Fox’s Stuart Varney just wouldn’t take no for an answer from Meghan McCain as he pushed her and pushed her to justify Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski’s thuggish behavior toward reporter Michelle Fields.

McCain said she wants candidates to get back to focusing on events in the news, such as the recent terrorist attacks. “I’m so sick of talking about this tabloid reality show,” she said near the beginning of the discussion.

But Varney ignored her wishes and began prodding her to help him defend Lewandowski. Their exchange speaks for itself.

VARNEY: Yesterday, when Corey Lewandowski was charged with a simple battery because he grabbed the arm of a reporter, who was in fact trying to get to Trump and touched Trump, the anti-Trump people went ballistic: "This is typical of the violence that you get from Donald Trump, et cetera, et cetera." Typically, "This anti-female attitude" and all the rest of it.

Do you think that was battery? I mean in the legalistic sense, yes, it was battery. When I say that word "battery," I mean something completely different.

MCCAIN: Can I ask you, do you ever think it’s right for a man to put his hands on a woman, ever? 

VARNEY: If she is approaching a presidential candidate and you’re doing something about security and you have to restrain that person who is touching the presidential candidate, yes, it’s legit. 

MCCAIN: It’s the job of the Secret Service though. It’s not the job of the campaign manager.

VARNEY:He was right there.

MCCAIN: If a man did that to me I’d probably press charges too. I don’t think a man should ever put his hands on woman under any circumstances. She has bruises. I choose to believe her. A lot of people don’t. There’s no reason for Michelle Fields to do this. It’s going to ruin her career. It looks like it’s ruining her life right now. She’s going through a lot. No women would put her self in this situation unless it actually happened. 

Finally, when Varney asked, "So, if the reporter had been a man…" McCain had had enough.

She fired back:

MCCAIN: This is very uncomfortable for me. It’s very uncomfortable, as a pundit, to be asked to go on television and asked if it’s OK for a man to put his hands on a woman. I grew up with the kind of family and the kind of father that it’s not OK. This is not OK. This shouldn’t be happening.

I wanna talk about ISIS. I want talk about the things that matter.  And this is what’s exhausting about this campaign. 

But Varney was too intent on defending Trump to care what McCain wanted: "But the anti-Trump people are making a field day out of this charge of battery," he continued.

McCain said she has been on the campaign trail with her father and has ever seen anything like this happen. "A campaign manager put his hands on a woman. And she had bruises to prove it. For me that’s inappropriate and I think she’s in the right to press charges," she reiterated. 

Varney was still not done defending Lewandowsk.

VARNEY: "Forgive me for pressing this, but if the reporter had been a man and Corey Lewandowsk had put his hands on his forearm..." 

MCCAIN: ...and he had bruises I think he should have pressed charges too.

VARNEY: and that would be battery?

MCCAIN: She has bruises on her arm. Did you not believe her? 

Suddenly, Varney wanted to change the subject.  

Now McCain wouldn’t let up. She asked again: Do you not believe her?

VARNEY: I don’t want to go into detail but if you ask me I will tell you. The bruises were here on her arm. The video shows that she was held here on her arm. (He indicated different places.)

I’m not saying she’s lying or anything else. I’m not saying that. But if you bring up the issue of the bruises I’m gonna answer it. 

No, he wasn’t saying that Fields lied, just that she wasn’t telling the truth.

Watch Varney’s blatant shilling for Trump and his complete disregard for his guest’s opinion, below, from the March 30 Varney & Co.