New CNN CEO Chris Licht clearly sees a new young star in Collins, something CNN has been bereft of in recent years. And what better way to usher in CNN’s newest star than with CNN’s biggest ratings-getter of the past decade? When you view CNN’s decision to host Trump through this lens, the network’s business plan from the past and future comes into focus.

Still, that did not stop regular CNN contributors, who have been happy to take money from Jeff Zucker’s former operation, from banging the drum loudly against their company. Former Capitol Police officer and January 6 survivor Michael Fanone scorched his new employer in an opinion piece for Rolling Stone for the very idea of hosting the former president. Former congressman Adam Kinzinger, who lost his seat to redistricting by Democrats, blasted CNN on Twitter several times Wednesday night. Staffers were reportedly irate the morning after at their own network, and Brian Stelter’s replacement ombudsman Oliver Darcy used his now mostly forgotten about newsletter to express frustration.

The question I guess I have for all of them is: who did they think they were working for?

[Good question. And if they’re unhappy about the journalistic ethics of putting Trump on the air, then it’s an even *better* question. — Ed]