Donald Trump has broken his silence after storming out of an interview with American news outlet NBC. The pre-recorded interaction with presenter Kristen Welker, which was telecast on Sunday’s (US time) ‘Meet The Press’ segment, caught the US president expanding his “fake news” rhetoric.

The 79-year-old commander-in-chief walked out 50 minutes into the interview, questioning the show presenter’s interview style. He blatantly branded Welker “corrupt or stupid,” as the journalist probed further, questioning the president about a wide range of topics, including the ongoing Iran war and election fraud claims.

“You’re crooked, and Meet the Press is crooked, and so is ABC and CBS and CNN. One-sided crooked networks. Let’s call it quits, because I’ve had enough,” he said, as he continued rebuking her in a sardonic tone, “Thank you, darling. Have a good time.”

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Why did Trump quit the NBC interview mid-way?

Justifying his meltdown during the televised interview, the POTUS later told reporters at an agricultural roundtable that he got a “bit angry” despite doing an “interview in the most beautiful barn” he’d ever seen.

He went on to say, “But it was raining. And it was with NBC fake news. And because it was raining, I got a little bit angry at them. I was not happy with them. But we had a good time.”

NBC’s Kristen Welker, for her part, also addressed the situation on social media.

“My interview with President Trump on Friday afternoon was unfortunately complicated by weather issues,” she wrote on X. “In spite of those challenges, we still had a substantial conversation on issues from the Iran war to the economy to the so-called “anti-weaponization” fund.”

As part of his years-old war on what he calls “fake news,” Trump continued his attacks on mainstream media organisations after the latest NBC interview, accusing them of being biased and spreading information against him.

In addition to NBC, outlets such as CNBC, CNN, The New York Times, and The Washington Post have repeatedly been subjected to the same fate. Moreover, Welker has previously faced the Donald Trump White House’s wrath in 2025 as well.

At the time, the NBC reporter’s name was publicly called out in an official press release titled “100 Days of Hoaxes: Cutting Through the Fake News,” for “peddling” a “Fake News hoax that the Trump Administration was deporting children.”

What were Trump and the NBC journalist talking about before he stormed out?

NBC’s Kristen Welker repeatedly challenged the president, as he continued to reiterate claims that both the current primary elections in California and the 2020 presidential election were “rigged.”

Turning to the California primary elections, Welker pointed out that Republicans were “doing well” in the race. However, Trump ultimately countered her, saying, “No, they’re not. They’re dropping fast because it’s a rigged election. Let me tell you, it’s four days and they aren’t even close to coming up with the…” Welker then highlighted, “That’s how they count the votes in California.”

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“Do you know why they’re doing that? Because they’re cheating on the election,” Trump went on.

When pressed to present evidence to substantiate the allegations, Trump said, “All I have to do is look, and I listen.”

He then subjected the journalist to lofty criticism by accusing her and the news site of being “crooked” like the elections he called “rigged,” as Welker emphasised, “that’s not evidence.”

Expanding the arguments tied to his “fake news” narrative, Trump added, “You play right into their hands with this stuff. You know that these elections are rigged. Your network knows that they’re rigged. Do you know that I won an election in a landslide and I got 94% bad press?”

Targeting the journalist’s “credibility,” Trump fumed about having to “travel all the way” and “sit in the rain” with her for an hour during the interview. For her part, Welker defended herself and the NBC team, saying that they also solely “travelled all the way to Wisconsin” for the interview.