April 1, 2017

Why had I never seen this hilarious Trump interview with Connie Chung?

I'm seeing it today because it happened to come up in the sidebar at YouTube. He's 43 in this interview, and Connie Chung is incredibly annoying. Before we see the interview in this video, we see Trump talking about it with Joan Rivers:



"There was a level of unprofessionalism. It was like you're being interviewed by a child."

68 comments:

Ann Althouse said...

Comments should relate to this video.

I don't mean this to be a dumping ground for whatever Trump stories you want. Save it for the next open thread.

David said...

I think Chung is drunk during the interview.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

OOPS Sorry posted before I saw Althouse's admonitions. Hope my first post isn't violating the rule :-)

The video is interesting because it shows that Trump's feelings about the press haven't really changed much in the years. Although I do believe he has less care about how he expresses himself as he has gotten older. But...then his allotment of caring has diminished. I know mine has.

Also interesting how much more articulate the young Trump is than the older Trump. He is saying the same things, but just in a softer, kinder way. As we age, we realize we don't have time to pussyfoot around.

Lyle Smith said...

Paparazzo

Ann Althouse said...

Thanks, DBQ.

Sorry you put time into responding to the thing I took out (and then I had to take that out). Thanks for reacting to the video.

There's a new, separate post for general stuff on Trump.

Ann Althouse said...

Chung badgered him for not living in a 1-bedroom apartment to give his children a better life.

daskol said...

The notion that Trump created his populist message to appeal to America's current mood, or that Bannon forged the message for him opportunistically, are belied by these old Trump interviews (see also his Oprah and Larry King interviews from the late 80s). He's been saying the same stuff for decades, with the same disarming directness, if perhaps a little more gently before. America came to Trump, not the other way around.

traditionalguy said...

No wonder Trump understands the media types. They are mostly spoiled brat children trying to earn a reputation for being the one who killed a famous guy. And he handles them like everyday events.

The basic Never-Trumper memes are being repeated over and over: How dare you be a success. How dare you be a rich man. How dare you be a winner. How dare you give your children wealth.

How dare he be President and they are not?

traditionalguy said...

Chung could drive a man to drink and chain smoking if anyone could.

I would like to see Milo and Chung do a Bloggingheads.

FullMoon said...

Ann Althouse said... [hush]​[hide comment]

Chung badgered him for not living in a 1-bedroom apartment to give his children a better life.


She tried to characterize his accomplishments as being unimportant and as perhaps being detrimental to his kids.
In the end, she made a stupid facial expression to close the show.

BTW. I have said this before: In an Apprentice episode involving Joan Rivers and "Poker Annie", the task was to earn the most money. Poker Annie destroyed Joan Rivers. Trump came up with reasons to declare Joan the winner. Obviously wanted his friend to win.

Fernandinande said...

"TV personality" should be the first profession where everyone is replaced by a robot. They could put puppy faces on them.

William said...

Trump doesn't come across as very introspective. On the other hand, that deficit makes him look more like a man of action. He was good looking when younger. He looks effective and smart. That's subversive to the message that the media now wishes to get across. That's probably why you don't see previous interviews like this. It's easier to mock a fatter, older Donald Trump........All things considered, I'd prefer Donald Trump to Maury Povich as a father, but tastes vary widely in such matters.

Sprezzatura said...

No child, no child, you're the child, no, you're the child.

William said...

Maybe Maury could a show where Tiffany has a paternity test. Monster ratings.

Kate said...

Almost 30 years have passed and he still sounds exactly the same. How many of us could say that? The same shame-naming, the same language and attitude. I find it reassuring. He genuinely is that ... extreme, and he's succeeded with that personality.

Also, God, I miss Joan. If she were alive today, her commentary would be on fire.

I'm Full of Soup said...

Damn the media hated him even way back then. And Chung made herself look like a fool.

I'm Full of Soup said...

