CNN's Gregory slams Trump's apologists: “There is no excuse for this kind of behavior, even if it is not illegal”

David Gregory on Paul Ryan and others defending Trump “by saying he's new to all of this”: “If he wants to practice at politics, he should have run for city council. He is president of the United States.”

From the June 9 edition of CNN's New Day:

Video file

DAVID GREGORY: This was a very damning day for the president of the United States. I think the testimony from [former FBI Director] Jim Comey was compelling. It opened himself up to criticism as well, which we'll get into. But overall, it was a real blow against this White House, against this president. And it only, I think, had the effect of widening the investigation around potential obstruction of justice for the special counsel to look into those areas where the president sought to insert himself or interfere with the investigation into [former national security adviser] Michael Flynn, if not the broader Russia investigation. So there'll be a lot of questions. There was cherry-picking on the part of the president's lawyer, things he liked about James Comey's testimony -- Jim Comey's testimony -- that he wasn't being investigated, but things he didn't like. He was trying to have it both ways. And in the end, this discussion we were just having about the House speaker, the president's defenders excusing the behavior by saying he's new to all of this, they're overlooking and apologizing for the most self-destructive part of this. That is, the president doesn't listen to anyone. He has a White House counsel. He has advisers, including an attorney general, who he ushered out of the room. There is no excuse. If he wants to practice at politics, he should have run for city council. He is president of the United States. There is no excuse for this kind of behavior, even if it is not illegal.

Previously:

CNN's John King: Republicans making excuses for Trump are “asking you ... to lower the bar for the acceptable conduct by a president”

BBC's Katty Kay: It's “a sign of how low the bar has fallen when we have to plead ignorance as the best possible excuse for the president”

Legal experts: Comey's testimony described serious misconduct by Trump including “abuse of power”