The Associated Press, not exactly a White House favorite, has shot itself in the foot.
The following retraction is nothing short of humiliating:
“The Associated Press has withdrawn its story about U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard saying President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin ‘are very good friends.’ Gabbard was talking about Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The AP will publish a corrected version of the story.”
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Whoa! How do you run that piece in the first place without having it nailed down?
The wire service, you may recall, is suing the Trump administration for ousting its reporters from the White House pool over its refusal to refer to “Gulf of America.” So, this unforced error puts the White House in I-told-you-so mode.
On Monday, when Trump was at the Kennedy Center, an NBC reporter tried to ask a question, Trump asked, “Who are you with?”
Donald Trump is pictured in front of newspapers. (Getty Images)
After the journalist identified himself, the president said: “I don’t want to talk to NBC anymore. I think you’re so discredited.”
The Trump team later posted the exchange with “mic drop” emojis.
The point is that Trump dominates the news no matter what he does. And, as I’ve been saying for the 35 years I’ve known him, even a torrent of negative publicity helps him because his media detractors are playing on his turf.
While Trump was visiting the Kennedy Center, he “floated” the idea of personally hosting the annual awards show. And who’s going to stop him, since he’s purged the Democratic board members?
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The ratings, he said, would skyrocket. And he’s right about that.
As the New York Times notes, a younger Trump dreamed of becoming a Broadway producer. He now says the Kennedy Center will concentrate on producing “Broadway…