And what Kate said at 10:34AM.

Roughcoat said...

Where is Chung now? What's she doing? Retired? Wikipedia has no info about her present circumstances.

Luke Lea said...

I thought that was a very good interview and that Connie Chung did a great job drawing him out. Does it support the idea that Trump may be a victim of "malignant narcissism" as described in this report (which because it is behind a paywall I will quote at some length):

The question about President Donald Trump is no longer whether he will lie, he may not be able to help himself. He may be suffering from a personality disorder that compels him to fabricate, exaggerate and lie.

There is a gathering degree of evidence among respected clinicians that the president may be among the victims of malignant narcissism.

Dr. John Gartner, a respected specialist in mental disorders with a practice in Washington and New York, was willing to break an American Psychiatric Association rule against diagnosing without personal evaluation. He said “indisputable” proof exists to show the president has Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD).

A scientific blogger, Richard Greene, communications strategist and author of “Words that Shook the World,” interviewed a series of psychiatrists and psychologists and found that:

“Virtually every mental health professional I interviewed told me that they believed, with 100 percent certainty, that Mr. Trump satisfied the … criteria of this incurable illness and that, as a result, he is a serious danger to the country and the world.”

Thousands of psychiatrists have formed an organization, “Citizen Therapists Against Trump.”

The Mayo Clinic’s definition of NPD is: “If you have narcissistic personality disorder, you may come across as conceited, boastful or pretentious. You often monopolize conversations. You may belittle or look down on people you perceive as inferior. You may feel a sense of entitlement — and when you don’t receive special treatment, you may become impatient or angry. You may insist on having ‘the best’ of everything — for instance, the best car, athletic club or medical care.

“At the same time, you have trouble handling anything that may be perceived as criticism. You may have secret feelings of insecurity, shame, vulnerability and humiliation. To feel better, you may react with rage or contempt and try to belittle the other person to make yourself appear superior. Or you may feel depressed and moody because you fall short of perfection.”

Man in PA said...

Dust Bunny Queen said... "As we age, we realize we don't have time to pussyfoot around."

Very true! When you've seen the same nonsense over and over and over, you lose patience with it. Trump's message today is the same; it is just more to the point.

Michael K said...

"America came to Trump, not the other way around."

I agree although he may have decided he has everything he wants and now maybe it was time to pay back for his gifts.

I know the left hates the idea of rich men "giving back," although we have lots of examples. Andrew Carnegie and his libraries are only one example.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

The back-and-forth about what Trump has done for society is revealing. Chung basically says he has done nothing about society as a whole because his buildings are for rich people. Trump points out that those construction projects and hotels employ many ordinary people and Chung just dismisses that argument. Providing work for hard hats and desk clerks doesn't mean anything - why isn't he building more homeless shelters and giving money to liberal causes, like good rich people do? Trump points out that that he built the skating rink, and Chung says "that's a trifle." Would she say that about a rich person who donated works to MOMA or gave a bunch of money to an opera company? No, because those are diversions enjoyed by people in Chung's class, whereas any schmuck with a pair of skates can have fun skating.

daskol said...

It got to the point where he felt about the White House how he felt about the Plaza: was driving him crazy to watch someone else in it.

Mary Beth said...

"Some people can never be satisfied, Connie, perhaps you're one of those people."

She seems a bit thick. He talks about seeing a beautiful building and wanting to own it. She can't understand because she looks at buildings all of the time and doesn't want to own them. I bet she watched celebrities giving interviews to other people on TV and wanted those interviews to be hers.

She's like all of those really loud anti-Trump people who think that their opinions are facts.

daskol said...

This looks like a case of a rich man giving back, or trying to. Doesn't mean it's going to turn out well, but that sure looks like the story.

Harold Boxty said...

Daskol: You are wrong about his motivation for the White House. Go find his interview with Oprah on Youtube if you want to know why he ran for President.

