Piers Morgan: Trump and Media Should 'Take a Chill Pill'
*By Conor White*
Piers Morgan may count Donald Trump among his friends, but that doesn't mean he believes everything the president tells him.
After the journalist sat down with President Trump aboard Air Force One for the commander-in-chief's only UK interview, Morgan admitted to Cheddar on Monday he took many of Trump's comments with a grain of skepticism.
"He's very self-aggrandizing, he wants everyone to feel he's doing a great job," Morgan explained. "Now that he's president, he's making America great again, everything is brilliant. You have to cut through the hyperbole and try to get to reality, and reality is often not as great as President Trump would have us believe."
During his interview, Morgan aired some of his grievances against the president, including Trump's repeated claims that the mediaーand CNN, in particularーare plotting against him.
"I worked at CNN for four years, they're not a fake news network. I think they make mistakes like other media organizations, and when they do he's perfectly entitled to call them out for itーbut you can't call whole networks 'fake news,' and I wish he wouldn't do that. I don't think it's right and I think it's dangerous to call any sanctions of the press 'enemies of the people'."
But Morgan also admitted there's plenty of blame to go around.
"There's a very toxic atmosphere and relationship between Donald Trump and the American mainstream media in particular, which no other president has been subjected to. And no other president has taunted the media in this way either. So, it seems like a bit of a mutually abusive relationship."
Policy disagreements aside, Morgan noted he's interviewed Trump more than 35 timesーand he sees no reason to stop now.
"I've known him a long time, I like him personally; I don't really agree with much of his politics, but he's a great, interesting guy to interview. He's the most powerful man on earth, and right now he's doing some very, very interesting stuff."
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/piers-morgan-discusses-relationship-with-potus)
A lot has changed since the pandemic began back in march 2020. COVID-19 caused a huge disruption in the U.S. labor force that is just beginning to normalize. As of last month, about 96% of jobs lost in the pandemic have returned. Still, where people work now looks very different from two years ago. Cheddar's Shannon Lanier looks at where the jobs are now and where they aren't.
Getting you caught up on the stories you need to know this morning: Matthew McConaughey lends his voice to the gun control fight in congress, at least 30 people were injured in Germany after a car plows into a crowd, and a new weight loss drug shows promising results.
Michelle Bond, CEO of the Association for Digital Asset Markets, joins Closing Bell, where she breaks down the Responsible Financial Innovation Act, which would not only establish a regulatory structure for digital assets, but hand over crypto oversight to the CFTC instead of the SEC.
Sarah Warbelow, legal director for Human Rights Campaign, joins Cheddar News to discuss why advocates want to overturn the FDA's rule restricting gay and bisexual men from donating blood.
David Levine, elections integrity fellow with Alliance for Securing Democracy, joins Cheddar News to discuss Politico's bombshell finding revealing the RNC's plan to contest the elections.
A survey by the BMO Real Financial Progress Index found that 25 percent of Americans are pulling back on retirement contributions to offset the cost of inflation. This comes as market volatility reduced retirement savings with the S&P 500 shedding more than 12 percent this year alone.
As abortion rights take center stage in courts around the country, so do discussions about reproductive health. Signs and social media posts say things like "protect women's rights" and "her body, her choice," leaving others who need and receive abortions completely out of the picture. The potential end to Roe v. Wade would impact far more people and facilities than you may think. Cheddar News' Baker Machado breaks it all down.