Donald Trump may have made attacking CNN as synonymous with his brand as “You’re fired,” but one candidate striving to be his No. 2 seems to have a soft spot for the network.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum congratulated CNN for securing the first presidential debate during a State of the Union appearance on Sunday, telling guest moderator Kaitlan Collins that Thursday’s debate could be an opportunity for the network to ask “some tough questions.”
“I think this is a real opportunity for CNN, [the] most trusted name in news, to ask some tough questions,” Burgum said.
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His outpouring of adjectives for the network ran counter to the former president who repeatedly labeled the network as “fake news” during and after his presidency, potentially jeopardizing the governor’s chances of landing the vice presidential slot under the volatile Trump.
Trump repeatedly attacked the network during his presidency, even once revoking reporter Jim Acosta’s White House press pass due to his persistent questioning of him. Acosta eventually sued to get it back, but the former president’s attacks on the network never wavered.
Trump eventually returned to CNN’s airwaves in a widely panned town hall last year. Still, after the network faced scores of criticism for hosting a politician whose rhetoric dwells in falsehoods and authoritarianism, he doubled down on lambasting the network and its then-boss Chris Licht.
