Halfway through the first Democrat primary debate on Wednesday night, there were noticeable mic issues, which forced moderator Chuck Todd to cut to commercial break. The disruption was quickly pounced on by President Donald Trump, who blasted NBC and MSNBC for their “unprofessional” snafu.
The issues started when NBC’s Todd asked the Democrat candidates about their position and plans regarding gun control. Hearing voices in the background, the candidates remarked about their mics being on, according to CNN.
“Yeah, everybody’s mics are on,” Todd told the candidates, later adding, “I think we had a little mic issue.”
The NBC host then went forward with his question, but the technical issues continued. Apparently, according to Todd, his colleagues backstage had not yet turned off their mics, CNN reported. He quickly threw to commercial so the error could be fixed.
Within moments, President Trump took to Twitter to blast the “fake news” networks.
“[NBC News] and [MSNBC] should be ashamed of themselves for having such a horrible technical breakdown in the middle of the debate,” the president posted. “Truly unprofessional and only worthy of a FAKE NEWS Organization, which they are!”
Last week, Trump said he planned on live-tweeting the first round of 2020 Democratic primary debates, according to The Wall Street Journal. As noted by The Daily Wire, the move was considered “controversial among Trump’s aides, with some strategists claiming that it would be better for the president if the Democrats, who will debate in two shifts over two nights, were allowed to attack each other without the president as a distraction.”
Trump has seemingly found some middle ground, blasting the “fake news” networks and calling the entire debate “boring,” while generally backing off calling out any individual candidates.