Megyn Kelly and Reagan Actor Say Trump Like Gipper In Key Ways While Admitting He Is Definitely ‘Not the Same Character’

Screenshot via The Megyn Kelly Show

Megyn Kelly and Reagan actor Dennis Quaid argued former President Donald Trump is similar in key ways to late President Ronald Reagan, though both admitted the two are very different characters.

Quaid joined Kelly on The Megyn Kelly Show to promote his new Reagan biopic, which is currently in theaters. The pair watched a famous clip of Reagan at a 1980 debate — which Reagan financed with his campaign money — where Reagan declared, “I am paying for this microphone!” as he and moderators disagreed about how many candidates could participate in the event. The moment is one of Reagan’s most well-known, and Kelly and Quaid argued it showed him as a political outsider, similar to Trump in 2016.

“I’ve also said I’m voting for Trump, but I’m not going to lie, Trump is not the same character as Ronald Reagan. You can stick with the marriage alone to see,” Kelly said.

“I’m totally with you on that one. The presentation is totally different and I think it reflects the times of which we’re in now. You couldn’t say a four letter word on television six years ago and now you can. You can say anything you want,” Quaid responded.

The actor, who recently came out in support of Trump, said he has “cringed” at some things Trump has said, but called his principles “very much the same as Reagan.” Quaid noted Trump would be entering a somewhat similar situation as Reagan if he’s elected in November, with hostages in the Middle East, tensions with Russia, and inflation concerns inside the United States.

“The thing about Trump, I’ve even cringed at some of the things that he says — but at the same time, I will say that the principles that Trump has are very much the same,” he said.

“That was my takeaway too because you start off kind of frustrated [in the movie],” Kelly said.

She called Reagan a “poster boy for goodness,” but argued both he and Trump have their complexities. Kelly compared Reagan speaking directly to the Soviet Union’s Mikhail Gorbachev to Trump meeting with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.

“You think, where is a leader like that? Well, he was more complex than that and Trump is more complex than that, but they do have a throughline of strength,” Kelly said.

Quaid called both men “very pragmatic” in their leadership styles.

Kelly asked Quaid what Reagan’s reaction would be the state of politics today, and the actor pulled out his Reagan voice from the film.

“Well, there we go again,” he said.

Watch above via The Megyn Kelly Show.

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