In the age of Donald Trump, the political divide among the American people is wider than it's been in some time. After a CNN host joked about poisoning the president, outrage quickly sparked in the right-wing media which led to surprising remarks from conservative author Ann Coulter.
Coulter defends CNN
It didn't take long after Donald Trump made his presidential campaign official that he would quickly dominate the news cycle.
During his campaign announcement, the former host of "The Apprentice" labeled illegal immigrants from Mexico as "rapists" and "murderers," resulting in many on the political left to lash out and accuse him of being a "racist." In the two years that have followed, Trump's popularity among his core base on the right has remained strong, while the majority of the country now push back at his presidency. Trump would find himself as the butt of the joke on comedy shows and on late-night TV, which the billionaire real estate mogul would respond to at times during his many Twitter rants. Earlier this week, TMZ caught up with Anthony Bourdain, host of CNN's Part's Unknown, who joked about poisoning the president.
Right-wing media quickly went on the attack, which promoted Ann Coulter to speak out on September 16.
"If Trump and Kim Jong Un were going to have a bit of a summit to try and mend relations and they wanted you to cater, what would you serve?" the TMZ reporter asked Anthony Bourdain. "Hemlock," the CNN host replied with obvious humor. After many in the conservative media accused Bourdain of sending a death threat to the president, the typically conservative Ann Coulter actually came to the defense of CNN and their host.
"Annoyed prissy conservatives forcing me to defend @CNN & @Bourdain, but...Q: What would U serve Trump & NK dictator? A: 'Hemlock' is a JOKE," Ann Coulter tweeted out. Coulter's post came just hours after she attacked the network for alleged overreacting when a recent guest, Fox Sports' Clay Travis, told female host Brooke Baldwin that he believes in only two things, "the First Amendment and boobs." "It wasn't sexist, it was stupid & vulgar.
But that's what CNN gets for banning smart guests, for fear they'll make the hosts look stupid," Coulter tweeted.
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While Ann Coulter defending CNN comes as a surprise due to the author's routine bashing of the network and hard-line right-wing views, she has backed off her support of Donald Trump in recent months. Coulter ripped Trump earlier this year over his moves on foreign policy, and recently called his speech on tax reform the "worst" of his political career.