All Hell Breaks Loose As Reporter Hammers Sarah Sanders And Questions Trump's Credibility

[applegrove]

Last edited Wed Jul 18, 2018, 09:14 PM - Edit history (2)

by Chris Cillizza and Greg Krieg at The Point, CNN:
(Added later)

"SNIP......

Tuesday was dominated by "would"-gate. Trump made the very rare attempt at a correction of his comments Monday at the summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin when he said, "I don't see any reason why it would be" Russia meddling in the election. What Trump really meant to say, he explained, was "I don't see any reason why it wouldn't be." Explained Trump: "In a key sentence in my remarks I said the word 'would' instead of 'wouldn't.'"

Wednesday was all about the "no." Asked by ABC's Cecilia Vega whether "Russia [is] still targeting the US?" Trump responded, "Thank you very much, no." That "no" directly contradicted the conclusions offered by, among other, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, repeatedly over the past year.  

But wait! Trump wasn't actually answering Vega's question, according to White House press secretary Sarah Sanders: "The President was saying 'no' to answering questions," she said, with a straight face. Left unanswered was why Trump then went on to take more questions.

So. Here we are. We've gone from Trump accusing the media of being "fake news" for reporting on what he says to actually debating over whether what he said was what he meant.

.......SNIP"

[sandensea]

1. Hickabee's about as sharp as a bowling ball.

And about as useless as one, in a football game.

[applegrove]

2. She is sharp. That's the problem. The base love her spin. Though I don't know

if Trump meant to say no for what reason today, he has shown vulnerability to Putin and she should admit that and answer the question in that context.

[sandensea]

4. Her sole go-to tactic seems to be talking over journalists with childish denials.

She sounds like a Southern Pee-Wee Herman.

[stopbush]

18. The press pool really needs to call her out when ever she pulls that childish shit.

Her “as I’ve said many times before” and “I’ve already answered that” and “you seem to like asking that question” bullshit, all intended to stick her tongue out at the press.

How about they start replying, “seriously, Sarah? You’re going to try that childish deflection technique again?” or, “Sarah, could you please act like a professional and give me the courtesy of an adult answer?”, or, “you really aren’t up to this job, are you?”

[sandensea]

21. +1

“...You seem to like asking that question” ?

“You seem to like evading it.”

That said, I don't entirely blame the white House press corps. They know these cretins have less respect for the press than Idi Amin, and that they're just waiting for an excuse to strip them of credentials.

[AJT]

5. The question about whether he thought the Russians were still trying

to hack and influence the election coming up was asked twice and both times he said no.

[2naSalit]

6. Exactly! ...nt

[applegrove]

7. I did not see it. What a piece of work she is.

[Old Crow]

3. The insanity of this administration is almost beyond belief.

"... the president said that Russia interfered with our election--that's a pretty bold callout of another world leader."

How can Sanders say that with a straight face when, not 48 hours ago, the world saw Trump kissing Putin's behind and saying the opposite? It is beyond shameless. "A pretty bold callout of another world leader." OMFG. Yes, I know she's basing that ludicrous statement on Trump's scripted Would/Wouldn't excuse. It's an embarrassment.

Many of you DU'ers are probably too young to remember it, but there was a time when the only superpower that would lie this brazenly was the USSR and the United States could be trusted to issue statements that, at the very least, roughly comported with the truth and that respected the intelligence of the audience.

[tomp]

9. The US govt has lied through its teeth...

...for most of its existence. Any other position is pure revisionist history.

[Old Crow]

10. Yeah, I'm sure you're right.

There's no difference at all between the U.S. press conferences of today and those of the preceding 50 years.

[tomp]

13. Funny, I thought you were talking about govts lying.

And did I say the press conferences were the same...oh yeah... no, I didn’t.

So, does our govt lie or not?

[Old Crow]

14. Certainly, our government has lied long before the Trump administration.

My point, which I thought was clear, was that I have never seen the United States lie this brazenly, in a fashion reminiscent of the what the Soviet Union used to do in the glory days of Pravda.

I'm not sure if you remember how things used to be, but I'm getting the sense you don't.

[Pluvious]

12. And America used to be a country that...

Didn't invade other nations
Didn't use torture
Didn't have ideologically motivated news media

We're a Republican's Republic of Paradise now.

With guns.

Lots of guns.

[tomp]

15. Wow, this thread is choc-a-bloc with US history revisionism.

Has it dawned on anyone that just because russia is fucked up doesn’t mean th u.s. isn’t.

When do you think the u.s started invading other countries? Or torture? Or propagandistic news?

Hint: much earlier than you’re implying.

[Old Crow]

17. Has it dawned on you that just because...

... the U.S. has had its faults in the past doesn't mean it's always been this fucked up?

The point I and at least one other person are making in this thread is that things have become extraordinarily fucked up under the Trump administration. Can we agree on that much? Or have you come into this thread to argue that nothing the Trump administration is doing is different from the past? I'm not really sure what point it is you're trying to make, frankly.

[tomp]

23. Where do you find me saying that things under Trump are not extraordinarily fucked up?

My posts have been about not revising/prettying up american history as a means of moving forward today. In fact I think it is counterproductive to do so.

It seemed to me that some incorrect and quite cavalier statements about pre-trump america were being made and i felt in necessary to correct the record. Even the phrase "has had its faults" seems minimizing to me.

My position, just to be clear, is that america was well and truly fucked up PRIOR TO TRUMP, and that in no way negates how extremely fucked up trump is.

[Old Crow]

16. Good summary there.

We've invaded other nations from the Spanish-American War, but the use of torture, as a state policy, was a shock. I consider Cheney's use of the term "enhanced interrogation" the beginning of this hellish path we've been descending. Under the Trump administration, we no longer seem to be walking down a path, but taking an express elevator.

[marble falls]

8. What will Sarah do in her next career? I'm thinking church work.

[Mendocino]

11. Better call Sarah.

She'll the assistant night manager for the Omaha Cinnabon shop.

[smirkymonkey]

19. Sarah is fucking useless.

Journalists should just abandon her and REALLY start making up their own fake news. What's the difference? Trump and the republicans are going to accuse them of it anyway so they might as well throw everything they've got at him.

[amcgrath]

20. Hallelujah

Finally a journalist - don't know who it was - cedes his question to allow the original questions to be answered, This has to become the new standard

[applegrove]

22. +1