Trump blames KKK flub on a 'lousy earpiece'

Donald Trump offered up his excuse Monday morning as to why he didn't disavow the Ku Klux Klan and former grand wizard David Duke in an interview with CNN over the weekend: He says he just couldn't hear the question.
"I'm sitting in a house in Florida with a very bad earpiece that they gave me, and you could hardly hear what [CNN host Jake Tapper] was saying," Trump told Today Show host Savannah Guthrie, adding that CNN provided him with a "lousy earpiece."
In the interview that aired Sunday on CNN's State of the Union, Trump repeatedly denied knowing anything about Duke when asked if he would "unequivocally condemn" the former KKK grand wizard's support. "I don't know anything about David Duke, okay? I don't know anything about what you're even talking about with white supremacy or white supremacists," Trump said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

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.
On social media, Trump was quick to point out that he had already disavowed Duke during a press conference on Friday.
Politico notes that CNN has yet to offer a comment on Trump's accusations, though "it's not clear what, if anything, Trump was unable to hear during his interview." Listen to his interview with the Today Show below. Becca Stanek
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
-
Five years on: How Covid changed everything
Feature We seem to have collectively forgotten Covid’s horrors, but they have completely reshaped politics
By The Week US Published
-
Trump’s TPS takedown
Feature The president plans to deport a million immigrants with protected status. What effects will that have?
By The Week US Published
-
Do I qualify for student loan forgiveness?
The Explainer There are a number of different pathways to qualification, though each requires strict criteria to be met
By Becca Stanek, The Week US Published
-
Canada's Mark Carney calls snap election
speed read Voters will go to the polls on April 28 to pick a new government
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Musk set to earn billions from Trump administration
Speed Read Musk's company SpaceX will receive billions in federal government contracts in the coming years
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Reports: Musk to get briefed on top secret China war plan
Speed Read In a major expansion of Elon Musk's government role, he will be briefed on military plans for potential war with China
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump signs order to end Education Department
Speed Read The move will return education 'back to the states where it belongs,' the president says
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump pauses $175M for Penn over trans athlete
Speed Read The president is withholding federal funds from the University of Pennsylvania because it once allowed a transgender swimmer to compete
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump purports to 'void' Biden pardons
Speed Read Joe Biden's pardons of Jan. 6 committee members are not valid because they were done by autopen, says Trump
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
White House ignores judicial deportation blocks
Speed Read The Trump administration deports alleged Venezuelan gang members under a wartime law, defying a court order
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Schumer: Democrats will help pass spending bill
Speed Read The Democrats end the threat of government shutdown
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published