Fox News Panelists Rip Trump Over Puerto Rico Tweets: ‘Disgusting’ to Push Conspiracy Theory
On Saturday, Fox News’ Howard Kurtz hosted a panel to discuss President Donald Trump‘s false claim that 3000 people did not die in Puerto Rico and the media’s response.
His panel, though, was not about to let Trump get off the hook for his words.
On Sept. 13, Trump tweeted out this:
“3000 people did not die in the two hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico. When I left the Island, AFTER the storm had hit, they had anywhere from 6 to 18 deaths. As time went by it did not go up by much. Then, a long time later, they started to report really large numbers, like 3000. This was done by the Democrats in order to make me look as bad as possible when I was successfully raising Billions of Dollars to help rebuild Puerto Rico. If a person died for any reason, like old age, just add them onto the list. Bad politics. I love Puerto Rico!”
Kurtz started off by asking the panel their take on the media hammering the president over his claims.
“The president’s frustration, I think, is understandable, because there are factors that were outside his control, perhaps, when this happened,” Emily Jashinsky of the Washington Examiner said, noting there is an eagerness among the media and the left to depict him as heartless.
She continued on by pointing out that while his frustration is understandable, Trump’s reaction is not.
“This is not political. These are the deaths of people…These are people’s lives. And to push a conspiracy theory with no substantiation or basis from the platform of the President of the United States. I just think is disgusting, I was really disappointed to see it.”
Kurtz then asked Sara Fischer of Axios about the body count.
“There’s no reason Trump is looking to this,” Fischer replied, piling on and noting it is just making the president look “not empathetic” and like someone who cannot lead.
Kurtz noted that the death toll “may not be as high as 3000” but it was clearly not 16 either.
Former Clinton campaign staffer Adrienne Elrod though was not about to turn the discussion to media blaming and instead questioned why Trump is blaming Democrats.
“He’s blaming Democrats for this,” she said. “There is no political advantage to him doing this except keep this in the news a little bit longer.”
Kurtz then suggested Trump feels that he’s being personally and unduly blamed for the death toll.
“I also think the media just don’t like his style,” Kurtz told the panel, prompting Elrod to say that was just not the case this time around.
“He has turned the story into himself, he has not shown barely any empathy on this issue and that is why the media is scrutinizing him,” Elrod said.
Watch above, via Fox News.
[image via screengrab]
