On CNN last night, Donald Trump's unhinged campaign spokeswoman Katrina Pierson appeared on "The Lead with Jake Tapper" in order to contest Florida Senator Marco Rubio's presidential eligibility -- only to find herself outnumbered and outgunned by the host and another guest, conservative columnist S.E. Cupp.
Tapper explained that two weeks ago Trump had told him that he didn't question Rubio's citizenship, because as Trump said in a the clip from that interview, "Rubio was born here." Tapper then asked Pierson if this sudden desire to question his eligibility is simply predicated by "Rubio's rise in the polls."
"With regard to Senator Rubio," she replied, "more information changes things. Mr. Trump says that 'I don't know, he was born in Florida,' but is he a naturalized citizen?" The charge that "more information" has come to light is a strange one, given that Rubio covered all these issues in his aptly titled memoir, "An American Son," back in 2013.
"The question here is," Pierson continued, clearly worried about the latest perceived threat to Trump's ascendancy, "is he a naturalized citizen? We know that his parents were not citizens at the time, and that makes a huge difference with regards to eligibility."
"It actually doesn't," Tapper replied as Cupp could be heard audibly laughing off-frame. "If you're born in the U.S., you're a natural-born citizen -- that's pretty much just the law."
"That is the 'anchor baby' law!" Pierson shouted from off-camera, while Cupp explained that "the Trump campaign is trying to 'otherize' other candidates when they are surging -- they did that with Ted Cruz, a Cuban-American; and Ben Carson, an African-American, with his religion; and now that Rubio is rising in the polls, Trump's trying to communicate that Rubio is someone to be afraid."
"To a very small group of voters," Cupp continued, "all of the problems in the world and all of their personal problems are the result of people who don’t look like them. It’s really sad that that’s been catching on anywhere, and it’s sad and intellectually dishonest that Trump keeps trying to assert these narratives about Cruz, Carson, now Rubio. But ultimately, I think most people know and believe that Marco Rubio is eligible to run for president."
"That's absolutely ridiculous," Pierson said. "Trying to make this about race is absurd."
"You should tell your boss that," Cupp replied.
Watch the entire interview below via CNN.
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