A loud argument between two hosts of CNBC’s “Squawk Box” exploded on the air.
Joe Kernen and Andrew Ross Sorkin went at it on Wednesday while discussing the recent stock market rally. At one point, Sorkin accused Kernen of trying to “help your friend the president.”
Kernen had accused Sorkin of being overly pessimistic about the market. But Sorkin noted that “a lot of smart people” are asking how the market could be so high despite the impact of the coronavirus on the economy.
“Why are they smart?” Kernen asked. “Just because they can see what’s right in front of their nose? That doesn’t make them smart! It makes them not savvy about the market.”
But Sorkin replied: “Joe, you missed it 100% on the way down. And you missed 100,000 deaths.”
Kernen argued: “You panicked about the market, panicked about COVID, panicked about the ventilators, panicked about the PPE, panicked about ever going out again.”
Sorkin interrupted and accused him of trying to help the president.
“You didn’t panic about anything!” Sorkin said. “Joseph, 100,000 people died. And all you did was try to do was help your friend the president.
“That’s what you did every single morning on this show. You used and abused your position, Joe.”
“That’s totally unfair,” Kernen shot back. “I’m trying to help investors keep their cool. Keep their heads. And as it turned out, that’s what they should’ve done.”
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.