--- title: Donald Trump Attacks 'Lunatic,' 'Dumbest Person' in TV description: President Trump thinks Chris Cuomo looks like a "chained lunatic" on television and CNN's Don Lemon is "the dumbest person is broadcasting." canonical: https://time.com/4775633/donald-trump-stephen-colbert-cnn-msnbc-chris-cuomo/ author: Zeke Miller article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-05-11T15:28:43.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-08T09:02:02.123Z article:section: Politics og:title: President Trump Attacks 'Lunatic,' 'No-Talent,' 'Dumbest Person' in TV og:description: "He's sitting there like a chained lunatic." og:url: https://time.com/4775633/donald-trump-stephen-colbert-cnn-msnbc-chris-cuomo/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltce547d7f05248f46/6988ccdf0b72e356866edbc4/donald-trump-after-hours-facebook.jpg?branch=production&width=1120&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1120 og:image:height: 630 og:image:alt: donald-trump-after-hours-facebook og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: President Trump Attacks 'Lunatic,' 'No-Talent,' 'Dumbest Person' in TV twitter:description: "He's sitting there like a chained lunatic." twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltce547d7f05248f46/6988ccdf0b72e356866edbc4/donald-trump-after-hours-facebook.jpg?branch=production&width=1120&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # President Trump Attacks 'Lunatic,' 'No-Talent,' 'Dumbest Person' in TV > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=1017a410-afab-4d1d-aecd-21b29c254443&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: After Hours with President Trump [Watch (HLS stream): After Hours with President Trump](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/arT4wYAV.m3u8) (1:18)  _Published 2017-05-11. Trump meets with three TIME reporters/editors in the evening and shows them his new home._ by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) and [Michael Scherer](https://time.com/author/michael-scherer/) May 11, 2017 3:28 PM UTC by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) and [Michael Scherer](https://time.com/author/michael-scherer/) May 11, 2017 3:28 PM UTC President Donald Trump says he thinks CNN’s Chris Cuomo looks like a “chained lunatic” on television. CNN’s Don Lemon is “perhaps the dumbest person in broadcasting” and CBS _Late Show_ host Stephen Colbert is a “no-talent guy” who talks “filthy.” Those were just some of the comments Trump offered over dinner Monday night when asked about the media he consumes as President of the United States. But he did little to hide his frustration, explaining that he had been surprised that the journalistic criticism had gotten worse after the campaign. He also said he had been working on tuning out news that is critical of him. “I’ve been able to do something that I never thought I had the ability to do. I’ve been able not to watch or read things that aren’t pleasant,” he said, maintaining that he no longer watches CNN or MSNBC. “And it keeps you young.” There was little doubt, however, that he remained acutely aware of what reporters and correspondents were saying about him. He has large flat-screen televisions set up in the Treaty Room in the White House residence and in his private dining room in the West Wing. He continues to have stacks of newspapers and magazines delivered to his office suite in the West Wing. “Washington _Post_, New York _Times_, they’re really, really dishonest,” he said, before directly addressing the TIME reporters he had invited for dinner. “You people are quite dishonest in all fairness.” He said he used to watch MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough but no longer does. He also claimed to have helped CNN president Jeff Zucker, an old friend and business colleague, get his job at the network. The one network he praised was Fox News, saying he watches their shows and is responsible for its ratings bump. Spokespeople for MSNBC and CBS said the networks had no comment on the president’s criticism. A CNN spokesperson said, “His comments are beneath the dignity of the office of the President.” Trump’s claims about CNN’s Zucker have been repeatedly [refuted](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/04/magazine/cnn-had-a-problem-donald-trump-solved-it.html) by the executives involved. Here’s an extended excerpt of his conversation with TIME: --- > “” --- Trump also brought up _The Late Show_ host Stephen Colbert’s [blistering and crude May 1 monologue](http://fortune.com/2017/05/06/stephen-colbert-donald-trump-fcc/), in which the comedian delivered an oral-sex joke about the president and Russian President Vladimir Putin: --- > “” --- ## Transcript My name is Zeke Miller. I'm a white house correspondent for Time magazine. On the evening of May 8th, I went to the White House to interview the President of the United States and have dinner with him along with Time Washington bureau chief Michael Scherer. and Time magazine editor Nancy Gibbs. The president was obviously trying to put on a show for us. It was choreographed. There was a whole bunch of stage direction. It started in the oval office. He took us behind the scenes Into his private study or room where he does a lot of his work during the day. We then walked into the executive mansion. He rode in the elevator. We thought he was going to go to the first floor. Instead, he took us up to the second floor, the private residence. Secret service doesn't allow most photographs. In these resident's levels and we were essentially not permitted to take photo's up there. No, I've interviewed the President, seven, eight, nine times, I've never seen him like that and I've never seen the White House like that. And this is a sort of unusual level of access for anyone, reporters included. It speaks to how the President likes to use the powers of [ MUSIC ] Pageantry to achieve these aims, they certainly do get people a little bit off guard and there's an element you are walking through history and he likes to try to use that to his advantage. 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