Trump: Media Is 'Enemy of the American People'

Rant wins praise from Beijing
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 18, 2017 6:53 AM CST
Trump: Media Is 'Enemy of the American People'
President Trump walks down the steps of Air Force One as he arrives a Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Fla., Friday, Feb. 17, 2017. Trump is spending a third weekend in a row at his Mar-a-Lago estate.   (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

President Trump stepped up his attacks Friday on the news media, which he declared to be an "enemy of the American People." The Washington Post reports that afterTrump initially named the New York Times, NBC, and CNN and described them as "SICK," a revised tweet added ABC and CBS to the list and removed "SICK." The tweet—which came the day after Trump campaign websites and the GOP posted a "Mainstream Media Accountability Survey"—was condemned by journalists including Carl Bernstein, who told the New York Times reports that Trump is "demonstrating an authoritarian attitude and inclination that shows no understanding of the role of the free press."

In a follow-up tweet, Trump slammed the "FAKE MEDIA" for disagreeing with Rush Limbaugh's assessment of his Thursday press conference as one of the most effective he'd seen. Trump also visited a Boeing plant in South Carolina Friday before heading to Florida for the weekend, where he plans to hold a big rally Saturday, the AP reports. The Guardian reports that while critics attacked Trump's description of the media as an "enemy of the people" as language reminiscent of tyrants like Chairman Mao, his remarks were welcomed by Beijing. An editorial in the state-run Global Times described Trump as "less concerned" with human rights and said his "war with mainstream media makes it difficult for Trump to ally with the media" against China "on the ideological front." (More President Trump stories.)

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