CNN Guest Accuses Scott Jennings of Mocking Trump During Commercial Breaks After Fawning Over President on Air

Former Trump administration official Miles Taylor accused CNN senior political commentator Scott Jennings of mocking President Donald Trump “in the green room” during commercial breaks, minutes after fawning over the president live on air, in a tweet fired off on Tuesday.

“You know who’s a perfect metaphor for the GOP? Scott Jennings. A pundit who mocks Trump with us during commercial breaks — but fawns over Trump when the camera is rolling,” wrote Taylor after taking part in a panel discussion with Jennings on CNN NewsNight the previous night. “Brave enough to speak out… in the green room.”

Taylor’s broadside came after he had gotten into a heated debate with Jennings – a vocal supporter of Trump and a former staffer for President George W. Bush – on NewsNight.

During the debate, Taylor and Jennings repeatedly clashed over ICE and Trump’s ongoing war against Iran.

“Do you think that the ayatollah prefers his life under Obama or under Trump? Probably Obama, yes?” asked Jennings, to which Taylor replied, “The ayatollah’s dead.”

Jennings mocked, “There you go. You heard it hear first,” as the two then began to shout over each other.

Despite his frequent support for Trump on CNN, Jennings has previously criticized the president over a number of issues.

In a 2016 article for the Courier-Journal, Jennings described Trump as “an authoritarian,” accusing him of being “ignorant of the Constitution.”

Five years later, following the January 6, 2021 Capitol riots, Jennings accused Trump of inciting an “insurrection” and “terrorism” with “his lies and conspiracy theories” about the results of the 2020 presidential election.

As recently as this year, Jennings has continued to criticize Trump’s actions on January 6, calling it a “bad day” that “should never happen again.”

In December, Jennings also criticized Trump’s remarks about the brutal killing of director Rob Reiner and his wife.

After Trump claimed in a Truth Social post that Reiner had actually died as a result of a “crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME” – and not by being stabbed to death – Jennings told CNN, “I disagree with the statement. I wish he hadn’t made it.”

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!