Reporters on Thursday flooded the White House with questions about President Trump’s controversial tweet about an MSNBC host’s alleged facial reconstruction surgery.
In an on-camera briefing, reporters got out 12 questions about Trump’s tweet that said Mika Brzezinski was “bleeding badly from a face-lift” on New Year’s Eve.
Only nine other questions were asked about a range of policy issues, including two from off-site reporters over Skype.
Here’s what was asked at Thursday’s briefing:
“Did the president go too far with his tweet in its deeply personal nature?”
“A couple of the criticisms from supporters of the president have been that this particular tweet was beneath the dignity of the office. Where does the president draw that line, on the dignity of the office?”
“Do you have any reaction to that sentiment that conversations like this create an atmosphere that is either dangerous or one we need to avoid?”
“Does the president support those two initiatives [more opioid money and health savings accounts in the healthcare bill], and why does he believe they make the bill better. Specifically, does he believe the opioid allocation will be sufficient… to address that problem?
“Does his tweet this morning, his series of tweets help to unify the country?”
“Do the tweets help to unify the country, to do what he said he wanted to see happen in the wake of that [GOP baseball practice] shooting?”
“Doesn’t he [Trump] have to meet a higher standard than cable news anchors?”
“How can you argue that this [tweeting] is something the president must do?”
“How do you feel about the president attacking another woman, specifically for her looks, and what does that show as an example of how men should treat other women?”
“Are you going to tell your kids this behavior is OK?”
“Is the president going to press [Vladimir] Putin on that issue [Russian election meddling]?”
“The president’s tweet today, does it help his legislative agenda, does it help him win the votes of those nine senators who have come out against that Senate bill?”
“Do you expect us here in this room to simply ignore that [Trump’s tweet]? Should we just ignore this entirely?”
“Did the U.S. administration send a representative to the funeral mass for Chancellor Kohl, or will they send anyone to the official funeral service tonight?”
“Is the president having trouble recruiting people to fill some of the key slots that remain unfilled after six months?”
[Garbled question from Skype over Dakota Access pipeline]
“If as Treasury Secretary Mnuchin said the administration wants to go to the upper limits of the law and keep the sanctions on Russia, then why not support this legislation that basically keeps what has been sought down in place?”
[Garbled question from Skype on healthcare]
“Do you expect to be able to get that update [on ISIS], whether it’s a news conference or just kind of remarks, before the upcoming foreign trip?”
“Are you guys looking at getting to do that now [providing press access] for fundraisers of a certain size, to have some transparency or the ability to hear what he’s telling donors?”
“No apology from President Trump?”
