'We're not talking about cage fighting': Testy Republican fumes at Trump election question
A CNN anchor was forced to explain that presidential elections and cage fights are different when she asked a Republican senator if former President Donald Trump would concede an election he lost.
Tensions mounted Monday afternoon between Brianna Keilar and Sen. Markwayne Mullin as the anchor repeatedly asked if his party's presidential nominee would honor election law and the Oklahoma senator grew sullen.
"Anytime I stepped into the ring or on the mat, I never thought about what would happen if I lose," Mullin said. "I stepped out there believing I was going to win, if I ever did lose, which I didn't, if I ever lost a fight—"
"We are not talking about cage fighting," Keilar snapped back. "We are talking about the presidential election."
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Mullin, a former Mixed Martial Arts fighter, had begun to grow frustrated after he claimed Vice President Kamala Harris had called Trump a Nazi only to be reminded repeatedly by Keilar "she does not do that."
Harris has called Trump a fascist and referenced Trump's one-time chief of staff retired Marine Gen. John Kelly recent comment that the former president praised Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler's generals in the White House.
Mullin pivoted to discuss his confidence that Oklahoma, and the nation, would elect Trump on Nov. 5 and dismiss Trump's comment Monday that he wanted to "hit" Michelle Obama with a character attack.
"He panders to the crowd a little bit," Mullin insisted. "He did not say anything bad about her... he's just talking to the crowd and engaging with them."
Mullin then attempted to brush off a question from Keilar: "Do you think he will concede that he lost?"
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"We are not talking about hypothetical questions because we are going to win the race," Mullin shot back.
"It is not hypothetical," retorted Keilar. "He lost before. Do you think he will concede?"
Mullin complained that in 2019 former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton referred to Trump an "illegitimate president," suggesting both Republicans and Democrats shared an equal propensity toward challenging results they did not like.
He was met with a fact-check about Trump's 2016 challenger from Keilar.
"Clinton conceded the race," she said. "Will Donald Trump concede if he loses?"
"There's no point of even talking about second place," Mullin replied. "We are going to come in first."