CNN Star Slammed for ‘Sucking Up to Trump’ (Video)

CNN’s Jake Tapper is facing a wave of backlash after critics accused him of going soft on President Donald Trump during a tense and deeply awkward phone interview that quickly veered into media-bashing territory.

Trump called into Tapper’s State of the Union on Sunday to discuss the death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, but the conversation soon became another reminder of the former president’s long-running hostility toward the press — and, to many viewers, an uncomfortable example of a major network host bending over backward to keep him happy.

The interview was supposed to focus on Graham’s sudden death and Trump’s memories of the South Carolina Republican. But when Tapper attempted to move the conversation toward politics, Trump repeatedly shut him down, saying he did not want to discuss other issues “out of respect” for Graham.

Rather than press harder, Tapper appeared to back off.

“Well, I know you don’t want to talk about any other issues out of respect for Lindsey Graham, but we would love to have you back sometime because I do have a lot of other questions for you, sir,” Tapper told the president near the end of the segment.

“Sure, we’ll do that. We’ll do that,” Trump replied.

“Thank you for calling,” Tapper said.

But Trump, never one to miss a chance to attack a media outlet, then took a swipe at CNN itself.

The president referenced his frequent “fake news” attacks on the network before declaring, “We’re trying to have CNN go in a normal path, and we’ll do that.”

The remark immediately set off alarm bells among critics, who viewed it as yet another brazen suggestion that Trump believes news organizations should be guided — or pressured — into covering him on his terms.

Even more surprising to some viewers was Tapper’s response.

“Well, I’m on a normal path right here, sir, and I appreciate your time,” Tapper told him. “And thank you for calling in.”

“Good, you are,” Trump responded. “OK, thanks a lot.”

The exchange spread quickly online, where many viewers blasted Tapper’s tone as overly deferential and accused CNN of allowing Trump to dominate the interview without real pushback.

“Admitting they are trying to control the media,” one person wrote on X, reacting to Trump’s comment about putting CNN on a “normal path.”

Others were far more focused on Tapper, arguing that the veteran anchor gave Trump exactly the kind of soft landing he wanted.

“Jake’s a pathetic sycophant. What a weasel,” one critic wrote.

Another fumed, “Tapper will go down in history as an enabler of the most corrupt and incompetent president in U.S. history. What a joke of a journalist. ‘I’m doing good, right, sir?’”

A third person took aim at the network as a whole, writing, “It’s not up to the president or any elected official to direct the ‘path’ any news organization follows. If CNN is buying into this they need to close their doors, or officially merge with Fox.”

The backlash was especially striking because Tapper has not always handled Trump with such caution. In the past, the CNN anchor has publicly pushed back against Trump’s attacks on the network and defended his colleagues from the president’s repeated claims that critical reporting amounts to “fake news.”

In April, Trump lashed out at CNN in a lengthy Truth Social post, accusing the network of spreading what he called a “knowingly false and dangerous statement” about Iran amid a fragile ceasefire.

Tapper responded forcefully at the time, making it clear that CNN’s job was not to flatter the president or limit coverage to statements he approved of.

“Our job is not to try and please the president or only report the statements he likes,” Tapper said during a live response. “We’re going to tell you what’s going on, and we’re going to keep doing that, no matter how many lies this administration or the Iranians tell.”

That earlier defiance made Sunday’s exchange even more jarring for critics, who felt Tapper missed an opportunity to challenge Trump in real time — especially after the president openly suggested CNN needed to be steered onto a “normal path.”

The Daily Beast said it reached out to CNN for comment.

For now, the uncomfortable interview has left CNN facing a familiar question in the Trump era: how to cover a president who routinely attacks the press without giving him the red carpet treatment.

And for Tapper, the criticism was blunt. Viewers did not just think Trump controlled the interview. Many thought CNN let him.