Trump is back to attacking journalists days after the tragic shooting in Maryland.
Trump lashed out at the media on Friday, just days after a gunman killed five newspaper staffers at an Annapolis, Maryland, newspaper. It's a return to his default authoritarian rhetoric depicting the free press as a an enemy of the people and a danger.
His latest condemnation came in the context of a truly delusional tweet where he congratulated himself for not yet starting a war with North Korea.
"Many good conversations with North Korea-it is going well! In the meantime, no Rocket Launches or Nuclear Testing in 8 months. All of Asia is thrilled," he wrote. "Only the Opposition Party, which includes the Fake News, is complaining. If not for me, we would now be at War with North Korea!"
Last week, Wendi Winters, John McNamara, Robert Hiaasen, Rebecca Smith, and Gerald Fischman were killed at the Capital Gazette, after a gunman entered the Annapolis newsroom armed with a shotgun.
The attack marked the deadliest day for U.S. journalism since 9/11. And the massacre took place against the backdrop of Trump's continuous war on the free press, where he often refers to news organizations as “the enemy of the people” and encourages his supporters to verbally harass journalists.
Following the Maryland newsroom massacre, Trump offered up the bare minimum in terms of public condolences.
Later when leaving the White House, Trump pointedly refused to answer questions from reporters who wanted to ask him about the gun rampage.
“Can you please talk to us about the dead reporters in Annapolis?” several reporters called out. Another asked, “Do you have any words of condolences for the families, Mr. President?”
Behind the scenes, Trump reportedly seethed at how the Annapolis shooting played out.
"In Trump’s view, his critics in the media and Democrats would use the story of murdered journalists against him, to highlight his years-long push to delegitimize and bash those he perceived as the “enemy of the American people” at major news outlets," the Daily Beast reported.
Incredibly, the White House initially refused a request that American flags be flown at half-staff in honor of the slain journalists. After a public outcry, that decision was reversed.
Trump continues his dangerous, unprecedented White House attacks on journalists, even as they're being murdered for doing their jobs.
Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.
