Trump tries to keep press — and Constitution — on a short leash
Reporters learn early in their careers to not make the story about themselves, so let’s just say it seems like every time the Constitution steps off the curb these days, it gets hit by a government truck.
Donald Trump’s contempt for the press is old news, and while the public is generally not that sympathetic to the press — I’ve misplaced the latest “trust in media” polls; sorry — his actions and those of his Trump-aligned agencies have a distinct extra-Constitutional flavor of “don’t cross the boss.”
The White House denied entry to another press pool member to Air Force One after Trump took exception to the reporter’s question in the Oval Office.
Andrew Feinberg, correspondent for the U.K-based Independent, was informed Wednesday night that he would not be permitted on the Thursday trip.
The notice arrived one day after the president berated Feinberg inside the Oval Office, where Trump told him to “be careful” after trying to ask questions he didn’t like. He also labeled him a “sick person,” adding, “I actually think there’s something wrong with you.”
An official White House rapid response account on X also called him a “Mongoloid Moron” while Vice President JD Vance used his official government X account to call him an “imbecile.”
Meanwhile, Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr fired a warning shot for broadcasters over what he called “fake polls and suppression polls.”
Then there is the new White House cry of “everyone into the pool” — that is, a new pool Trump is mulling to replace the James S. Brady Briefing Room. Merely symbolic? Maybe. But it symbolizes contempt — for the press, to be sure, but also the Constitution on which the press and all Americans depend.
On the flip side, Trump’s lawsuit against the BBC may be beginning to chafe: A judge has ordered Trump to answer questions under oath in response to his defamation lawsuit against the BBC. He cancelled a previous deposition, so we’ll see.
The Washington Post: White House takes new swipes at press, blocking a reporter and threatening an outlet
Reliable Sources (CNN): Trump’s latest round of ‘swipes’
Ars Technica: FCC chair warns media not to run the ‘fake polls’ Trump keeps complaining about
Poynter: CNN threatens to take the White House back to court over Air Force One access