One doesn’t need to be a political buff to know that Donald Trump is unfit to be the President of the United States. Between his xenophobic agendas, trivial temper tantrums, lack of diplomacy, and blatant disregard for marginalized communities, Trump is unqualified to manage a Twitter account much less lead the free world.
Although he’s not all that interested in the day-to-day responsibilities of being POTUS — he’d much rather golf with Kid Rock or feud with SNL — there is one thing he loves to obsess over: popularity. And it may just be the reason why he’s sitting in the White House right now.
Howard Stern discussed this theory in a special one-on-one interview with Anderson Cooper, which will be aired on CNN tonight. He told Cooper he has “no doubt” that Trump’s 2016 presidential candidacy was first conceived as a “publicity stunt” to boost ratings on his NBC show, The Apprentice.
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Stern cited “inside information” that Trump used presidential campaign rumors to fuel publicity for years, dating back to 1987 to promoteThe Art of the Deal. As Stern recounted to Cooper, “The Apprentice ratings were — were not what they were. NBC was not gonna give [Trump] a raise. And what’s a better way than to get NBC’s interest? ‘I’ll run for president, and I’ll get lots of press.’ And I think that’s what happened.”
The 65-year-old radio personality also revealed that if he had gone to the Republican National Convention to endorse Trump in 2016, as requested by the president, “I would be the head of the [Federal Communications Commission]… I could be on the Supreme Court. I think Donald would give me anything I’d asked.”
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Considering the 45th president flinches at the mere thought of feeling small or humiliated, Stern’s version of events isn’t so far fetched. What’s more, Stern probably knows Trump better than most radio/TV hosts. Both have a penchant for being outspoken, and Stern has repeatedly interviewed Trump on his own talk-show program.
“He was maybe one of the best top five guests of all time and why? He was wild,” Stern said on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert earlier this week. “I thought I was wild.”
Stern’s appearance on AC360 premieres tonight at 10:00 p.m. ET. Ahead of the airing, check out a preview clip over on CNN.com.
