Category: Bullying

Donald Trump’s rhetorical style is straight out of middle school. He’s like an eighth-grade girl.

Trump admin tightens media access for federal scientists

The Trump administration is directing federal scientists in the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to get approval from the Department of the Interior, its parent agency, before speaking to reporters, according to the Los Angeles Times.

USGS employees interviewed by the L.A. Times said the policy is a departure from decades of past media practices that allowed scientists to quickly respond to media requests. The employees said that the new policy will significantly undermine this.

A spokesperson for Interior disputed this description of the policy to the L.A. Times, saying that “the characterization that there is any new policy or that it for some reason targets scientists is completely false.”

Deputy press secretary for the Department of the Interior, Faith Vander Voort, told the outlet that Interior had only asked the USGS public affairs office to follow 2012 media guidelines established under former President Obama.

The guidelines say Interior’s communications office must be notified ahead of some types of interviews but does not say that scientists must get approval before speaking with reporters as an internal email obtained by the L.A. Times indicates.

The employees said that they believe the new policies were established to control the voices of Interior employees. They believe the move is a part of larger efforts to quell discourse about climate change, which the agency has produced research on.

[The Hill]

Trump Suggests Negative Media Coverage of The North Korea Summit is ‘Almost Treasonous’

In an exclusive interview set to air Saturday night on TBN, former Arkansas governor and 2016 presidential candidate Mike Huckabeesat down with President Donald Trump.

In what will likely be a wide-ranging interview, part of the conversation was focused on Trump’s recent summit with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, which Trump insists was widely successful.

However, CNN supervising producer Steve Brusk flagged this portion of their exchange.

After telling Huckabee he and the North Korean dictator came to a “wonderful agreement,” Trump took the opportunity to blast “fake news.”

“It’s a shame that the fake news covers it the way they do,” Trump told Huckabee. “Honestly, it’s really, it’s almost treasonous you want to know the truth.”

This marks Trump’s fourth sit-down since the June 12 summit in Singapore. The president had previously spoken with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos, Fox News’ Sean Hannity, and Special Reportanchor Bret Baier.

[Mediaite]

Media

Trump Touts Mueller Poll Numbers ‘Plummeting’ While Watching Fox & Friends: ‘Rigged’ Witch Hunt!

President Trump this morning touted dropping poll numbers for special counsel Robert Mueller after watching Fox & Friends cover it.

Yes, the morning show today covered Mueller’s poll numbers, and the President subsequently tweeted about it:

[Mediaite]

Trump Claims Melania’s Jacket Was About ‘The Fake News Media’: She Knows ‘How Dishonest They Are’

Earlier today, First Lady Melania Trump was spotted wearing a jacketsaying “I DON’T REALLY CARE DO U” en route to visit detained migrant children. It was a curious choice and it’s unclear why she wore it in the first place, but as a spokeswoman for the First Lady insisted, there was no “hidden message.”

Well, no one apparently told the President:

Yes, President Trump is claiming that the First Lady’s jacket was reallya statement about the “Fake News Media,” tweeting, “Melania has learned how dishonest they are, and she truly no longer cares!”

So… there was a hidden message?

[Mediaite]

Trump: Democrats Have Created A ‘Massive Child Smuggling Industry’

President Donald Trump blamed human trafficking on Democrats’ immigration policies during a Cabinet meeting Thursday.

“We have come up with a lot of solutions but we have Democrats that don’t want to approve anything because that’s probably, they think, bad for the election that’s coming up,” he said. “Unfortunately, there are a lot of people suffering and that’s unfortunate.”

“My administration is also acting swiftly to address the illegal immigration crisis on the southern border,” he continued. “Loopholes and our immigration laws all supported by extremist open border Democrats. That’s what they are, extremist, open border Democrats.”

He then specifically named House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and (of course) Hillary Clinton as leading a “con job” on immigration by saying they wanted closed borders, and then that they wanted open ones.

“We’ve created –– they’ve created and they’ve let it happen, a massive child smuggling industry,” Trump insisted. “That’s exactly what it’s become. Traffickers, you think about this, human traffickers are making a fortune. It’s a disgrace.

“They’re the worst immigration laws in the history of the world,” he later said. “The whole world is laughing at the United States and they have been for years. These alien minors were separated and sent all the way up here alone. But they really came up with coyotes — do you know what a coyote is? Not good. These are not good people.”

“They were set up here with human traffickers because the Democrat-supported policies that have allowed this to happen,” he reiterated.

So, yeah, just FYI, Trump’s accusation is inaccurate as hell. Immigration policy is not the work of the Democrats. It is the result of failed policies across the aisle and over many years. Everyone agrees the immigration system is broken and no one knows entirely how to fix it. (Except Donald Trump, clearly.)  As for the specific people he calls out for flip-flopping, we’ll let you be the judge of what they have or haven’t done.

[Mediaite]

Trump reportedly tossed a Starburst toward Merkel during G7 summit

President Trump reportedly tossed a Starburst toward German Chancellor Angela Merkel during the G7 summit in Canada.