As for Connie Chung, at least she wasn't as bad as Katie Couric.

daskol said...

boxty, I'm considering the Oprah interview, and this one. Drives him crazy, for decades now, to watch politicians cutting terrible deals, debasing the office and the building and the country.

madAsHell said...

Wow! I keep finding more reasons to be happy about my vote.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

"She seems a bit thick. He talks about seeing a beautiful building and wanting to own it. She can't understand because she looks at buildings all of the time and doesn't want to own them. I bet she watched celebrities giving interviews to other people on TV and wanted those interviews to be hers."

Exactly. Liberals think their own desires - for power, especially the power to tell people how to live and think -are noble and altruistic whereas the desire to own a building is just base greediness. Of course, we know network personalities are all living in one-bedroom apartments and eating ramen for dinner, aren't they?

Maybe she resented Trump because not only did he understand how capitalism works, but she sensed he was a more talented media personality than she was as well:

"In January 2006, Chung and Maury Povich began hosting a show titled Weekends with Maury and Connie on MSNBC. It was Chung's first appearance as a television host since 2003. The show was later canceled and aired its final episode on June 17, 2006. On this episode, Chung, dressed in a white evening gown and dancing atop a black piano, sang a parody to the tune of "Thanks for the Memory". Video clips of the bizarre, off-key farewell performance circulated on internet video sites. Connie herself commented, "All I want to be sure of is that viewers understood it was a giant self-parody. If anyone took it seriously, they really need to get a life."



Achilles said...

Connie Chung was a news "celebrity" on KOMO news in Seattle when I was young. She was a mediocrity with good skin. Like most leftists just not terribly bright.

JaimeRoberto said...

I wonder if he ever gave her that midlife crisis booty call.

Sebastian said...

Sure, Chung is annoying. But so are all MSM "journalists." It's all about keeping the audience of soap-opera women and old people who still watch TV "news."

Guildofcannonballs said...

Maybe you people can finally connect the dots: Trump (and I) can get satisfaction in sundry environs whereas the Chungs among us will never, ever be satisfied, with or without us.

Also, I have said for a long time "c'mon, you know" is Proggies best argument. Connie shows us.

Finally, we have stories and evidence the booze was vital at our founding, in fact in being able to contemplate the founding of, America, plus Churchill was a lush, so why in Hell focus on your brother and the negative when everything else is sunny funny money honey?

Sounds like alcohol phobia to me. Sad.

mockturtle said...

Connie Chung was a news "celebrity" on KOMO news in Seattle when I was young. She was a mediocrity with good skin. Like most leftists just not terribly bright.

You, too, are from Seattle, Achilles? There seems to be quite a contingent of us here.

mockturtle said...

To me, a great interview, like a good biography, doesn't only bring out the subject's weak points but his/her strong points, as well. Heaven knows, we all have both.

Jay Vogt said...

Petty sure I didn't see the interview first time around. Glad I could bail out of it this time. It might be because I have a head cold, but listening to Chung made my head hurt as did listening to Trump.

Miss Joan Rivers very much. What a world where she seems to be the most sentient. She deserves a tag here if for no other reason than she is most sane person in the video.

Jay Vogt said...

Oooooops, my bad. I see Joan Rivers is the FIRST tag. Appropriate.

I'll blame my confusion to the head cold.

Birches said...

Maybe Maury could a show where Tiffany has a paternity test. Monster ratings.

Ok, that was funny. Today, it seems a bit hypocritical to criticize Trump as the wife of Maury Pauvich. This might be the main reason why Connie Chung is no longer a reporter.

Michael K said...

"Connie Chung was a news "celebrity" on KOMO news in Seattle when I was young."

I remember her in LA at one time.

David said...

I still say she was drunk. Trump hates drunk.

Guildofcannonballs said...

Why Trump doesn't look at the 1986 New York Mets and say "that bunch of drunken, drugged up, obnoxious perverts won the Series, ergo vice is nice" is the real story.

