President Donald Trump had a fiery on-air showdown during an interview on “Meet the Press” — with things escalating to the point where he abruptly left after repeated pushback from host Kristen Welker.
The final stretch of the roughly six-minute exchange centered on Trump’s proposed $1.8 Billion “anti-weaponization” fund, a program his administration has reportedly stepped back from, and talk of elections being “rigged.”
Watch the clip as the interview heated up when Welker asked whether people involved in the January 6 Capitol attack should receive taxpayer money … which Trump responded with saying each case would need to be looked at individually, while also making claims about bias inside law enforcement — which Welker immediately challenged.
Things escalated further when Trump claimed, without providing proof, that federal agents had encouraged protesters during the riot. Welker pushed back, saying there was no evidence for that and pointing to court records and guilty pleas tied to assaults on officers.
The exchange kept getting more tense, with Trump making accusations about government and media figures, while Welker fact-checked him in real time.
When the conversation then shifted to elections, where Trump said the vote was “rigged,” which he has been alleging since 2020, he suggested the same issues are happening in California. When asked for proof, he didn’t provide any, saying it was obvious.
Welker again said there was no court evidence supporting the claim, but Trump doubled down and criticized both her and the show — calling her and the network “crooked” … adding “a country can never be great with a dishonest press.”
Welker took to Instagram Sunday morning and said her interview with President Trump on Friday afternoon was “unfortunately complicated by weather issues” … adding, “In spite of those challenges, we still had a substantial conversation on issues from the Iran war to the economy to the so-called ‘anti-weaponization’ fund.”
We’ve reached out to The White House for comment, so far no word back.