Kaitlan Collins Fires Back at Trump Calling Her ‘CNN Faker’ for Mask Use: Nearly 90,000 Americans’ Are Dead

Colby HallMay 18th, 2020, 6:23 am
 

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins pushed back on President Donald Trump’s calling her a “CNN Faker” Sunday evening because apparently this is what is the current state of discourse in America.

At issue is a video clip that emerged over the weekend that came at the end of Friday afternoon’s White House Briefing in which Collins removed her facial mask shortly after Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany ended the event.

Video from CSPAN went viral, and was ultimately shared by Eric Trump, who ridiculed “Mask-police CNN reporter” Collins, who was “caught removing hers at presser, as soon as she thought cameras were off.” This video was retweeted by President Trump with the trenchant analysis “A CNN Faker!”

Collins and Trump have been at odds in the past as the CNN White House reporter follows the traditions of the fourth estate by speaking truth to power and often asks challenging questions of the Commander in Chief, a practice that appears to have not endeared her to President Trump, who often lauds more fawning questions.

Collins put Trump’s critique in perspective, noting the massive U.S. death toll from the coronavirus in the context of what the president is focused on. Collins tweeted:

Collins did remove her mask shortly after the press event ended, though participants in the briefing are typically tested for the coronavirus before entering the rather tight room. It is curious that her removing her mask is being used to illustrate some sort of duplicity when White House reporters often file live TV shots just after a briefing ends and she was likely learning in real-time if she was going to shortly be on CNN reporting or not.

 

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Colby Hall - Founding Editor

Colby Hall is the Founding Editor of Mediaite.com. He is also a Peabody Award-winning television producer of non-fiction narrative programming as well as a terrific dancer and preparer of grilled meats.