MAX MCGEE TRUMP!! 7 catches for 138 yards and two TD's all drunk/hungover in the first Super Bowl.

Roy Lofquist said...

Starting about 2:18 Chung talks about his being a playboy, and fame. Trump replied that it happens to be good for what he does. It then segues into a melange of his ostentatious style, name on buildings, a mansion, ...

About 35 years ago I moved to a Manhattan and took an immediate, visceral dislike to Trump because of the bling. His name in gold on the tower, doormen dressed like palace guards. I came to realize that NYC is all about money. In the words of the prophet, "Money doesn't talk. It swears". No diamonds on your Rolex? Geddouda here, piker.

He built a business catering to snobs, but he knew it. He understands people. That's rare in these parlous times.

Ken B said...

This will sink her forever. She said Trump built his empire "so skillfully"! No-one in the media can live down praising Trump.

William said...

She's sufficiently critical of Trump. The problem is that Trump looks too good in this interview. The camera flattered him, and he appeared focused and balanced in his responses........There was a brief moment where SNL featured a more devastating parody of Hillary than of Trump. Baldwin stepped up to the plate and delivered a sufficiently hostile Trump impersonation, but they were behind the curve......Trump has been a public figure for a long time. I never thought of him as Presidential, but I never thought of him as evil either. Neither did the media. They used to present him as a sharp, rapacious business mogul. This current rendition of Trump as stupid and malicious and given to delusions is at variance with their previous edition. They haven't quite sold it yet, but give them time.

mockturtle said...

DBQ suggests: As we age, we realize we don't have time to pussyfoot around.

I guess that explains my mother's outspokenness [bordering on rudeness] in her old age.

Left Bank of the Charles said...

That thing Connie Chung did at the end, what was that? I see though that Trump had her back to judge the 2011 Miss Universe pageant. And we do now know how Ivanka turned out. I would score this as Trump wins, in the end.

Guildofcannonballs said...

Do you think a sober Mank wrote Charles Foster Kane and a sober Welles directed and played only eponymous? What does Trump think? C'mon, you know.


You are the weirdo, so embrace it and me if under 25 wanting our babies healthy and beautiful and more and you therefore are 123lbs. or so unless athlete parents then 156 will do below 5'8".

Dust Bunny Queen said...

DBQ suggests: As we age, we realize we don't have time to pussyfoot around.

I guess that explains my mother's outspokenness [bordering on rudeness] in her old age.

My father is developing dementia. It isn't bad, but it is obvious. One of the side effects is that he seems to have lost his "filter". That little voice you have in your head that says...."Hmmmm. Maybe you shouldn't say that!" Or that tells you not to blurt out every thought before examining if it is a good idea. Maybe not being demented but just being old enough to not care either :-D

His emotions are not as much in control as before and his verbal filter is decidedly broken. Kind of like being drunk all the time I suppose, as that IS when many people's little man, who is supposed to be sitting on your right shoulder whispering in your ear to STFU....has fallen off in a stupor of alcohol.

MadisonMan said...

Connie is terrible in this interview. That horrible rictus grin as she asks if he has gone through his mid-life crisis.

Guildofcannonballs said...


Althouse is robot.

Guildofcannonballs said...

What would us here now be unless Althouse is a robot?

Dumbassery?

Guildofcannonballs said...

Christ's sake Iris Dement was recently featured but always immortality understood by none other than fucking American Digest. The best.

rcocean said...

"Connie Chung was a news "celebrity" on KOMO news in Seattle"

There used to be an asshole news anchor in Seattle called Aaron Brown. He was pretentious, self-important shit who no one liked. They always teamed him up with Jean Enerson - who was very popular.

I was amazed when he became a National Anchor for ABC news. And not amazed when he got fired.

madAsHell said...

Connie Chung was a news "celebrity" on KOMO news in Seattle when I was young.

