carly is just the ticket for cuckservative RINO's. I'm certain the average vter is just itching to have another president who embraces outsourcing of jobs to Red China, importing more cheap labor.
The targeted voters be wearing blinders. Fiorina's past...won't exist after her re-invention.
Whether it all comes out in the wash is in question. In due time, ALL conservatives will be out of money and running who WOULD expose her, leaving only the usual GOPe patsies or tools.
In the event the GOP tosses out Trump and his 25% of the electorate, I hope Trump runs 3rd Party...JUST to use it as a platform to expose the GOPe snakes. AND maybe even win in the ultimate %$#@! to the GOPe and Dems.
