During a speech to realtors on Friday, Donald Trump swung at the “fake news” and called “bullshit” on stories about his administration that are based on anonymous sources.
Earlier Friday, the president railed on Twitter against “fraudulent and highly inaccurate coverage of Iran,” all while simultaneously saying it could be a good thing if causes Tehran to become confused.
During a part of his speech in which he denied a conflict between him and his advisers on how to deal with Iran, Trump mocked media reports by remarking on how they rely on confidential sources.
“There is no source, the person doesn’t exist, the person’s not alive,” Trump said. “It’s bullshit.”
"It's bullshit," says Pres Trump, of news reports citing unnamed sources that say he's angry with some of his top advisors over Iran policy. But says "Pompeo's doing a great job. Bolton's doing a great job." Says "there is no source. The person's not alive." Audience cheers him. pic.twitter.com/1GJpuBVzz6 [1]
— Mark Knoller (@markknoller) May 17, 2019 [2]
But Maggie Haberman of The New York Times wasted little time calling out the president:
We can ask the officials in his White House who asked to be quoted anonymously just two days ago how they feel about it. https://t.co/KSyGk2KIuF [3]
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) May 17, 2019 [4]
News outlets often quote government officials who are granted anonymity to speak candidly without fear of retribution.
Just this week, an official from the Trump administration detailing its immigration plan did so on the condition they be referred to only as a senior administration official and not by their name.
Trump went on to deride journalists as “bad people,” said he had to rely on speeches and social media to disseminate his message and claimed he came up with the term “fake news.” While the term existed prior to Trump, the president frequently deploys the insult to ridicule unfavorable coverage.
WATCH:
He’s reaching into his greatest hits now. #Trump [5] has his audience rolling with his #BullShit [6] line! The man is out of his mind and the #GOP [7] @GOP [8] is just fine with that. Not me. He’s gone. pic.twitter.com/ehrMGsFs5w [9]
— Mike Connor (@michaelhconnor) May 17, 2019 [10]