‘I Don’t Know Her’: Trump Buries Ann Coulter, Heaps Praise on Tucker and Ingraham
During his off-the-rails press conference announcing a national emergency to pay for the border wall, President Trump went Mariah Carey on conservative provocateur Ann Coulter, claiming he doesn’t know her and hasn’t spoken to her in well over a year. The president, meanwhile, tossed accolades at other right-wing bomb throwers who have remained completely loyal.
Asked Friday by NBC News’ Kelly O’Donnell about the influence that conservative media figures like Coulter, Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh have had on his recent decisions related to wall funding and spending bills, the president threw shade at Coulter. In recent months, the far-right author and immigration hardline has been extremely critical of the president for not getting funding for the wall.
“Ann Coulter, I don’t know her,” he said. “I haven’t spoken to her in way over a year, but the press loves saying Ann Coulter. If I did speak to her she’d be very nice. I don’t have the time to speak to her.”
In a recent interview on Real Time with Bill Maher, the In Trump We Trust author has suggested that she and Trump have had a regular correspondence. Many have also cited her harsh criticism of last December’s spending bill was a key factor in Trump to backtracking and refusing to sign it, resulting in a 35-day shutdown.
After saying that he liked her in the past for one reason — she supported him — he added that the conservative pundit has gone “off the reservation” and that anyone who “knows her understands that.”
Trump went on to heap praise on other right-wing commentators such as Fox News’ Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham, calling both of them “great.” He also noted that there are a couple people at CNN who “have been very good” as well.
Prior to Trump officially announcing the national emergency, Coulter said that the whole goal of it was “for Trump to scam the stupidest people in his base for 2 more years.”
No, the goal of a national emergency is for Trump to scam the stupidest people in his base for 2 more years. https://t.co/6DQSkqxV8h
— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) February 15, 2019
Watch the clip above, via CNN.
