Trump storms into ‘enemy territory’ on CNN to court skeptical voters

Former President Donald Trump is fishing for voters who have been duped by “fake news.”

He spent years blasting CNN as one of the biggest purveyors of bogus reporting and looking on adoringly as his loyal rallygoers chanted “CNN sucks!” But now Mr. Trump is teaming up with the cable news network for a town hall-style event Wednesday in the first-in-the-nation primary state of New Hampshire.

The foray into what Mr. Trump called “enemy territory” — he has not appeared on CNN since 2016 — is part of Mr. Trump’s concentrated effort to broaden his appeal with moderate-leaning voters who are not immersed in the right-wing echo chamber.

“I think the strategy is to make sure he has other media venues besides Fox lined up, and perhaps, this even puts pressure on Fox, as well,” said Dante Scala, a political science professor at the University of New Hampshire.

Mr. Scala said the platform gives him a chance to “normalize his candidacy.”

“If he’s on CNN, then GOP voters on the fence may think he has a shot at the general election,” he said.

---

SEE ALSO: AOC, others question whether CNN should proceed with Trump town hall

---

Aside from his legal troubles, the biggest challenge facing Mr. Trump in 2024 is convincing Republican primary voters he can do something he failed to do in 2020: beat President Biden.

For that to happen, Mr. Trump is going to have to woo back Republicans that ran away from him and capture more support from right-leaning independent voters, particularly in the suburbs of battleground states.

A Trump adviser said the former president decided to appear on CNN because he plans to be a “president for all Americans.”

“Going outside the traditional Republican comfort zone was key to President Trump’s success in 2016,” the adviser said. “Some other candidates are too afraid to take this step in their quest to defeat Joe Biden, and are afraid to do anything other than Fox News.”

Joshua Kalla, a professor at Yale University who has studied partisan television viewing habits, said CNN is giving Mr. Trump the opportunity to reach a new set of voters.

“People who watch Fox News or CNN/MSNBC do tend to exist in echo chambers for their TV news,” Mr. Kalla said in an email. “Very few people watch both Fox News and CNN/MSNBC.”

Mr. Kalla’s research showed 30% of Republicans watch at least an hour of Fox News per month, compared to 8% who watched CNN or MSNBC for the same amount of time.

“Trump going on CNN is a good way for him to reach a large, potentially persuadable audience, particularly for a general election,” Mr. Kalla said.

The town hall is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Wednesday at St. Anselm College in Manchester. Kaitlan Collins, an anchor of “CNN This Morning,” will moderate the event. Mr. Trump is slated to take questions from New Hampshire Republicans and undecided voters. 

The appearance opens a new chapter in Mr. Trump’s stormy relationship with CNN.

He had a series of fiery clashes with the network’s reporters and talking heads during his presidency, including with White House correspondent Jim Acosta whom Mr. Trump dismissed as a perpetual promoted of “fake news.”

Mr. Trump is now suggesting the network might have changed since Jeff Zucker resigned as president of CNN last year and Chris Licht took the reins.

“Going into the heart of Enemy territory, but maybe the Enemy is changing?” Mr. Trump said last week on TruthSocial, his social media platform.

Scott Jennings, a GOP strategist, said Mr. Trump also is looking to distance himself from both Mr. Biden and Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, both of whom have chosen to steer clear of the press.

“If you are thinking about running against DeSantis, who is going to take a nonengagement strategy with the press, then try to exploit that, right?” he said. “So if you are Trump, flooding the zone when other campaigns are trying to concede that space, that doesn’t sound like a dumb idea to me.”

Mr. Jennings said the Trump team likely believes they are on the path to winning the GOP nomination and are eager to show the electorate he is more vigorous than the 80-year-old Mr. Biden, who is facing scrutiny about his age and mental wherewithal.

Mr. Trump is 76.

“To me, it is less about the viewers and more about Trump trying to show he is still out there throwing fastballs,” he said.