Why Trump Wants Meet The Press Host Chuck Todd Fired

President Donald Trump took to Twitter on May 10, 2020, calling for the termination of NBC news anchor Chuck Todd. "Sleepy Eyes Chuck Todd should be FIRED by 'Concast' (NBC) for this fraud. He knew exactly what he was doing," Trump tweeted to his nearly 80 million followers.

The strongly worded request to let go one of the most recognizable news anchors in America came after NBC's Meet the Press segment aired earlier that morning, which included a clip of Attorney General William Barr's comments from a separate network, per the New York Post. When asked how history would remember his decisions in the Michael Flynn case, Barr is seen saying in a CBS interview with a chuckle, "Well, history is written by the winner. So it largely depends on who's writing the history."

In response to the shortened version of the clip, Todd said that he "was struck by the cynicism of the answer." Denouncing Barr's response, Todd continued, "He didn't make the case that he was upholding the rule of law. He was almost admitting that, 'Yeah, this is a political job.'" 

The longer clip, however, tells a slightly different story. And this whole situation has sparked outrage from more than just the president.

A closer look reveals that Attorney General William Barr's comments were more than what the aforementioned Meet the Press clip showed. "Well, history is written by the winner. So it largely depends on who's writing the history," Barr said in the longer version. "But I think a fair history would say that it was a good decision because it upheld the rule of law." 

In response to the cut clip, many stepped out saying Barr's comments were taken out of context, including Justice Department spokesperson Kerri Kupec. "Not only did the AG make the case in the VERY answer Chuck says he didn't, he also did so multiple times throughout the interview," Kupec tweeted, adding that she was "very disappointed" by the "deceptive editing." 

In response to Kupec's concern, Meet the Press responded in a tweet, "You're correct. Earlier today, we inadvertently and inaccurately cut short a video clip of an interview with AG Barr before offering commentary and analysis. The remaining clip included important remarks from the attorney general that we missed, and we regret the error."

Sean Spicer, former White House press secretary, sarcastically called the apology "just precious," saying the clip was "selectively" edited. And clearly, it seems like President Donald Trump isn't buying the apology either. As for Todd himself, he hasn't posted anything on his personal Twitter since before the whole incident.