Megyn Kelly Backs Trump NBC News Walk Out: Conservative Commentator Says Prez Was Right to End Interview with 'Rude' Kristen Welker
Megyn Kelly has defended Donald Trump for walking out of his Meet The Press chat, saying his interviewer Kristen Welker was to blame.
June 9 2026, Published 12:45 p.m. ET
Megyn Kelly has defended Donald Trump walking out of his Meet the Press interview with Kristen Welker, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The conservative commentator says she doesn't attach any "blame" to the president for cutting the chat early, which resulted in him being branded "unhinged" on social media.
'You Can't Just Keep Battering Him'
Trump had every right to walk out of tense exchange with Welker, Kelly declared.
And Kelly claims his interviewer should take the blame for the interview abruptly ending.
Speaking on her podcast, Kelly said: "I gotta be honest, I don't blame him.
"He sat there with her for quite some time, reportedly they were together for an hour, and the problem for Kristen Welker is she made that moment about Kristen Welker and about the vaunted reputation of NBC News."
Kelly continued: "When you are interviewing the President of the United States, especially Donald Trump, you're going to have to give him a little, you've got to give him something, there's a back and forth in an interview where you can't just keep battering him over the head at every turn.
"She's got to take every point on, because you know, otherwise you're an election denier."
Megyn Kelly Offers Kristen Welker Advice
Kelly accused Welker of trying to provoke Trump.
Trump stormed out of the exchange after Welker continued to press him about his claims surrounding the supposed theft of votes by the Democrats in California.
Kelly also detailed how Welker should've acted to de-escalate the situation. She stated: "Kristen Welker, you've undermined your own credibility…This is Trump's tactic. He's angry with you. Don't take the beat. You don't have to respond to the personal attack in the moment just because he makes it, whatever."
She continued, "Or maybe try to be playful, maybe try to lighten the mood, because you can see he's getting agitated, he's got a lot on his plate.
"The whole thing was very antagonistic, and so if you watch the whole thing, there was a lot of this prior to the moment we just showed you. And honestly, by the time he got up and walked, I didn't blame him, and I wasn't surprised. She was rude."
Kristen Welker Gets Support
Jake Tapper slammed Trump's actions, dubbing the president 'unhinged.'
Welker has yet to respond to Trump's abrupt exit, but did receive backing from contemporaries
CNN anchor Jake Tapper was among the first high-profile figures to weigh in on the confrontation, defending Welker while criticizing Trump's conduct.
"That is some wild, unhinged stuff from the President," Tapper wrote. "Welker is a good person and honest journalist and didn't deserve that, but more importantly, we have a president who constantly pushes conspiracy theories with zero evidence and can't respond when politely challenged on that."
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Trump's behavior towards female journalists has been questioned in wake of the interview.
California Governor Gavin Newsom also seized on the moment after Trump pivoted from discussing Iran and a proposed compensation fund to once again claiming the 2020 election was "rigged."
"The most severe case of California Derangement Syndrome we've ever seen," Newsom joked on social media.
Social media users also questioned Trump's repeated clashes with female journalists.
"How much longer are we going to tolerate the way Trump speaks to female reporters?" one user wrote as clips of the exchange spread online.
