President Trump did not mince words about his feelings on recent reporting that a whistleblower from within the U.S. intelligence community filed a complaint against him.
“Another media disaster,” Trump said in response to the question in the Oval Office on Friday. The president had earlier stated that the unknown individual was a “partisan whistleblower,” though he admitted that he did not know who it was.
The anonymous accuser alleged that Trump had a conversation with a foreign leader that involved a “promise” that alarmed him and encouraged him to report the incident to the intelligence inspector general. Trump has not further explained the alleged conversation and has firmly denied any wrongdoing.
Trump also spoke of the controversy surrounding the New York Times reporting of allegations against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, which involved unsubstantiated claims and a major correction by the newspaper. “This is one of the worst weeks in the history of the fake news media,” Trump said to the pool of reporters. “You’re a joke.”
[Related: House GOP leader not buying whistleblower claim about Trump]
