Howard Stern: Trump Presidential Run Was A PR Stunt

Howard Stern

SiriusXM radio personality Howard Stern on Thursday doubled down on his theory that President Trump ran for president in 2016 in hopes of getting a better deal from NBC for his show "The Apprentice," and said he has inside information that confirms Trump’s motivation.

According to Fox News, Stern did not name his source but laid out what he said was Trump’s thinking.

He said that years ago, a public relations specialist floated the idea to Trump to get a rumor circulating that he was considering a White House run. It was around the time when he first released, "The Art of the Deal." The scheme worked, Stern said, and Trump's popularity swelled and so did book sales. Stern said the scheme was so successful, that Tump used it again for his second book, “The Art of the Comeback.”

"In the last election, “The Apprentice” ratings were not what they were; NBC was not going to give him a raise, and what’s a better way than to get NBC’s interest? ‘I’ll run for president, get lots of press,' and I think that’s what happened.”



Stern also theorized Thursday in the CNN interview that Trump has father issues and has likely been traumatized by his childhood. The host said the president would likely benefit from psychotherapy.

“I wish he would go into psychotherapy,” Stern told CNN’s Anderson Cooper. “I would be so proud of him, and he would flourish.”