CNN’s Anderson Cooper clashed with former GOP Gov. Chris Sununu on Tuesday over the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) findings, as the CNN host accused Sununu of putting words in his mouth.
“It’s 23 days in here, guys, 23 days. You’re talking about 2.3 billion that was saved last year. These guys are saving 2.3 billion a day,” Sununu said after praising President Donald Trump and Elon Musk for transparency. “It’s all going to come because what they also said was, if we have to go to Congress, we’ll go to Congress. We’ll show where it is.”
Musk, the head of DOGE, has been focused on determining areas of federal funding waste. Musk spoke to reporters from the Oval Office on Tuesday and emphasized cutting federal spending was “essential.”
“He’s giving very specific things, but he’s not actually giving any evidence of that,” Cooper pushed back. “But some of the details that have come out like the $59 million spent on luxury hotels. It’s actually not.”
CNN’s Anderson Cooper clashes with former GOP Gov. Chris Sununu during an appearance on CNN on Tuesday. (Screenshot/CNN)
PRESIDENT TRUMP PREDICTS ELON MUSK WILL FIND ‘HUNDRED OF BILLIONS’ IN WASTE IN NEXT DOGE DIRECTIVES
“You’re talking about the FEMA money that was abused for migrants. That was FEMA money for migrants. That’s okay now?” Sununu shot back.
Cooper said he didn’t think it was okay and told Sununu, “Don’t put words in my mouth.”
The former New Hampshire governor asked Cooper if he would stop that process.
“Don’t be a d–k. What I’m saying is the portrayal by him is just not factually accurate. He’s talking about luxury hotels,” he said, shaking his head.
Elon Musk speaks as President Donald Trump looks on in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on February 11, 2025. (JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
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Alyssa Farah Griffin, a CNN commentator and co-host of “The View,” interjected and said, “I think the issue, too, is these are congressionally appropriated funds. I think you and I, as conservatives, could look for a lot of things in the federal budget we would be more than happy to see done away with. But I think that there have been things that have been presented as one thing and then turn out to be something very different.”
Later in the show, Cooper apologized to Sununu.
“I was mean, I was rude to you,” Cooper said, surprising the GOP governor. “I don’t know why I said that.”
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“Are you kidding?” Sununu responded. “I grew up with seven brothers and sisters, and I’m a Sununu.”
