Trump in mock fist attack on CNN
US PRESIDENT Donald Trump launched a fresh attack on the news media at the weekend tweeting a video showing him knocking down and beating a professional wrestling “villain” whose face had been replaced by a CNN logo.
The 10-year-old video, hailing back to Trump’s days as a guest celebrity at pro-wrestling events, came after a week in which his unrestrained Twitter attacks on two MSNBC talk show hosts drew widespread condemnation from members of both political parties.
The latest tweet was immediately condemned by journalists, who said Trump seemed to be promoting violence against the media, while a Republican lawmaker said the president was trying to “weaponise distrust” through his postings.
But administration officials insisted Trump has a right to respond to critical coverage.
In the 28-second video, Trump, in a suit and tie, is seen knocking down another man in a suit, who is standing next to a wrestling ring.
Trump repeatedly pummels the fallen man, whose face is covered by the CNN logo. A fake CNN logo then appears on the screen reading “FNN: Fraud News Network.”
A longer version of the video online shows that the man being beaten was World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) owner-promoter Vince McMahon, a friend of Trump’s.
In that version, Trump also gets in the ring to shave McMahon’s head as part of the “The Battle of the Billionaires” event.
McMahon was present at the White House in February to pose smilingly with the president, when his wife Linda McMahon – herself a former WWE executive – was sworn in as Trump’s Small Business Administration chief.
Besides the crude attack on MSNBC co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski – he called her “low I.Q.” and said he had seen her bleeding after a facelift – he has also specifically bashed outlets including CNN, NBC, The Washington Post and The New York Times.
Amid a torrent of criticism over his attack on Brzezinski, Trump doubled down Saturday, tweeting: “My use of social media is not Presidential – it’s MODERN DAY PRESIDENTIAL. Make America Great Again!”
With Trump’s tweets coming just weeks after a mass shooting at a congressional baseball practice, reporters on Thursday asked White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders whether his rhetoric might be promoting violence.
She replied: “The president in no way, form or fashion has ever promoted or encouraged violence. If anything, quite the contrary.”
“It is a sad day when the president of the United States encourages violence against reporters,” CNN said. “Clearly, Sarah Huckabee Sanders lied when she said the president had never done so.” — AFP at the WrestleMania 23