Make up your mind, Kasie Hunt!
First, Hunt opened Tuesday's CNN This Morning by complaining that, in choosing nominees to fill government positions in his coming administration, loyalty will be of prime importance to President-elect Donald Trump. But after announcing that Trump has reportedly named Marco Rubio as his Secretary of State, Hunt ran clips of the clash between the two back during the 2016 primary.
Oblivious to her hypocrisy, Hunt ran a mash-up of statements Trump has made over the years indicating the emphasis he places on that quality. Which was soon followed up with video of Trump mocking Rubio as "Little Marco," and Rubio's clap back, saying that Trump has small hands -- "and you know what they say about men with small hands."
So which is it, Kasie? Does Trump make loyalty his prime prerequisite--or maybe not?
Hunt queried Republican Doug Heye as to how Trump could possibly make Rubio a top insider, given their personal history. Heye was a Never Trumper from way back in 2016. Even so, he served up a short but stunning retort: "Well, how did Kamala Harris come back for Joe Biden after she knifed him in the presidential debate?"
Zing!
Kamala's 2020 campaign collapsed before the first votes were even cast. But she did get off the primary season's most memorable line.
In a 2015 debate, Harris ripped Biden for siding with segregationist southern senators in opposing school bussing. She got off her famous line, "That little girl was me," describing her experience as a young schoolgirl who had been bussed.
And despite Dr. Jill reportedly responding to Kamala's attack by suggesting she go "f-" herself, and her opposition to the pick, Biden chose Harris as his VP.
So, yup: score one for Doug Heye!
The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read:
CNN This Morning
11/12/24
6:00 am ETKASIE HUNT: The second Trump White House is taking shape, as Donald Trump picks more cabinet members and other high ranking officials. The President-elect making these decision with one key trait at top of mind.
DONALD TRUMP: Loyal, we could use some more loyalty. I will tell you that . . . I love loyalty . . . People in politics can be very disloyal. I've never seen anything like it . . . Loyalty. You know, some of these people have like a 10% loyalty, meaning if they sneeze in the wrong direction, they're gone . . . I would have wiped the floor with the guys who weren't loyal. Which I will now do. Which is great. You know, I love getting even . . . If given the opportunity, I will get even with some people who were disloyal to me. I mean, I had a group of people who were disloyal --
REPORTER: How do you define disloyal?
TRUMP: They didn't come to my aid.
HUNT: Loyalty. A quality that Donald ttrump has prized, you can see there, throughout his life, and one that seems to be the key to getting a job in the second Trump White House.
Shortly after the election, Mike Davis, a conservative and legal operative, and possible contender for Attorney General, wrote this on Twitter, now X. Dear Trump job seekers before asking me for help, I'm going to ask you to provide me specific and concrete evidence of your loyalty to Trump, end quote.
The headline this morning in the Wall Street Journal, quote, Loyalty Is Common Thread as Ttrump Fills Foreign Policy, Immigration Jobs.
And CNN'sSteven Collinson writing this this morning. Quote: each selection or anticipated pick so far has one thing in common: Ultra-loyalty to Trump, especially during his indictment-strewn post-presidency. Each person is known for paying the kind of exaggerated homage in television interviews that the president-elect adores. A sense of betayal often burned in Trump's first term when members of government prioritized their oath to the Constitution over their fealty to him.
Overnight, CNN learned Trump is likely to pick Marco Rubio as his Secretary of State, according to a few sources familiar with his thinking.
. . .
But you may remember they ran against each other for president back in 2016. Let's take a little walk down memory lane. No pun intended on that "little." Watch this.
MARCO RUBIO: Have you seen his hands? They're like this. And you know what they say about men with small hands. You can't trust them.
TRUMP: Look at those hands, are they small hands? And he referred to my hands. He said if they're small, something else must be small. I guarantee you there's no problem. I guarantee it. So I look at him, I said [looking down] Marco. Those hands can hit a golf ball 285 yards. I want to show the size of my hands. How I could grab him. How I could grab him.
HUNT: So we didn't hear him use "Little Marco," but that was the nickname.
. . .
So Doug, how do you come back from this kind of a thing with Trump if you are Marco Rubio? How is it that he is in the inner circle, considering these [inaudible]?
DOUG HEYE: Well, how did Kamala Harris come back for Joe Biden after she knifed him in the presidential debate?
