Donald Trump and journalist Piers Morgan had a tense exchange just prior to taping an interview segment for Morgan's new show, "Piers Morgan Uncensored."
During the prep time for the segment, which is intended to be the highlight of the episode of "Uncensored" on Monday, April 25, Trump read aloud from a selection of comments made by Morgan over the years that put his former friend and "Celebrity Apprentice" host in a less than flattering light. The comments were said to be pulled from columns that Morgan had written, and interviews he'd given, all of which he had no idea would be served up to Trump on that particular occasion.
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Among the snippets read by Trump were statements made by Morgan in the past such as "Trump's a supreme narcissist," and "Trump's now too dangerous, he's morphed into a monster that I no longer recognize as someone I considered to be a friend and thought I knew."
"I thought we were friends?" Trump shouted at one point, according to Morgan. "This is so disloyal! After all I've done for you? Why would you say all this about me?"
In a recount of the exchange, written by Morgan himself for New York Post, he describes being worried that Trump would back out of the interview; but what ended up happening was far more dramatic.
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Morgan was able to diffuse the conflict with Trump by pivoting to golf talk and other pleasantries. Roughly ten minutes later Trump went from blind rage to interview mode, and all seemed right as rain. Until Morgan started questioning him about the "rigged and stolen" 2020 election.
"I told him I believe he lost the supposedly "rigged, stolen" election," Morgan said in The New York Post article. "I repeatedly pointed out his failure to produce any evidence of the widespread voter fraud he insists occurred to rob him of his presidency, and I blamed his refusal to admit defeat for the deadly riots at the Capitol."
"Then you're a FOOL!" [Trump sneered]. "And you haven't studied!"
From this point Trump dissolved back into rage and stormed out of the interview shortly after Morgan's election mention.
"Apparently, he was later heard denouncing me as a "scumbag" and saying he wished he'd never done the interview," Morgan said in his recount.
See a snippet from the exchange below, and tune in to "Piers Morgan Uncensored" on Monday to watch the rest.
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