DLNews Politics:

The 2024 presidential campaign is only beginning, but former President Donald Trump made clear at Wednesday night’s CNN town hall that his third bid for the White House will feel like his first two. The network gave him ample prime-time airtime, and he used it to defend his record and deny his rivals’ claims. Unfortunately, he also smeared the woman who accused him of rape and defamation, and he continued to claim that voter fraud helped him lose the 2020 race. Throughout the hour, he was interrupted with applause from a predominantly Republican audience and often laughed at his own jokes.

During his interview with Kaitlin Collins, a well-known CNN, and The Daily Caller reporter, President Trump faced a chaotic and damaging series of questions. Collins focused on issues that Trump's supporters and critics care about, including voter fraud claims and his phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. This conversation is currently under investigation by prosecutors for potential electoral fraud.

For hours, the audience was focused entirely on various topics being discussed. They interrupted Collins frequently, creating a laugh track-like noise that helped him gain momentum and prevented her from interjecting with factual remarks.

Trump's team deemed the event successful, expanding his audience for the night and demonstrating his comfort with mainstream media. This is significant as he had previously avoided such platforms during his last two campaigns. Trump's advisors believe that he must step outside the fringe to effectively convey his message, especially since Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has an aversion to mainstream media and Trump himself is not a fan of Fox News, despite being a vocal supporter.

A spokesperson from CNN clarified that the network did not agree to any requirements for the town hall event and worked for several months with Collins to ensure it aligned with their journalism-focused approach. As a result, the event had a good turnout, with 3.3 million viewers on average, a substantial increase compared to the 707,000 viewers who watched a similar program on a competing network the day before.