CNN sprang to the defense of Carl Bernstein Wednesday after President Trump savaged him on Twitter, escalating a row over the veteran journalist’s role in a disputed report alleging the president had prior knowledge of the controversial Trump Tower meeting.

“Make no mistake, Mr. President, CNN does not lie. We report the news. And we report when people in power tell lies,” communications staff for the cable news network tweeted. “CNN stands by our reporting and our reporters. There may be many fools in this story but @carlbernstein is not one of them.”