The candy diplomacy took place during a tense exchange that was caught in a memorable image of Trump with arms folded while surrounded by European allies, according to CBS News.

“Trump was sitting there with his arms crossed, clearly not liking the fact that they were ganging up on him,” Eurasia Group President Ian Bremmer said on “CBS This Morning.”

“He eventually agreed and said OK, he’ll sign it. And at that point, he stood up, put his hand in his pocket, his suit jacket pocket, and he took two Starburst candies out, threw them on the table and said to Merkel, ‘Here, Angela. Don’t say I never give you anything.’”

The Starburst outburst took place just before Trump boarded a plane to Singapore and proceeded to berate allies, including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

[New York Post]

Trump mocks ‘elites’ at campaign rally

President Trump mocked the elite class at a campaign rally in Duluth, Minnesota on Wednesday, saying he has a better apartment than they do.

“Why are they elite? I have a much better apartment than they do,” Trump told supporters.

“I’m smarter than they are. I became president and they didn’t. And I’m representing the best people on earth, the deplorables,” he continued, referring to the term his former opponent Hillary Clinton used to once describe his supporters during the 2016 presidential campaign.

The president was at the rally to support Republican candidate Pete Stauber, and was joined by Reps. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), Sean Duffy(R-Wis.), Tom Emmer (R-Minn.), and Rep. Jason Lewis (R-Minn.).

The rally came hours after the president signed an executive order intended to end family separations at the southern border, giving into bipartisan pressure to end the policy.

Trump invoked immigration at the rally, vowing to defend the U.S. border.

“I will always fight for an immigration system that defends our borders, and takes care of our sovereignty as a nation,” Trump said. “I will never sacrifice the safety and security of the American people.”

Trump also took an opportunity at the rally to slam the news media.

“So we’ve created 3.4 million new jobs since Election Day,” Trump told the crowd of supporters.

“And I’ve said before if I would have said that to you during the campaign, those very dishonest people back there, the fake news. Very dishonest.”

[The Hill]

Trump mocks protester at rally: ‘Was that a man or a woman?’

At least two protesters interrupted President Trump’s rally in Minnesota on Wednesday, with the president mocking one individual’s appearance.

The activists held up signs and disrupted the event minutes apart as the president railed against illegal immigration. Trump brushed aside each individual, telling them to “go home” and “say hello to Mommy.”

“Was that a man or a woman? Because he needs a haircut more than I do,” Trump said as the second protester was escorted out.

“I couldn’t tell,” Trump continued. “Needs a haircut.”

The crowd roared, and broke into a “USA” chant.

The president then transitioned back into criticisms of Democrats and the media, blaming each for the country’s immigration problems.

Wednesday night’s rally came hours after Trump signed an executive order to detain families apprehended at the border together. The decision came as a stark reversal after the president and his administration spent days claiming they could not address the practice of separating families.

The rally took place in Duluth, Minn., where he rallied support for Peter Stauber, a county commissioner and a retired police officer, who is running to represent the congressional district that contains Duluth.

After bringing Stauber on stage for brief remarks, the president launched into his usual list of talking points. He touted the economy, blamed Democrats for having weak positions on immigration and touted the results of his summit last week with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

[The Hill]

Rally crowd chants ‘CNN sucks’ after Trump rips media

The crowd at President Trump‘s Wednesday campaign rally in Duluth, Minn., erupted into chants of “CNN sucks” after the president ripped the news media.

“So we’ve created 3.4 million new jobs since Election Day,” Trump told the crowd of supporters.

“And I’ve said before if I would have said that to you during the campaign, those very dishonest people back there, the fake news. Very dishonest,” he continued to boos from the crowd.

“They would have said he’s exaggerating,” Trump said to chants of “CNN sucks.”

The White House has a very tense relationship with the press, which Trump has repeatedly dismissed as “fake news.”

The president was at the rally to support Republican candidate Pete Stauber, who shared the stage with the president for a short time.

“Like President Trump, I love this country. I love our freedoms. And I love our Constitution,” Stauber said.

Trump was joined at the event by Reps. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), Sean Duffy (R-Wis.), Tom Emmer (R-Minn.), and Rep. Jason Lewis (R-Minn.).

The rally comes hours after Trump gave into bipartisan pressure, and signed an executive order intended to end family separations at the southern border.

[The Hill]

Media

Video Board at Trump Rally Calls Trump’s Twitter Feed ‘Your Source for Real News’

President Donald Trump is playing to hold a rally in Duluth, Minnesota on Wednesday night to stump for Pete Stauber for the Eighth Congressional seat.

Yet, even before the rally starts, the crowd is being treated to a variety of Trumpian takes, including a video board claiming Trump’s Twitter feed is “your source for real news.”

The board was spotted by Ben Jacobs of The Guardian and posted to Twitter Wednesday night.

Right there in lights, the huge sign is advertising Trump’s Twitter feed as a way to “stay up to date.”

[Mediaite]

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