CNN Anchor Calls BS on Trump Over War: ‘Trump May Not Be Keeping Track, But Americans Certainly Are Via Gas Prices’

CNN anchor Abby Phillip called BS on President Donald Trump’s latest claims about the Iran War, correcting him on how long it has lasted and snarking that even if he isn’t “keeping track,” Americans are noticing the escalating surge in gas prices.

Trump riffed about oil prices and the Iran War at a White House event on Monday, as gas prices ended last week at a national average of $4.45 per gallon.

On Monday’s edition of CNN NewsNight, Phillip called Trump out for claiming the war has only been going on for “what, six weeks?” and declaring polls on the war “fake”:

ABBY PHILLIP: Here’s a sign that we are in America’s Iran war. The president who started it can’t remember how long it’s been going on.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We have a war right now, and we’re into, like, what, six weeks? They said, what’s taking so long.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIP: Not quite. We are in the tenth week of the war and the third month, with no end in sight, frankly. Donald Trump may not be keeping track, but Americans certainly are via their gas prices. It’s hit another high today. And one expert says that you can expect to see $5 at a pump if the Strait of Hormuz doesn’t open soon.

Now, the president is also dismissing how unpopular the war is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: They give me fake polls. They tell me about polls and this. And, you know, it’s interesting, they did a poll on the war with Iran and they said only 32 percent of the people like it. Well, I don’t like it and I don’t like war at all.

They said 32 percent of the people are against President Trump. Well, when you explain it, like is it okay for Iran to have a nuclear weapon? It wouldn’t be 32 percent. But even if you said that, there’d be a 32 percent because the polls are fake. I mean, they’re totally fake.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIP: For the reality, at the start of the war, Americans were pretty evenly divided in their support for the conflict, but now, 61 percent say that the campaign in Iran was a mistake, and there is a clear generational gap too. While older Americans are split, 61 percent under the age of 35 opposed the war and 80 percent of those under 30 say there were no sufficient reasons to attack Iran in the first place. While 51 percent over the age of 65 say that there were.

Watch above via CNN NewsNight.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!