Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York was among a number of prominent progressives who tuned in to CNN during the Wednesday town hall featuring former President Donald Trump in New Hampshire.
Business Insider reported that network CEO Chris Licht had intended to use the event to return the network to its previous position as a moderate media outlet.
In the first few minutes of the event, it became clear that the network had invited Trump in order to corner him.
Trump was questioned by network host Kailtan Collins about everything from the Jan. 6 invasion of the U.S. Capitol to his civil case against E. Jean Carroll — a woman who claimed Trump violated her in a New York City department store in the 1990s:
A jury awarded Carroll a partial victory but determined Trump had never violated her.
Collins made the accusation the focus of the town hall meeting.
This CNN town hall event is a stand up comedy show.
CNN looks terrible.pic.twitter.com/yjUZv8s2V4
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) May 11, 2023
The former president was well-prepared for Collins’ line of questioning and defended himself in a fashion that many viewers deemed to be more than sufficient.
While certainly risky, there's very real upside for @realDonaldTrump to return to a TOWN HALL-style forum on liberal media, who have had a tough time controlling their own "focus groups" on live TV.
It will be adversarial/gotcha, but there are a lot of RFK voters to potentially…
— Rich Baris "The People's Pundit" (@Peoples_Pundit) May 11, 2023
After a fruitless attempt to isolate Trump, however, the far-left congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez turned on CNN out of displeasure.
A live audience of undecided electors exhibited blatant support for Trump, which she attributed to the network.
“CNN should be ashamed of themselves,” the congresswoman wrote on Twitter during the event. “They have lost total control of this ‘town hall’ to again be manipulated into platforming election disinformation, defenses of Jan 6th, and a public attack on a sexual abuse victim.”
Ocasio-Cortez added, “The audience is cheering him on and laughing at the host.”
CNN should be ashamed of themselves.
They have lost total control of this “town hall” to again be manipulated into platforming election disinformation, defenses of Jan 6th, and a public attack on a sexual abuse victim.
The audience is cheering him on and laughing at the host.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) May 11, 2023
In a subsequent tweet, the Democratic lawmaker accused CNN of putting “a sexual abuse victim in harm’s way” while seemingly referencing Carroll.
“This falls squarely on CNN,” she wrote. “Everyone here saw exactly what was going to happen.”
She concluded, “Instead they put a sexual abuse victim in harm’s way for views. This was a choice to platform lies about the election & Jan 6th w/ no plan but to have their moderator interrupted without consequence.”
This falls squarely on CNN. Everyone here saw exactly what was going to happen. Instead they put a sexual abuse victim in harm’s way for views. This was a choice to platform lies about the election & Jan 6th w/ no plan but to have their moderator interrupted without consequence.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) May 11, 2023
Collins attempted to focus the first segment of the town hall on the Capitol invasion, and she attempted to portray Trump as a political extremist.
During the last election, the former president reminded her that he received more ballots than any other Republican nominee in history.