White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Wednesday that both President Obama and his predecessor would have fired anyone on their staff who got into a physical altercation with a reporter, the current charge that Donald Trump’s campaign manager is facing.
“I am confident that neither President Obama nor President George W. Bush would tolerate someone on their staff being accused of physically assaulting a reporter, lying about it, and then blaming the victim; that is complete unacceptable behavior,” Earnest said at the White House.
But Earnest also said the battery charges that Corey Lewandowski is facing shouldn’t surprise anyone who’s been following the GOP primary.
“Nobody’s particularly surprised that that’s behavior that Donald Trump not only tolerates, but seems to encourage,” Earnest said. Lewandowski’s alleged actions defy the nation’s “core values,” he said.
“There’s no denying that the kinds of actions and statements we’ve seen from this campaign is completely outside the realm of acceptable behavior that’s been observed” by all presidents, Earnest added.
Earnest offered his rebuke after cracking wise when first asked about the situation.
Earnest said he hadn’t been following the matter closely. “I don’t know if he’s made bail yet, for example,” he tried joking to an unreceptive White House press corps. “Come on, that was a joke,” he explained.
