Donald Trump spokesperson Karoline Leavitt, who will be White House press secretary when he takes office in January, is getting called out on social media for a bold new claim about her boss.
“There is no greater advocate for a free and fair press than Donald Trump,” she said on Fox News on Tuesday. “During his first term as the president, he was the most transparent president in American history. That continued on the campaign trail.”
In the same breath, Leavitt claimed Trump “exposed the media for being incredibly hostile and fake.”
Far from being a press advocate, Trump has attacked the media as the “enemy of the people.” During a rally earlier this month, Trump said any potential gunman “would have to shoot through the fake news. And I don’t mind that so much.”
He’s filed lawsuits against media organizations, demanded that broadcast networks have their licenses yanked over reports critical of him, and even reportedly tried to have late night TV host Jimmy Kimmel censored during his first term in office because of his jokes.
Trump has also failed the transparency test, refusing to release his tax returns, as all other modern presidential candidates have done, and failing to provide details about his health, as other presidents and presidential candidates have done.
Given that history, Trump’s critics weren’t buying Leavitt’s claim:
Democracy In The Balance
Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.