President Trump shifted blame to the media in the aftermath of three mass shootings, accusing the press of fueling the “anger and rage” that has contributed to the atrocities in recent years.
“The Media has a big responsibility to life and safety in our Country,” he tweeted Monday. “Fake News has contributed greatly to the anger and rage that has built up over many years.”
Trump said the violence would only worsen if news coverage does not start “being fair, balanced and unbiased.” The president has long criticized unflattering coverage of his administration to be fake and unfair.
The Media has a big responsibility to life and safety in our Country. Fake News has contributed greatly to the anger and rage that has built up over many years. News coverage has got to start being fair, balanced and unbiased, or these terrible problems will only get worse!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2019
In the past week, shootings at a garlic festival in Gilroy, California, a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, and outside a bar in Dayton, Ohio, left at least 32 people dead and dozens more wounded.
Democrats blamed Trump’s rhetoric, particularly toward immigrants, after the suspect in the El Paso shooting posted an anti-immigrant manifesto before he opened fire at Walmart.
Earlier Monday Trump proposed pairing gun legislation with immigration reform.
