White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders claims it’s “absolutely absurd” to say President Donald Trump has ever incited violence with his inflammatory rhetoric.
In an interview on Wednesday with Fox & Friends, Sanders was asked to elaborate on the White House statement saying Trump condemns the attack on a journalist that was carried out by one of his supporters during his rally this week in El Paso. This was the incident in which BBC cameraman Ron Skeans was shoved to the ground by a Trump supporter while the president railed against the media.
“The idea that the president or anybody on his team or in his administration would encourage violence is absolutely absurd,” Sanders said. “The president stopped, asked and made sure everyone was okay before continuing on with the event. Certainly, we condemn violence in any form against anyone, and that certainly includes the press.”
Interestingly, Fox & Friends didn’t push back on Sanders in the slightest, even though Trump’s history of encouraging political aggression and winking at violence is, in fact, well-documented and extensive.
Let’s have a brief look back at a few such headlines, shall we?
Trump on rally protester: ‘Maybe he should have been roughed up’
Trump Tells Crowd to ‘Knock the Crap Out’ of Protesters, Offers to Pay Legal Fees
Donald Trump on Protester: ‘I’d Like to Punch Him in the Face’
Trump Callously Rebukes Heckler: ‘Throw Him
Trump On Violence Against Protestors: ‘We Need A Little Bit More’ Of That
Trump to Law Enforcement: ‘Please Don’t Be Too Nice’
Those examples don’t account for all of the other times where Trump has vilified the media and expressed a degree of approval for aggression towards the press. Beyond calling his “fake news” smears and referring to the media as “the enemy of the people,” Trump has blamed the press’ coverage for many of the country’s problems while shrugging off the negative connotations of his bombast.
Trump Praises Rep. Gianforte For Assaulting Reporter: Anyone Who Can Body Slam is ‘My Kind of Guy’
Trump Defends Calling Media ‘Enemy of the People’: ‘It’s My Only Form of Fighting Back’
Trump Takes Credit for the Term ‘Fake News’; Feels No Responsibility for Fallout
While Trump has expressed disapproval for this, let’s not forget that last year, a crazed supporter of his put the country on edge by sending over a dozen bombs through the mail in an attempt to attack the president’s enemies. There have been plenty of other threats to the media as well throughout the Trump era.
Watch above, via Fox News.
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