Michael Fanone: Why Is My Employer CNN Hosting A Town Hall For The Man Who Tried To Get Me Killed?

Michael Fanone writes for Rolling Stone:

I woke up last week to a text from my mother. Its contents hit me like a sucker punch. “CNN is hosting a town hall with Trump; Kaitlin Collins is moderating. WTF!!!” Then came confirmation, CNN will in fact host a town hall on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, in primetime. I can already hear the questions: And why shouldn’t they? Donald Trump is the clear Republican frontrunner for the presidency enjoying at least 70 percent of the Republican primary vote. Why wouldn’t it be appropriate for a network to have him on?

My response to those questions is simple: Twice-impeached former President Donald J. Trump lied countless times to the American people, most famously when he told us (and continues to tell us) that the 2020 presidential election was rigged and that he was the winner. Putting him onstage, having him answer questions like a normal candidate who didn’t get people killed in the process of trying to end the democracy he’s attempting to once again run, normalizes what Trump did.

Read the full column. As he noted in his piece, Fanone is now a paid contributor for CNN.