Appearing on CNN Saturday morning, a close adviser to President Donald Trump attempted to explain away the president's record low approval numbers by blaming the cable network.
Speaking with host Micheal Smerconish, Newsmax publisher Christopher Ruddy laid Trump's popularity woes on the doorstep of CNN.
Smerconish noted Trump's poor showing in the polls before asking Ruddy, "I see some signs of cracks in the armor, whether it's [Fox's] Charles Krauthammer, whether it's Shepherd Smith at Fox or whether it's a headline from Drudge. My question is: do you see any risk that the GOP media base abandons him?"
Ruddy turned the question back on CNN, saying he never saw them obsess over President Barack Obama's poll numbers.
“Michael, consider how incredible it is that this President has suffered the incredible attacks from your network and others and he’s still polling 40 percent,” Rudy complained.
As the CNN host explained that Obama's numbers didn't plummet in the first six months, the defensive Ruddy complained, “We’ve never had a president that’s suffered the attacks he’s suffered.”
Ruddy then acknowledged Trump's number could be better.
"President Trump figures out things quickly," Ruddy explained. "He's got a rock-solid Republican conservative base. I would encourage him -- and I've written on this -- to go more to the center. I think his success comes from his popularity."
Watch the video below via CNN:
