Conservative CNN Host Attacks Trump's 'Wall Porn' Base, Suggests They Have 'Sexual Fetish for a Cement Wall'

Conservative CNN host S.E. Cupp lashed out at President Donald Trump's apparent efforts to pander to hardline right-wing Republicans, which she dubbed the "wall porn crowd," with his push for increased border security.

"I consider myself a border hawk. I want strong borders," Cupp, who identifies as a Republican but has been a harsh critic of Trump, said on Saturday evening. "I think we need to make illegal immigration harder and legal immigration a little easier," she said.

"But there's this, what I call a wall porn crowd, people like [right-wing pundit] Ann Coulter and [GOP representative] Steve King who almost seem to have like a sexual fetish for a cement wall … a big beautiful erection of a wall."

"No pun intended," Cupp quipped. "Or maybe a little," she added with a laugh.

Many analysts have suggested that Trump partially shut down the government before Christmas after listening to the urgings of Ann Coulter, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh and other right-wing commentators. Coulter, who previously wrote a book entitled In Trump We Trust, has argued that the president won't be able to win re-election in 2020 if he doesn't fulfill his signature campaign promise to build a wall on the southern border between the United States and Mexico.

Fox News host and political analyst Juan Williams even suggested earlier this month that Coulter, Hannity and Limbaugh are the real people "running this government." He said: "they have forced this president into a trap."

Trump kept the government partially shutdown for 35 days, the longest closure in U.S. history, forcing 800,000 federal employees to work without pay or be temporarily furloughed. The move caused wide-reaching economic damage to the country, costing billions of dollars. The shutdown began when the president performed an about-turn and refused to sign a bipartisan stopgap budget in December that didn't include $5.7 billion in funding for his border wall. On Friday, however, Trump agreed to sign a three-week stopgap budget that was essentially the same and included no funding for the barrier, allowing the government to reopen as negotiations continue surrounding border security.

Coulter was quick to attack the president, labeling him "the biggest wimp ever to serve as President of the United States," as were many other hardline conservatives.

But Cupp dismissed the "wall porn" conservatives, arguing that the president is misguided to think he should follow their advice.

"I don't think the majority of Americans are that zealous about the wall," the CNN host pointed out. "I think they want stronger borders, and maybe even border fencing in some places." She argued that "Trump seems to govern for an audience of like one, or two."

The president appeared to respond to hardline wall supporters in a tweet on Friday, arguing his decision to reopen the government "was in no way a concession."

Trump has insisted that he will continue to push for the barrier as negotiations continue on Capitol Hill over the next few weeks. He has threatened another government shutdown and even declaring a national emergency if he doesn't get his way. But polls show the majority of Americans blame the president for the shutdown and disapprove of his governance. Republicans lawmakers have also expressed their strong dissatisfaction with the shutdown and its impact.