Top takeaways from Trump's contentious, rainy 'Meet the Press' interview

WASHINGTON − President Donald Trump abruptly ended a contentious ‒ and rainy ‒ interview with NBC's "Meet the Press" after he was challenged for saying without evidence that California's elections are rigged.

Trump also defended a controversial $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund despite his administration publicly abandoning the plan, and warned the United States will remove Iran's highly enriched uranium "militarily very harshly” if its leaders don't agree to dispose of the material in the ongoing war.

Here are top takeaways from Trump's interview with "Meet the Press" host Kristen Welker, which aired Sunday, June 7.

Trump walks out of interview

Trump cut the interview short after the topic turned to California's slow counting of ballots in last week's primary elections, which has delayed final results in the state's governor race and Los Angeles mayoral election, among other contests.

Trump said the "elections are rigged" by Democrats and accused California election officials of being "crooked," echoing the same baseless allegations he's made about his 2020 presidential election loss.

California election officials are still counting mail-in ballots, which skew more toward Democrats than votes cast on Election Day. As a result, Democratic candidates have improved their vote tallies as the mail-in ballots are counted.

"You're either crooked or you're stupid. You play right into their hands with this stuff. You know that these elections are rigged," Trump told Welker, calling the United States a "third-world country" when it comes to elections.

"Your elections are crooked and you're crooked, and 'Meet the Press' is crooked," Trump continued. "You're a one-sided, crooked network. Sorry. Let's call it quits because I've had enough. Thank you, darling. Have a good time."

Trump removed the microphone attached to his suit jacket.

"Mr. President, let's – please, I traveled all the way to Wisconsin," Welker said.

"I sat in the rain with you for an hour," Trump replied before getting out of his chair.

Loud rain creates delays throughout interview

Rain could be heard loudly hitting the metal roof of the building where Welker and Trump sat down, a disturbance that seemed to annoy the president.

The interview took place Friday, June 5, inside a barn at Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, where Trump was visiting to hold a roundtable discussion with farmers.

Trump remarked on the rain multiple times. "Is that wind or what?" Trump said at one point when the rain became particularly loud. "What is that?"

Welker, during another moment, said, "As we're having this conversation, we can hear a lot of rain."

"No, a lot of rain," Trump interjectected.

'I'd pay them': Trump still supports anti-weaponization fund

Following bipartisan pushback, the Trump administration retreated from plans to set up a $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund that could have provided payments to individuals who alleged they had been unfairly treated by prior administrations.

Yet Trump made clear in the interview with "Meet the Press" that he still supports the idea and would not rule out taxpayer dollars going to individuals who assaulted police officers during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

When asked directly if those who attacked police would be eligible for payments, Trump said, "I wouldn't be inclined to say so, but I have to see it," adding that a panel would make the decisions on a case-by-case basis.

"People have been hurt so badly by radical left lunatics that worked for the Biden administration and Sleepy Joe. They're vicious. They're violent, what they did to people," Trump said. "And of course they went after me more than anybody else.

"If it was up to me, I'd pay them the kind of money that they deserve," the president added. "People have been destroyed. Lives have been destroyed."

Trump's anti-weaponization fund was widely panned by Democrats and raised alarm among some Republicans over the potential for money to go to Jan. 6 rioters who assaulted police officers. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told members of Congress on June 2 the Justice Department is "not moving forward with the fund, period."

Trump, however, hasn't changed his opinion.

"Personally, I think the weaponization fund is a great idea, and so do many other Republicans," Trump said. "You have to get it approved. If they get it approved, that's great. If they don't get it approved, I'd be disappointed."

Trump says US will remove uranium with or without a deal

Trump said the United States would work with Iran to retrieve its highly enriched uranium if he secures a deal to end the war in Iran ‒ or else, he warned, America would use military force to remove the material.

"If we make a deal now we're friendly, we'll all go together. It'll be our equipment. We'll take it out and destroy it, whether it's onsite or whether we take it offsite," the president said.

"If we don't make a deal, then we're going to take them out militarily very harshly," Trump said, referring to enriched uranium that can be used to build a nuclear weapon.

Iran's nuclear program and possession of uranium remain sticking points in U.S. negotiations with Iran. Trump has repeatedly teased he's close to a deal, but an agreement has failed to materialize. Iran has publicly said its rights to uranium enrichment are not negotiable in talks.

Trump said he would renew attacks on Iran if he didn't think negotiations were progressing, but said he's satisfied with the talks.

"My red line would be if I think I wasn't going to make a deal, or if I wasn't going to make a deal fast enough," Trump said when asked what would make him restart military action. "We're having very good negotiations with the people that are leading the country now."

Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.