Matt Gaetz Claims Trump ‘Had an Exquisite Knowledge of the Facts’ in CNN Town Hall

Donald Trump made several dubious and outright false claims during a CNN town hall on Wednesday, but that didn’t stop Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) from declaring that Trump showed “an exquisite knowledge of the facts.”

Appearing on Newsmax’s The Balance, Gaetz hailed Trump’s performance in Wednesday’s event. The congressman also praised the network for giving Trump a platform.

“So Trump explodes the ratings over at CNN,” host Eric Bolling noted. “Management goes crazy. They like the ratings, but they are getting massive pushback… What are you hearing in the halls of Congress?”

“I actually think this town hall was a win for both Donald Trump and CNN,” Gaetz replied. “President Trump showed a comfortable command of the room. He had an exquisite knowledge of the facts. He brought receipts to counter some of the false narratives that have been put out by a lot of mainstream media. And he interacted with people asking questions in a very warm and comforting and almost host-like way.”

CNN’s own Oliver Darcy noted that Trump “unleashed a firehose of lies” during the event, which was moderated by Kaitlan Collins. Collins fact-checked Trump many times, but they ultimately got washed away by the never-ending torrent. Notably, Trump began the event by reiterating his false claim that the 2020 election was rigged against him.

Gaetz lauded the network.

“You’ve got in CNN, I think, an opportunity,” he continued. “So let’s give credit where credit’s due. [CEO] Chris Licht didn’t have to do this. And I think it’s a good thing for the country and a good thing for CNN that they would platform people that they don’t necessarily agree with.”

Gaetz added that the town hall showed that Trump should agree to debate his challengers for the GOP nomination.

CNN has faced intense backlash over the decision. In a monologue on Thursday night, CNN’s Anderson Cooper defended the forum. That in turn led to more criticism.

Watch above via Newsmax.

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