After former President Donald Trump denied pledging never to "come back" to Minnesota if he lost it in 2020, KSTP news anchor Tom Hauser swiftly fact-checked him on live television.
Hauser reminded Trump of his previous promise to “never come back to Minnesota” if he lost the state to President Joe Biden in that year’s election.
He asked:
“I think at one point you vowed never to come back to Minnesota after you lost the state in 2020. Is this a signal that you think you have a realistic chance to win the state of Minnesota in 2024?”
Trump responded:
"Well, I never said I'd never come back. I never even thought of that. I thought I won [the state] in 2020 easily."
But KSTP had the receipts, as they cut to footage of Trump's appearance at a 2020 rally in the city of Duluth.
At the time, Trump did indeed say:
“If I lose Minnesota, I’m never coming back, I don’t care. I’m never coming back.”
Hauser also made clear that Trump lost the state by 7 points in 2020.
You can watch their exchange in the video below.
KSTP: I think at one point you vowed never to come back to Minnesota after you lost the state in 2020.
TRUMP: Well, I never said I'd never come back. I never even thought of that.
KSTP: *cuts to tape of Trump saying "if I lose Minnesota, I'm never coming back" at a rally* pic.twitter.com/XCm9wNb4bJ
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 17, 2024
Trump was called out for his latest lie.
"Dear Leader" Donald Trump: That awkward moment when you've lied so many times you forgot your own lies!🤦♂️
— Jürgen .. 🌎❤️ (@Jurgen80048425) May 17, 2024
Trump lost count of his lies.
— EssenViews (@essenviews) May 19, 2024
It’s amazing how blatantly he lies and his cult followers don’t care. Do they let their kids, wives, husbands and friends lie to them like that? What a pathetic existence
— Ritley (@RitleySammich) May 17, 2024
What an absolute joke this man is!
— Armand Hamouth (@AreMond2) May 17, 2024
Serial liar continues to lie. Shocker.
— Chris Strider (@stridinstrider) May 17, 2024
He's such a despicable liar. Everyone should be calling him on his lies. If only there was enough time because lying is all he does.
— 𝗅𝖾𝖾𝗂𝖺 ( leeia_randall on threads) (@hey_leia) May 17, 2024
Gotta LOVE local media holding trump to a standard the national media refuses to hold him. How hard is it to "play the tape" every time trump lies?
— Jim Johnson (@Jrj519Johnson) May 17, 2024
Pathological liers are incapable of keeping their lies straight.
— Barbara Hagen (@barbara_hagen) May 17, 2024
Hauser interviewed Trump the same day that Trump hosted the Republican Party of Minnesota's Lincoln Reagan Dinner at St. Paul's RiverCentre alongside House Majority Whip Representative Tom Emmer, who is Trump's campaign chair in the state.
During the dinner, he vowed to turn Minnesota red and claimed that if he wins the presidency, he will order the construction of an Iron Dome missile defense system over the country with "much of it being built in a place called Minnesota."
Trump criticized Minnesota's absentee and early voting processes, claiming it "gives them more time to cheat," despite there being no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the state.
The crowd burst into thunderous applause and gave him a standing ovation when he announced he would cut off funding to any school teaching critical race theory—graduate-level study that Republicans have falsely claimed is being taught in primary schools—or enforcing a vaccine mandate.
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