Trump: ‘Sorry folks,’ but I’ll keep tweeting
And he backs it up with another broadside against the media
So much for the idea of vetting President Trump’s tweets.
Trump served notice Tuesday that he will keep tweeting away, whether it’s about his “travel ban” from select majority-Muslim countries, the London mayor’s approach to handling the weekend’s terror attack or Middle Eastern politics in general.
Once again attacking what he calls the mainstream media, Trump said that “the FAKE MSM is working so hard trying to get me not to use Social Media. They hate that I can get the honest and unfiltered message out.”
In a follow-up, Trump said: “Sorry folks, but if I would have relied on the Fake News of CNN, NBC, ABC, CBS, washpost or nytimes, I would have had ZERO chance winning WH.”
Trump may have been referring to news reports that White House aides discussed plans to have someone check presidential tweets before they orbit into cyberspace, especially ones that deal with legal issues.
The tweets also come one day after lawyers say Trump undercut his own legal case by tweeting about a pending Supreme Court case on the travel ban. In the tweet, he took aim at his own Justice Department for arguing for a “watered-down, politically correct version.”
George Conway, husband of Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway, criticized the tweets for potentially undermining the president’s own agenda. It “cannot be stressed enough that tweets on legal matters seriously undermine” the administration’s agenda and the president himself, Conway tweeted. “Those who support him, as I do, need to reinforce that (point) and not be shy about it.”
After reaffirming his Twitter independence Tuesday morning, Trump weighed in on the Middle East and appeared to take credit for decisions by many Arab countries to cut ties to Qatar.
“During my recent trip to the Middle East I stated that there can no longer be funding of Radical Ideology,” Trump tweeted. “Leaders pointed to Qatar — look!”
Meanwhile, a growing number of Republican lawmakers are expressing frustration with Trump’s Twitter habits.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, RTenn., said Monday: “Probably it’s best to refrain from communicating with 140 characters on topics that are so important.”