Trump praises veterans, attacks CNN on tweets
WASHINGTON (Reuters/USA Today) – US President Donald Trump honored military veterans in Washington on Saturday at a Kennedy Center event that resembled both a political rally and an evangelical Christian religious service ahead of the July 4 Independence Day holiday.
Using the podium again to lash out at the news media, Trump worked to energize evangelicals in his political base, noting that the US currency was inscribed with the words: “In God We Trust.”
“Since the signing of the Declaration of Independence 241 years ago, America always affirmed that liberty comes from our creator. Our rights are given to us by God, and no earthly force can ever take those rights away,” he said.
Attendees at the event for veterans waved miniature American flags from their seats in the theater and raised their hands as a sign of praise while a large choir sang ahead of Trump’s remarks.
The president praised veterans from each of the US military branches and highlighted his administration’s work to reform veterans’ services.
Trump, who is spending a long weekend at his property in Bedminster, New Jersey, flew back to Washington for the rally but did not spend the night at the White House, preferring to return to Bedminster.
Later, in a rare late-night post on Twitter, which he uses prolifically and sometimes controversially, Trump wrote:
“We will always take care of our GREAT VETERANS. You have shed your blood, poured your love, and bared your soul, in defense of our country.”
Trump has held campaign-like rallies regularly during his first few months in the White House and kicked off his own re-election campaign far earlier than other incumbents in recent history.
Part of his strategy to connect with his supporters has included criticizing the media, and he included harsh words for the press again in his remarks.
“The fake media is trying to silence us, but we will not let them,” he said. “The fake media tried to stop us from going to the White House. But I’m president, and they’re not.”
Meanwhile, Trump apparently isn’t done publicly insulting the hosts of MSNBC’s Morning Joe.
In a Saturday morning tweet, Trump called Joe Scarborough “crazy” and said Mika Brzezinski is “dumb as a rock.”
Yet, Trump said, they’re not bad people. “But their low rated show is dominated by their NBC bosses. Too bad!” he tweeted.
Trump’s comments came the day after Scarborough and Brzezinski questioned Trump’s mental and emotional fitness after he attacked them on Twitter Thursday.
Trump tweeted that “low I.Q. Crazy Mika, along with Pyscho Joe” insisted on joining him at Mar-a-Lago in December. Trump said Brzezinski was “bleeding badly from a face-lift” and “I said no!”
Those comments were roundly criticized, including by members of Trump’s own party.
Scarborough and Brzezinski responded Friday, both on their show and in an op-ed published in The Washington Post under the headline “Donald Trump is not well.”
And Scarborough said Friday that three top White House staffers previously told him President Trump could arrange to “spike” a negative story about him in the National Enquirer if Scarborough would call the president and apologize for his negative coverage of Trump.
In addition to insulting Scarborough and Brzezinski Saturday, Trump said veteran TV news anchor Greta Van Susteren was pushed out at MSNBC “because she refused to go along w/ ‘Trump hate!’”
Van Susteren announced on Twitter Thursday that she was no longer at the cable news channel where she hosted For the Record. Neither Van Susteren nor the network gave a reason for her departure.
Trump also went after CNN Saturday, saying he’s pleased the network “has finally been exposed as #FakeNews and garbage journalism.”
He continued to attack CNN in a Sunday morning tweet that draws on his pro wrestling history. The message was a 28-second clip repurposed from a WWE match that shows the president slamming a man with a CNN logo pasted on his face and striking him multiple times before leaving as a “Fraud News Network” graphic appears. Two hashtags were included: #FraudNewsCNN and #FNN.