CNN Star Jake Tapper Branded a 'Pathetic Sycophant' for His Compliant Behavior Toward Donald Trump in Cringe Interview

CNN host Jake Tapper faced widespread social media backlash and was labeled a "sycophant" following his Sunday, July 12, phone interview with President Donald Trump on his show, State of the Union.

Critics and viewers lambasted Tapper's unusually compliant demeanor, contrasting it sharply with his historically aggressive approach to interviewing the president.

The octogenarian president, a frequent target of Tapper’s criticism, phoned into the show primarily to discuss the recent, sudden death of South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham.

Trump repeatedly refused to answer any pressing political questions, asserting he would not do so "out of respect" for Graham. Tapper immediately acquiesced to this restriction.

“Well, I know you don’t want to talk about any other issues out of respect for Lindsey Graham, but we would love to have you back sometime because I do have a lot of other questions for you, sir,” Tapper concluded.

“Sure, we’ll do that. We’ll do that,” Trump said, as Tapper replied: “Thank you for calling.”

During the call, Trump took a swipe at CNN's coverage, stating, "We're trying to have CNN go in a normal path, and we'll do that." Tapper ignored the implied threat to his network's independence and replied: "Well, I'm on a normal path right here, sir, and I appreciate your time."

“Good, you are,” Trump said. “OK, thanks a lot.”

The interview sparked an immediate wave of criticism online from media analysts and viewers.

Critics argued that Tapper's response sounded like an attempt to seek approval from the president, with many labeling him an "enabler" or "weasel.”

Observers expressed alarm at Trump's overt statement about attempting to control or direct the media's path, noting Tapper failed to challenge the comment objectively.

“Jake’s a pathetic sycophant. What a weasel,” quipped one.

“Tapper will go down in history as an enabler of the most corrupt and incompetent president in U.S. history. What a joke of a journalist. ‘I’m doing good, right, sir?’” snapped another.

“It’s not up to the president or any elected official to direct the ‘path’ any news organization follows. If CNN is buying into this, they need to close their doors, or officially merge with Fox,” noted another.

Trump attacked Tapper in an April Truth Social rant, accusing “Fake News CNN” of putting out “a knowingly false and dangerous statement pretending it came from the upper levels of the Iranian Government.”

Tapper replied, insisting he and his CNN colleagues would not capitulate to the unprecedented presidential pressure.

“Our job is not to try and please the president or only report the statements he likes. We‘re going to tell you what‘s going on, and we‘re going to keep doing that, no matter how many lies this administration or the Iranians tell,” Tapper dubiously promised.