President Donald Trump returned to an old talking point on Wednesday by musing about taking away press credentials from news organizations that report negative stories about him, which he called “Fake News.”
Trump tweeted: “The Fake News is working overtime. Just reported that, despite the tremendous success we are having with the economy & all things else, 91% of the Network News about me is negative (Fake). Why do we work so hard in working with the media when it is corrupt? Take away credentials?”
Broadcast network coverage of Trump has consistently ranked as being around 90% negative, while Trump’s job approval has ranged from around 35% to a recent spike near 50%.
The majority of US citizens disapprove of many of Trump’s key issues, like his opposition to the Iran deal.
The Trump administration has revoked press credentials of reporters it didn’t like in the past, as have other administrations, but none have so openly attacked the media.
Revoking press credentials for news organizations means they cannot access the White House and events held there, greatly hobbling their ability to do business.
Trump particularly targets CNN, where one of its on-air personalities, Chris Cuomo, once said “I see being called ‘fake news’ as the equivalent of the n-word for journalists,” though he later apologized for the comparison.
But Trump has been linked to falsehoods of his own, and is frequently accused of misrepresenting the news or promoting fake stories.
Additionally, it’s been over one year since Trump held a solo press conference.
And when Tramp takes the right of free press, we will all click our heels, Raise our right hand and yell Seig Heil, Mien Fuhrer