President Donald Trump issued sharp criticism of mainstream media outlets on July 22, accusing the Washington Post of making up sources for one of its stories about him.
“The Amazon Washington Post front-page story yesterday was total Fake News,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “They said ‘Advisors wrote new talking points and handed him reams of opposition research on the four Congresswomen.’ Now really, does that sound like me?”
“What advisors, there were no talking points except for those stated by me, & ’reams of paper' were never given to me. It is a made-up story meant to demean & belittle. The Post had no sources,” Trump added.
The president then noted that the Congresswomen—Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), who many media outlets have taken pains to support—have made a number of inflammatory comments about Israel and America.
“The facts remain the same, that we have 4 Radical Left Congresswomen who have said very bad things about Israel & our Country!” Trump wrote.
He then issued two additional missives attacking the press, taking aim at the clearly partisan reporting by some outlets.
“Mainstream Media is out of control. They constantly lie and cheat in order to get their Radical Left Democrat views out their for all to see. It has never been this bad. They have gone bonkers, & no longer care what is right or wrong. This large scale false reporting is sick!” he wrote.
“Fake News Equals the Enemy of the People!” he added.
Trump had previously criticized the Post story, writing that reporters cited “phony sources who do not exist.”
Reporters wrote in the story that it was “based on interviews with 26 White House aides, advisers, lawmakers and others involved in the response—most of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to share behind-the-scenes details.”
Only one person was quoted on the record regarding inside information about Trump—Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a close Trump ally.
Seung Min Kim, one of the reporters bylined on the piece, shared a tweet from colleague Aaron Blake, who attempted to rebut Trump’s claim that there were no talking points.
None of the reporters provided evidence rebutting Trump’s claim that they made up sources.
