Trump tells ABC interviewer Terry Moran he has ‘never heard of him’ in testy White House exchange
.jpeg?trim=0,0,0,0&width=1200&height=800&crop=1200:800&w=1920&resize=1920,1267&ssl=1 "Trump tells ABC interviewer Terry Moran he has ‘never heard of him’ in testy White House exchange")
Donald Trump told ABC journalist Terry Moran he had “never heard of him” and that he was “not being very nice” in a testy exchange during a sit down to mark the president’s first 100 days back in office.
The pair clashed a number of times during the interview, notably over a discussion of deported El Salvador native and Maryland father Kilmar Abrego Garcia, and evidence — or lack thereof — that he was a member of the MS-13 gang.
Trump pointed to an image of Abrego Garcia that he claimed showed him with gang tattoos on his knuckles. The image, however, shared by the president previously, has been sharply challenged – with critics claiming the photo had been digitally altered.
There’s no other evidence linking Abrego Garcia to the gang.
Moran challenged the president on the point, telling him that the link to the criminal gang was “disputed.”
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“Wait a minute, wait a minute. He had MS-13 on his knuckles,” Trump replied. Moran tried several times to move the interview on to the next topic, to no avail. “It says MS 13,” Trump said.
“That was Photoshopped,” Moran replied, provoking a bemused response from the president. Trump then indicated that he personally chose Moran to conduct the interview for ABC.
“They’re giving you the big break of a lifetime, you know, you’re doing the interview,” Trump said. “I picked you because, frankly, I never heard of you, but that’s OK.”
Trump then stressed again that he picked Moran for the interview adding: “But you’re not being very nice.”
When Moran tried once again to move the interview along, Trump challenged him again.
“Do you want me to show you the picture?” he said, to which Moran replied: “I saw the picture.”
It could be “interpreted that way … I want to turn to Ukraine,” Moran added.
“No, no, no, no,” Trump persisted. “He had MS, as clear as you can be, not interpreted … This is why people no longer believe the news.”
The letters “MS” have not previously been seen on photos of Abrego Garcia’s hands.
The president described Moran’s comments as a “disservice,” asking him: “Why don’t you just say, “Yes, he does,’ and you know, go on to something else?”
Finishing off the interview Trump took aim at media outlets, singling out ABC as “one of the worst.”
