CNN Correspondent Uses Last Day At Network To Send Message On Trump

Ben Blanchet Fri, September 2, 2022 

CNN White House correspondent John Harwood spent his last hours at the network declaring there is truth to the “threat to democracy” President Joe Biden outlined in his primetime speech on Thursday.

Harwood, who has been the White House correspondent with the network since February 2021, tweeted that Friday would be his last day.

He reportedly knew last month that Friday would be his last day despite two years remaining in his contract at the network, a source close to the departure told Press Watch’s Dan Froomkin.

The announcement came less than two hours after Harwood said the core point of Biden’s speech targeting “MAGA Republicans” is “true.”

“Now, that’s something that’s not easy for us – as journalists – to say. We’re brought up to believe there’s two different political parties with different points of view and we don’t take sides in honest disagreements between them,” Harwood said.

“But that’s not what we’re talking about. These are not honest disagreements,” he said.

You can watch Harwood’s remarks, including his take that the GOP is “led by a dishonest demagogue,” below.

A CNN spokesperson, in a statement, told The Hollywood Reporter that they wish him the best and appreciate his work covering the White House. It’s unclear what caused Harwood’s departure on Friday.

Harwood’s departure comes less than a month after “Reliable Sources” host Brian Stelter left the network.

The departure appeared to be due to a strategy by CNN’s new chairman and CEO Chris Licht and Warner Bros. Discovery head David Zaslav to muffle politically “confrontational” content at the network, the Associated Press reported.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.