Moderators presenting Republican candidates on Fox News Thursday night sounded a buzzer to cut off slurred answers. Donald Trump interviewer Tucker Carlson did not.
That, along with other factors, led to a lengthy 46-minute interview with the former president in which he called critics “savages,” spoke openly about the possible death of the 80-year-old president, and then elaborated at length on low prices. -flow shower heads and electric cars.
The pre-recorded sit-down was viewed more than 100 million times, and Wednesday night’s Fox debate, filled with bickering by its rivals, was unlikely to match that number.
One of the hot topics the former Fox host threw Trump’s way was whether the country was headed for a “civil war.”
Former President Trump was asked by interviewer Tucker Carlson if the country was headed for a “civil war.” He attacked his critics as “savages,” attacked Republican rivals and Joe Biden, and talked about low-flow showerheads
Trump did not answer directly, instead focusing on defending the crowd he addressed at the Ellipse near the White House on Jan. 6.
“There is tremendous passion and there is tremendous love. You know, January 6 was a really interesting day because they don’t report well on it. I believe it was the biggest crowd I’ve ever spoken to before, and you know, some of the crowds I’ve spoken to before — I think the biggest crowd I’ve ever spoken to was January 6,” Trump responded.
He then referenced his own comments on Twitter later that day when a mob stormed the Capitol
“And the people who were in that crowd – a very, very small group of people and we said, patriotic and peaceful, peaceful and patriotic, right – nobody ever says that – go peaceful and patriotic. But people who were in that crowd that day, a very small group of people went there (to the Capitol) and then there’s a lot of scenarios that we can talk about. But the people in that crowd said it was the best day they’ve ever had,” Trump said.
The AP estimated the rally size would be 10,000 people.
Trump labels his critics as ‘wild animals’
Trump called his critics “savages” and claimed his opponents would try again to “steal” the election.
“Are you afraid they’re going to try to kill you?” Carlson asked him. ‘Why wouldn’t they try to kill you? Honestly.’
‘They are wild animals. They are people who are sick, very sick,” Trump said.
That kicked off a lengthy reply in which Trump spoke out against “Russia, Russia, Russia” and went after a string of rivals, including former FBI Director James Comey.
“But these people are sick people. These are people who I think hate our country, you want to know the truth,” Trump said.
He claimed his critics would try to “steal” the election from him, and “not just from me.”
“But if someone other than me comes in, they’ll be just as brutal,” Trump said.
He predicted it wouldn’t be Ron DeSantis, whom he called “DeSanctus,” also calling him “out,” “gonzo,” and “gone.”
‘I do get the credit that I’ve held up pretty well. I have to tell you,” Trump said.
‘How do you do that?’ Carlson asked him. “How do you get sued every week and stay merry?”
Trump defended the “nice” Jan. 6 crowd he was addressing, saying he ordered a small group at the Capitol to behave “patriotically and peacefully”
Trump said disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein probably committed suicide
Trump complained about the low water pressure in a lengthy complaint during the interview
Trump gave extensive answers without interruption in the interview from his New Jersey private club
Trump asked why he had to go on stage during a debate while rivals were ‘yelling at me and shouting questions at me’
Speculation about Biden’s health
Trump called Biden “the worst president in our country’s history,” then said he might not make it through November 2024.
“I don’t think he’s going to make it to the gate, but you know, you never know,” Trump, 77, said of Biden, 80.
He then went on to explain how he took Hillary Clinton’s “corrupt” name and used it against Biden. “I don’t do two people at once,” he explained.
That led Trump to predict a “free for all,” while saying Vice President Kamala Harris would not be guaranteed her party’s nomination.
“A lot of people say she should stay the candidate for reasons — she should,” Trump said of Harris. “I don’t actually think that’s true,” Trump told Carlson, without explaining the reasons he was referring to.
“I don’t think other people would be in favor of that. She has some bad moments. Her moments are almost as bad as his, I think, or worse,” he said.
That prompted Carlson, who interviewed Trump and his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, to say she “seems pretty senile too.”
She speaks in rhyme. It’s weird. It’s weird,” Trump said. “But she has bad moments,” Trump said of 58-year-old Harris.
He says Biden has “skinny legs.”
Trump tore up President Biden because of both his looks and his mental capacity.
“I think he is worse mentally than physically and physically. He’s not exactly a triathlete, or any kind of athlete for that matter,” Trump mused of Biden, who played college football at the University of Delaware but was recently the subject of a number of unflattering beach photos.
“Look at him who can’t walk through the helicopter he’s walking with. He can’t lift his feet out of the grass, you know, it’s only two inches by the White House.”
“When you look at him, it looks like he’s walking on toothpicks,” the former president continued. “And then you see him on the beach, where he can’t lift a chair. You know, those seats are meant to be light, right? Like two ounces.’
Trump then said he did not understand the strategy behind sending Biden to the beach.
Trump on why he skipped the debate
Trump said he skipped the first Republican presidential debate so he wouldn’t be “harassed” by rivals he said didn’t deserve to run.
He said he skipped the forum to avoid giving other Republicans a chance to lash out at him, acknowledging that it was a defensive move to stick to his lead.
“But you see, the polls are out and I’m ahead by 50 to 60 points. And you know, some of them are on one and zero and two. And I say, “Should I sit there for an hour or two, whatever it will be, and be harassed by people who shouldn’t even be running for president. Should I do that?” Trump told Carlson.
He made this comment after onstage rivals, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, chided him for skipping the minus event.
Trump said the situation reminded him of the 2016 campaign, where he said he had to fight, but the network “got very friendly after I won.”
“But I felt it would be more appropriate not to have the debate. I don’t think it’s right to do this,” he said.
He pointed to the results of his polls, although he exaggerated by claiming it was 70 percent. “And I have eight people, ten people, whoever did the debate, I don’t know how many, but I make all these people scream at me and shout questions at me? I enjoy answering all of them – I enjoy doing them – but there is no point in doing them. So I took a pass, you probably noticed,” he told Carlson.
Trump on the death of Jeffrey Epstein
Carlson tried to get Trump to speak out about the death of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, casting doubt that he committed suicide in prison and accusing former AG Bill Barr of failing to investigate.
Carlson accused Barr of “covering up” Epstein’s death.
Trump, who himself was photographed with Epstein at Mar-a-Lago and called him a “regular” in Palm Beach, didn’t buy it.
‘I don’t really believe it. I think he probably killed himself. He had a life with, you know, beautiful houses and beautiful everything, and suddenly he’s in prison and he’s not doing so well.’
Shower complaints
Trump commented on and on about his problems with low-flow showers and electric vehicles. He has been making similar complaints for years.
“Now in some states they have a problem, you know, you have desert areas and that’s all okay. But they have sinks with no water coming out. You turn it on, no water comes out. There is no water coming out of the shower. No water is allowed in the washing machine for your dishes or for your clothes. I avoided all of that,” Trump said of his steps to cut back on regulations.
“Wait, they have sinks that don’t drain water?” Carlson wanted to know.
‘You want to wash your hands, don’t you? Yes. And you, you saw this and you turn on the sink and it is very little, or you want to wash your beautiful hair well and you are in the shower. Then the foam never came with the water coming out very slowly. I’m sure you’ve seen this. It usually takes place in new hotels, new homes,” Trump lamented.
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