Trump's tale about Manhattan court workers crying and apologizing at his arraignment isn't true, source says
Fox News host Tucker Carlson sat down with former President Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida for an hourlong interview broadcast Tuesday night that was supposed to be about his arrest and arraignment in Manhattan the previous week but ended up focusing on whatever Trump wanted to talk about, with little pushback from Carlson. Trump did discuss his experience getting booked at his arraignment, but his version included a lot of sobbing court workers apologizing to him for his arrest.
The courthouse is "a tough, tough place, and they were crying," Trump said. "They were actually crying. They said, 'I'm sorry.' They said, '2024, sir. 2024.' And tears were pouring down their eyes."
You may be surprised to learn that none of that happened, at least according to a law enforcement source who spoke with Yahoo News' Michael Isikoff. Trump's story is "absolute BS," the official said. "There were zero people crying. There were zero people saying 'I'm sorry.'" In fact, Trump barely interacted with anybody at the courthouse other than his lawyers, Secret Service detail, and a handful of district attorney employees, the official said, and the only hiccup was when Trump's fingers had to be moistened with lotion because they were too dry to fingerprint.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Along with sitting through Trump's sobbing story about court workers, Carlson let the former president "prattle on at will" about "the various 'hoax' investigations to which he'd been subjected and his false assertions about the cease-fire in Afghanistan and the classified documents recovered from Mar-a-Lago by the FBI," Philip Bump writes at The Washington Post. Stephen Colbert's Late Show turned Trump's fawning description of Chinese President Xi Jinping into an '80s hit by Roxette.
But perhaps "the most telling part" of Carlson's "fundamentally obsequious" interview was when he said he thought viewers will find that what Trump "has to say moderate, sensible, and wise," Bump says. "This was sharply reminiscent of how Carlson described Ye, the musician formerly known as Kanye West, when he interviewed him in October," before showing an interview in which Carlson's team had "edited out much of Ye's most bizarre and disconcerting commentary" to make him sound like "a wise, sober opponent of the American elite." One "obvious question" about Carlson's Trump interview, he adds, is: what might he have left out "to present the former president as favorably as possible?"
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Today's political cartoons - July 24, 2024
Cartoons Wednesday's cartoons - refunds, big funds, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The manosphere: the shady online network of masculinists
The Explainer A new police report said a rise in radicalised young men is contributing to an increase in violence against women and girls
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
How can we fix tourism?
Today's Big Question Local protests over negative impact of ever-rising visitor numbers could change how we travel forever
By The Week UK Published
-
The GOP is Donald Trump Jr.'s party now
In The Spotlight The former president's gun-loving, live-streaming adult son has emerged as more than just his father's namesake — he's become a Republican powerhouse of his own
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
For God and country: is religion in politics making a comeback?
Talking Point There are many MPs of faith in the new Labour government despite it being the most openly secular House of Commons in history
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The attack on Donald Trump
Opinion We've seen this kind of shooter before
By Susan Caskie Published
-
74 things Donald Trump has said about women
Feature The former president has a long history of controversial remarks about the opposite sex
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
DHS opens review of Trump assassination attempt
Speed Read An independent panel will investigate the Secret Service's handling of the shooting
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Can Kamala Harris beat Trump?
Today's Big Question Some senior Democrats are unsure the vice-president can win in November even as party closes ranks behind her
By The Week UK Published
-
Iran: does Masoud Pezeshkian's election mark a turning point?
Talking Point New president is seen as a progressive but much will depend on how the US reacts
By The Week UK Published
-
'Although we can't eliminate political violence, we can minimize it'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published