Trump says only "FAKE NEWS" is the "enemy of the people"
President Trump on Thursday clarified that not all members of the media are the "enemy of the people," just the "FAKE NEWS, which is a large percentage of the media."
Mr. Trump tweeted that in response to comments his daughter and top aide Ivanka Trump made earlier in the day, when she said she didn't believe the press is the enemy of the people, contradicting her father's past statements.
"They asked my daughter Ivanka whether or not the media is the enemy of the people. She correctly said no. It is the FAKE NEWS, which is a large percentage of the media, that is the enemy of the people!" the president tweeted Thursday.
Thursday morning, when Axios' Mike Allen asked Ivanka Trump if she thinks the media is the enemy of the people, she responded, "No, I don't."
Elaborating, she explained, "No I don't. I mean I certainly – I certainly have – I can share my own personal perspective. I've certainly received my fair share of reporting on me personally that I know not to be fully accurate. So I know I have some sensitivity around why people have concerns and gripe especially when they're sort of feel targeted but no I do not feel that the media is the enemy of the people."
Thursday afternoon, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders declined to contradict Mr. Trump's past comments describing the press as the enemy of the people.
Mr. Trump has called the "fake news" media the enemy of the people multiple times since taking office. The president's critiques on the media seemed to intensify surrounding his heavily criticized meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland.
