Ted Cruz Goes Off the Rails as He Talks Over CNN Reporter Kaitlan Collins in Shocking Interview: Watch

Things got fiery between Senator Ted Cruz and CNN’s Kaitlan Collins during a tense exchange on The Source on Tuesday, September 6.

The two clashed over the death of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, who was killed earlier this month.

Cruz claimed the alleged gunman, Tyler Robinson, was motivated by his “leftist” beliefs. “We don’t have a motive yet, we don’t know yet, we’re still waiting,” Collins reminded him.

Cruz shot back with heavy sarcasm, saying, “We don’t have a motive yet? Really? That’s CNN’s position? He just happened to fire the gun in celebration.”

From there, the senator accused CNN of spreading “misinformation,” pointing to online messages between Robinson and his transgender partner, which included the chilling words: “Some hate can’t be negotiated out.”

Collins corrected him, emphasizing that investigators hadn’t determined an official reason behind the shooting.

“Senator, that’s not what I said. I said law enforcement hasn’t laid out a direct motive. They’ve laid out a lot of evidence here of the messages and what has been said,” the news correspondent said.

“They did not set a concrete motive of exactly what it was, they laid out every evidence that we know so far... it’s not misinformation, senator," she added.

But Cruz doubled down, insisting the suspect is “a left-wing activist who hated Charlie Kirk.”

The CNN host pushed back, clearly frustrated.

“Senator, with all due respect, you know exactly what I’m saying. I’m not arguing with you politically; I’m saying that law enforcement has not put a specific motive. You know that there’s a difference in what they’re putting in a legal argument than what you’re talking about," Collins vented.

Still, Cruz wouldn’t budge as Collins reminded him he was twisting her words.

“You’re putting a lot of statements that I did not say. We just laid out the facts in the opening of this show... and we just spoke to the deputy attorney general," she explained.

As the debate got more heated, Cruz continued pressing the narrative that this was “overwhelmingly” a “left-wing problem.”

He argued, “There is some violence on both sides, but it is the left that overwhelmingly celebrates this. There are deranged lunatics who attack people both right and left. But if you look at murders carried out for political agendas, they are overwhelmingly on the left.”

Collins cut in firmly, stating: “Senator, I don’t think that anyone should celebrate someone’s murder regardless of what that person believes in. If you celebrate it, I think that’s wrong and I think that’s evil and Senator Ted Cruz, I thank you for your time.”

Cruz laughed, but Collins shut it down, concluding, “Senator Ted Cruz, thanks for your time tonight.”

After the fiery on-air clash, Cruz took to X, writing: “We obviously know the assassin’s motive. He was a left-wing activist who hated Charlie Kirk.”

As previously reported, Robinson has been held without bail since his arrest on September 12, two days after Kirk was shot at Utah Valley University. The conservative figure was about 20 minutes into his speech when a bullet struck him from roughly 200 feet away.

Robinson, 22, showed little emotion when he appeared virtually in court on September 16 ahead of his arraignment. He faces the death penalty and has been charged with felony discharge of a firearm, obstruction of justice, witness tampering and more.

Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray told reporters, “I do not take this decision lightly, and it is a decision I have made independently as county attorney based solely on the available evidence and circumstances and nature of the crime.”