President Donald Trump ridiculed the “fake news media” on Thursday, calling them the “opposition party” as he continues to clash with the establishment media over their coverage of his administration.
“THE FAKE NEWS MEDIA IS THE OPPOSITION PARTY,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “It is very bad for our Great Country….BUT WE ARE WINNING!”
The description of the media as the “opposition party” was first coined by his former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, in an interview with the New York Times shortly after Trump was inaugurated.
“I want you to quote this,” Bannon said in January 2017. “The media here is the opposition party. They don’t understand this country. They still do not understand why Donald Trump is the president of the United States.”
The establishment media repeatedly criticize Trump for using the phrase “enemy of the people” to describe them, fearing he is inciting physical violence against their employees.
In an effort led by the Boston Globe, hundreds of newspapers around the country pledged to unite in criticism of the president for his rhetoric in editorials.
Trump ridiculed the Globe, noting that the paper was sold in 2013 for $1 after the New York Times bought it for $1.3 billion.
He assured the public he supported freedom of the press but criticized them for pushing “fake news.”
“There is nothing that I would want more for our Country than true FREEDOM OF THE PRESS,” he wrote. “The fact is that the Press is FREE to write and say anything it wants, but much of what it says is FAKE NEWS, pushing a political agenda or just plain trying to hurt people. HONESTY WINS!”:
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