Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth openly expressed his impatience for billionaire David Ellison to take over CNN last week, and the admission stunned John Oliver. It also made the HBO host cringe — a lot.

While addressing the press, Hegseth complained about the coverage of the war Trump has waged in Iran. He was particularly bothered by reports that the administration didn’t plan for impact on the Strait of Hormuz, which has led to a spike in gas prices for Americans. Hegseth angrily called CNN’s reporting “unserious” and said “The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better.”

“Wow, that is not good!” Oliver said, watching the clip on Sunday. “‘I can’t wait until the billionaire sympathetic to this administration takes over the news’ is a little like your mom saying ‘When you were conceived, your dad came harder than ever before.'”

“Even if you thought that was the case, your ability to make it through the day really depends on never hearing those words!” Oliver added.

Indeed, it appears as though the Ellisons will be taking over CNN, as the network will be included in Paramount’s purchase of Warner Bros. CEO David Ellison told CNBC that CNN would maintain “editorial independence,” despite the Ellisons’ friendship with the president, and the fact that CNN has long been a target of the administration.

Meanwhile, actual CNN staffers have expressed anxiety. One staffer told TheWrap that “people think it could be the end of CNN.” Their concerns come after Ellison appointed Free Press cofounder Bari Weiss — whose first major blowback came when she pulled a story on the Trump administration’s deportations — to reshape CBS News.

John Oliver himself also faces uncertainty under a Paramount-WBD merger, as HBO and HBO Max are currently owned by Warner Bros. Upon hearing the news of the Ellisons’ winning bid, Oliver asked “How the f–k do I get out of this?”

The latest episode of “Last Week Tonight” with John Oliver is now streaming on HBO Max.

The post John Oliver Cringes at Pete Hegseth Saying He Can’t Wait for David Ellison to Take Over CNN: ‘Wow, That Is Not Good’ appeared first on TheWrap.