US President Donald Trump abruptly ended a television interview with NBC’s Meet the Press after a heated exchange with moderator Kristen Welker over his repeated claims that American elections are being rigged.The interview centred on Trump’s allegations about the 2020 presidential election and his concerns over vote counting in California. The discussion eventually escalated into a confrontation, with Trump accusing the media of dishonesty before removing his microphone and walking away.The exchange began as Trump defended his proposed “anti-weaponisation fund”, a plan he had previously announced to compensate people who believe they were unfairly targeted by the Biden administration. The proposal has since stalled after the Justice Department (DOJ) said it would not move forward.“As I understand it, the weaponization fund was going to set up a group of people, people that could be picked by anybody, fair people, smart people, and they will go on an individual case basis,” Trump said.The POTUS added: “Now I don’t know what’s going to happen with the weaponization fund. I love the idea because people like you the fake dirty press, the crooked press, people like stupid Biden, he’s not smart enough to know what’s going on but people that surrounded him, surrounded his beautiful resolute desk in the Oval Office, what they did to the lives of people, they destroyed people. They sent people to jail who did nothing wrong.“Welker challenged the president’s claims, saying no evidence had been presented to support them. As she attempted to move on to a question about acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and the future of the fund, Trump interrupted.“Listen to me: There’s tremendous evidence,” he said.He added: “There’s nothing but evidence. The election was rigged. It was a dirty election, and it’s happening again right now in California. It’s happening right now in California, right now. Look at what’s happening in California.”Welker repeatedly asked Trump to provide proof. The president instead pointed to the slow pace of vote counting in California, where several races remained undecided days after the election.“The Republicans are doing well in California,” Welker responded.“No they’re not. They’re dropping fast because it’s a rigged election,” Trump replied. “Let me tell you, it’s four days and they aren’t even close.”When Welker noted that California allows ballots to be mailed up to election day, a process that often delays final results, Trump responded: “You know why they’re doing that? Because they’re cheating on the election.”Asked whether he had evidence, Trump said: “All I have to do is look. All I have to do is look and I listen, and I listen to people and let’s see what happens.”The interview became tense as the pair argued over election procedures and media coverage. Trump accused election officials, television networks and journalists of being dishonest.“No, they’re crooked. They’re crooked, just like you’re crooked. Your press is crooked and Meet the Press is crooked,” he told Welker.When she replied, “To be fair, I’m not crooked, but let’s… “, Trump fired back: “Really? Well, you play right into their hands then. You’re either crooked or you’re stupid.”As Welker continued asking for evidence, Trump repeated his allegations and criticised news organisations.“Your elections are crooked and you’re crooked and Meet the Press is crooked, and so is ABC and CBS and CNN,” he said. “You’re one-sided crooked networks. Let’s call it quits because I’ve had enough. Thank you, darling.”Trump then removed his microphone and ended the interview. Welker urged him to stay, noting she had travelled to Wisconsin for the conversation.The president defended his decision, saying: “I’ve given you enough time. You ought to straighten out your press because you know what, a country can never be great with a dishonest press.”He then walked out, bringing the interview to an abrupt end.
