CNN anchor Jim Acosta abruptly ended an interview with Corey Lewandowski Wednesday after the longtime political adviser to Donald Trump repeatedly mispronounced Kamala Harris’ name.
Lewandowski, who appeared on CNN Newsroom, mispronounced Vice President Harris’ name throughout the interview, a tactic used by several MAGA insiders and Trump himself, despite Acosta’s multiple attempts to correct the conservative political strategist.
“Corey, you’ve been in this business a long time. I think you’re a mature grown-up. It’s Ka-ma-la Harris. Can you just say Kamala?” the CNN anchor asked, to which Lewandowski refused.
“Jim, can you admit that 13,099 murderers came into this country?” the Trump aide shot back, incorrectly citing a statistic about the number of noncitizens convicted of murder in the U.S., before Acosta cut him off, and ended the interview.
“I appreciate you coming on,” the anchor said unenthusiastically. “Maybe we’ll have you back.”
The pair’s heated exchange began at the onset of Lewandowski’s appearance on the show as Acosta challenged him on false claims about several topics including Haitian migrants eating pets and the 2020 election made by both the former president and JD Vance.
In 2016, Lewandowski was fired by Trump’s campaign after being arrested for allegedly grabbing and bruising the arm of a reporter. However, those charges were dropped due to insufficient evidence.
