Speaking during an early December 2024 interview with “So Many Issues with Lukas” host Lukas Thimm, MSNBC host Stephanie Ruhle commented on an incident that came in May of 2023 when she interviewed President Joe Biden and asked about his son Hunter’s potential impact on his presidency. She claimed that the president’s staff was “screaming and yelling” at her over the question.
Ruhle, in the interview moment at question, asked, “You’re also facing something personal. And while there’s no ties to you, your own son could be charged by your Department of Justice.” It was then that the yelling started, apparently, as the noise could be heard in the background. Ruhle added, “How — how will that impact your presidency?” Biden told her, “It will not because he has done nothing wrong. And I’m proud of him.”
There was then more noise and crosstalk, which Ruhle eventually overcame by asking, “Just — since they were talking, sir, just — can I ask you that again? Because the — you gave your answer, but our audio was messed up. Can I just ask you that again? You don’t have to answer. If I may? Sir, there is something personal that’s affecting you. Your son, while there’s no ties to you, could be charged by your Department of Justice. How will that impact your presidency?” Biden told her, “First of all, my son has done nothing wrong. I trust him. I have faith in him. It impacts my presidency by making me feel proud of him.”
President Biden also complained about negative press coverage at the time, saying, “All they’ve heard is negative news for three years. Everything is negative. I’m not being critical of the press, but you turn on the television – the only way you’re going to get a hit is if there’s something negative, you know. You don’t – anyway, that’s number one.”
Commenting on the incident, Rughle said, “In the way of traditional media, the White House runs the show. When I interviewed President Biden, they gave me 10 minutes, OK? A politician can knock out one answer in 15 minutes. At minute 9.5, I asked the president, ‘Your son, Hunter, might be indicted by your Department of Justice, how will this impact your presidency?’”
Describing what happened, she said, “A completely reasonable question. As soon as I said those words, President Biden’s team waved in front of the camera, started screaming and yelling and stopped the interview. Now that immediately went on, that’s public record, that was in the transcript, that became its own story, and then they punished us.” Watch her here:
Commenting on her attempt to get Trump on her show, she said, “I wasn’t calling to chit-chat. I said, ‘Mr. President, this is Stephanie Ruhle, you made a lot of comments last night,’ blah-blah-blah. It was not an on-the-record conversation, so I’m not going to get into what he said. But I called for one reason. I said, ‘You just said a whole bunch of public things. I’d like to sit down for an interview with you. We’ve got five days before the election.’ So we didn’t get anything, there’s nothing for me to report. I called, I said I want an interview. Obviously, he said no.”
She added, commenting on how it was easier to get in touch with Trump than Biden and Harris, she said, “But my point is, I was able to get to him by dialing his phone. Now that might be completely apesh*t and you’re like, ‘I can’t believe people know this guy’s phone number,’ but the reverse of that, if I were to want to connect with VP Harris or President Biden, there’s 50 people between me and that. I could write a note that maybe could get to somebody to get somebody, then through Pony Express and a pigeon something might end up in a mailbox near them.”
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