Trump: Schwarzenegger fired from ‘Apprentice’ for ‘pathetic’ ratings

Phone tapping allegations weren’t the only thing President Trump was tweeting on Saturday.

In a tweet, he said his newly departed “Celebrity Apprentice� successor Arnold Schwarzenegger was actually fired from the NBC reality competition.

“Arnold Schwarzenegger isn’t voluntarily leaving the Apprentice, he was fired by his bad (pathetic) ratings, not by me. Sad end to great show,� Trump tweeted.

Schwarzenegger didn’t let the president’s tweet go unnoticed, responding on Saturday with: “You should think about hiring a new joke writer and a fact checker.�

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The former California governor announced his departure from the series on Friday and cited the president’s continued association with the series for its flagging ratings

“When people found out Trump was still involved as executive producer and was still receiving money from the show, then half the people [started] boycotting it,� he told Empire magazine.

“I loved every second of working with NBC and [series creator] Mark Burnett,� the former California governor said in a statement. “I would absolutely work with all of them again on a show that doesn’t have this baggage.�

The first post-Trump iteration of the series debuted on Jan. 2, just weeks before the reality TV star was inaugurated as president. But the premiere garnered just under 5 million viewers. Trump certainly took notice, blasting the new host during a prayer breakfast event in February and saying that the ratings had “been a total disaster.�

By the time the season finale aired Feb. 13, the show finished last in its time slot among four major broadcast networks.

NBC has not yet revealed whether the show will be renewed for another season.

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