Seattle isn't included on her wiki page. I do remember Ruth Walsh, Bill Brubaker, and Bruce King at the sports desk in the late '70s, and early 80's. Oh, yeah.....Harry Wapler did the weather report.

You might be conflating her with the woman that married the former Governor Gary Locke. Mona Lee was a TV reporter on the local NBC affiliate.

madAsHell said...

Why are there so many Seattle people here?....and why weren't you at Lazlo's movie premiere??

Laslo Spatula said...

madAsHell said...
"Why are there so many Seattle people here?....and why weren't you at Lazlo's movie premiere??"

My theory is that people in Seattle realize the commonalities with Madison. Except Madison has less of a homeless problem, and seems slightly less passive-agressive. And is more White. So there is wish fulfillment amongst the commonalities: Madison is what they secretly wish Seattle to be, but with the Seattle landscape and some of the pretensions of Big City

As far as the movie: waiting for Althouse to post an overnight Cafe so I can put up the link. A good two-in-the-morning film. Have beer at the ready.

I am Laslo.

Laslo Spatula said...

"So there is wish fulfillment amongst the commonalities: Madison is what they secretly wish Seattle to be, but with the Seattle landscape and some of the pretensions of Big City."

I would love to see Althouse expound on this.

I am Laslo.

rcocean said...

"I do remember Ruth Walsh, Bill Brubaker, and Bruce King at the sports desk in the late '70s, and early 80's."

My parents loved Bill Brubaker. I remember KIRO's Wayne Reus too. "I don't like it, reverse it".

Bill said...

She is, after all, Mrs Maury Povich.

Dude1394 said...

Mark Cuban said... The best thing you can do for America is to work hard, get rich and hire a lot of people. Trump infinity, Chung 0.

Earnest Prole said...

"Secret liaisons and bedroom prowess"!

rcocean said...

I don't mean Wayne Reus but Wayne Cody - the mound of sound.

rcocean said...

Mrs Maury Povich - Good God. The poor thing.

Earnest Prole said...

Chung’s job is to reveal something interesting beneath the facade. Trump’s job is to be Trump. They both do a great job; I would call it a draw except that Chung was prescient about Trump’s looming midlife crises, which have yet to subside.

TheThinMan said...

When she was first on the news she was the only Asian, let alone Asian woman, doing it. The network was saying, "Look, we're breaking new ground, everybody!" So she became rich and famous by sheer luck, instead of by talent and hard work, and assumed that must be the case with everyone else. And because for years she only had to read a TelePrompTer she didn't have a clue about how to do an interview. She just makes a statement and when Trump tries to respond she cuts him off and repeats the statement. I'll admit, I couldn't get through more than two minutes of this cringe fest.

TheThinMan said...

When she was first on the news she was the only Asian, let alone Asian woman, doing it. The network was saying, "Look, we're breaking new ground, everybody!" So she became rich and famous by sheer luck, instead of by talent and hard work, and assumed that must be the case with everyone else. And because for years she only had to read a TelePrompTer she didn't have a clue about how to do an interview. She just makes a statement and when Trump tries to respond she cuts him off and repeats the statement. I'll admit, I couldn't get through more than two minutes of this cringe fest.

Rick said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Rick said...

exiledonmainstreet said...
The back-and-forth about what Trump has done for society is revealing. Chung basically says he has done nothing about society as a whole because his buildings are for rich people.


You can never have a decent interview when the interviewers are illiterate on the topic, but interviews are especially awful when they're illiterate but think they are extremely knowledgeable. Trump's housing for the rich not only creates jobs but also creates housing availability for the poor. With the Trump building attracting "the rich" those rich will not be competing for the apartments which already exist making them available to the near rich. The same effect will continue down through successive housing levels including those available to the poor.

Mistaken knowledge ruined the media, and they will never improve because the mistaken beliefs are central to their self-worth which they define by left wing advocacy.