Media hits back at Trump over crowd claims
A war of words between President Donald Trump and the US media has escalated with news organisations rejecting claims that their staff lied about the size of crowds at his inauguration.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer said reports that fewer people came to see Mr Trump than Barack Obama were “shameful”, adding: “This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration – period.”
The comments have sparked outrage.
US media outlets have angrily rebuffed claims by Donald Trump that reporters lied about the size of crowds at his inauguration.
The president warned a “big price” will be paid by those who said fewer people turned out to watch him take the oath of office than when Barack Obama was sworn in for the first time eight years ago.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer described the reports as “shameful” and said: “This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration - period. Both in person and around the globe.” The comments have provoked outrage among US media outlets.
The New York Times said Mr Trump’s team had made “false claims” while CNN headed their article “White House press secretary attacks media for accurately reporting inauguration crowds”.
Pictures shared on social media appeared to show acres of empty space on the National Mall, where an estimated 1.8 million people stood to see Mr Trump’s predecessor in 2009.
The number of journeys on Washington’s Metro system on Friday also failed to match that of recent inaugurations.
As of 11am, 193,000 trips had been taken, according to the service’s Twitter account. At the same time eight years ago there had been 513,000 trips and by 11am on the day of Mr Obama’s second inauguration there had been 317,000 journeys. Mr Trump’s team has reacted fiercely to reports that the ceremony failed to draw the huge crowds expected.
“I made a speech. I looked out. The field was – it looked like a million, a million and a half people,” Mr Trump said during a press conference at the CIA headquarters in Virginia on his first full day in office.
He criticised one network which reported just 250,000 people had turned up.
“That’s a lie,” said Mr Trump, adding: “So we caught them. And we caught them in a beauty. And I think they’re going to pay a big price.”
Barely a day into his presidency and Donald Trump has fired a broadside – another one – at the US media. That his grievance is over the numbers of people who attended his inauguration compared with the attendance at Barack Obama’s inauguration borders on the absurd when viewing photographs of the crowds at both events. But issue has been taken, despite photo evidence appearing to show many more people at the Obama event.
Now the US president has accused the media of dishonesty, while also belittling – by Twitter of course – the massive turnout in protest marches and gatherings on Saturday over women’s rights.
It is nothing other than worrying when the most powerful man in the Western world is arguing about how many attended his inauguration, and then claiming that his own estimate is right, without offering any evidence to support his contention. Indeed, all independent evidence and estimates of the numbers who attended strongly suggest that he is heavily in the wrong.
After the many provocative, and at times contradictory, statements made by Trump in his hugely controversial election campaign, there had been hope, albeit slim, that proximity to the highest office would see a moderation in his rhetoric and some attempt to strike a placatory, unifying note in his inaugural address. Quite the opposite proved the case.
Now come ominous signs that a siege mentality may already be setting in. That in turn suggests a presidency that from the very first is set to be at war against all and any – the Press, his own party, Congress and the governments of other nations, who fail to bow before him. It’s not a promising start.