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President Donald Trump's hatred of the media reared its ugly head again on Tuesday when Trump rehashed his "enemy of the people" trope, and Twitter gallantly fought back.
Trump's tantrum began with a savage attack on Nobel Prize-winning columnist Paul Krugman.
"Paul Krugman, of the Fake News New York Times, has lost all credibility, as has the Times itself, with his false and highly inaccurate writings on me," Trump wrote on Twitter. "He is obsessed with hatred, just as others are obsessed with how stupid he is. He said Market would crash, Only Record Highs!"
Paul Krugman, of the Fake News New York Times, has lost all credibility, as has the Times itself, with his false an… https://t.co/wEN7us3oQg— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump)1556013589.0
Trump then falsely claimed that the New York Times had previously apologized to him, which never happened, demanded a *second* one, and then ordered the paper's journalists to "get on on their knees" and grovel.
"I wonder if the New York Times will apologize to me a second time, as they did after the 2016 Election," Trump added. "But this one will have to be a far bigger & better apology. On this one they will have to get down on their knees & beg for forgiveness-they are truly the Enemy of the People!"
I wonder if the New York Times will apologize to me a second time, as they did after the 2016 Election. But this on… https://t.co/DTPoqOTP2D— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump)1556014083.0
The New York Times was not happy.
The publication retweeted its rebuttal to previous attacks by the president, emphasizing Trump's dangerous authoritarian tone.
@realDonaldTrump “The phrase “enemy of the people” is not just false, it’s dangerous. It has an ugly history of bei… https://t.co/nxL6h1Ks6j— NYTimes Communications (@NYTimes Communications)1556020540.0
White House reporter Maggie Haberman, whose Times coverage of Trump often sparks his ire, mocked Trump.
Kneel before Zod https://t.co/gSlKrxoR89— Maggie Haberman (@Maggie Haberman)1556033191.0
Nailed it.
@maggieNYT Maggie wins the internet today.— ian jenkins (@ian jenkins)1556033481.0
Prominent voices on social media made it very clear to Trump that his vitriol - and lies - are unacceptable.
The press is not the enemy of the people. Donald is. Good job .@paulkrugman for writing truth that got under the… https://t.co/8p7VxsTZAa— Barbara Malmet (@Barbara Malmet)1556033476.0
The nation's leading newspaper "will haver to get down on their knees & beg for forgiveness" because they are "the… https://t.co/0GFr9QB2E4— Mehdi Hasan (@Mehdi Hasan)1556026253.0
“Knees” and “enemy of the people” aside: the Times never apologized to Trump after the 2016 election. They issued a… https://t.co/pBFdTyE3Cm— Daniel Dale (@Daniel Dale)1556019838.0
The President of the United States telling The New York Times to “get down on their knees & beg for forgiveness.”… https://t.co/u6hkkkwEDm— Rula Jebreal (@Rula Jebreal)1556028363.0
“On this one they will have to get down on their knees and beg for forgiveness — they are truly the enemy of the pe… https://t.co/fzPQgAAtKG— ᎠᏌNᎬᎷYᎢᎻᎪNᏩ™️ (@ᎠᏌNᎬᎷYᎢᎻᎪNᏩ™️)1556033553.0
@realDonaldTrump Here is the President of the United States telling The New York Times to “get down on their knees… https://t.co/VBI3hG9LyA— Rantt Media (@Rantt Media)1556021487.0
This is not normal behavior.
So Trump wants the New York Times on its knees, begging for his forgiveness?Sane, very sane. https://t.co/RrbTUHJZBo— David Rothkopf (@David Rothkopf)1556020221.0
Some people overreact to Trump, true. Some people under-react. In any case, I'm going to say this: America is a cou… https://t.co/ZhuHEBxhPj— Jay Nordlinger (@Jay Nordlinger)1556034082.0
Trump thinks that negative coverage is "fake." He is sorely mistaken.
@realDonaldTrump News isn’t fake just because it’s critical of you. Alternative facts are not real unless supported… https://t.co/KYOt6eimCm— ♻️🇺🇸 Christopher Zullo (@♻️🇺🇸 Christopher Zullo)1556015371.0
@realDonaldTrump What the fuck is wrong with you?— Michael R. Plaisance (@Michael R. Plaisance)1556014220.0
@realDonaldTrump You cry too much. I like leaders who are less emotionally unstable.— Ana Kasparian (@Ana Kasparian)1556046597.0
@realDonaldTrump You know that a newspaper doesn’t have knees, yes?— Jeremy Newberger (@Jeremy Newberger)1556016344.0
This was the 28th time since last July that Trump has referred to the media as the "enemy of the people" on Twitter, and his words have consequences.
In December, Reporters Without Borders concluded in its annual report that the United States has joined the top five most dangerous countries in the world for journalists.
"The United States joined the ranks of the world's deadliest countries for the media this year, with a total of six journalists killed," the report said.
"Four journalists were among the five employees of the Capital Gazette, a local newspaper in Annapolis, Maryland, who were killed on 28 June when a man walked in and opened fire with a shotgun. He had been harassing the newspaper for six years on Twitter about a 2011 article that named him."
"It was the deadliest attack on a media outlet in the US in modern history. Two other journalists, a local TV anchor and cameraman, were killed by a falling tree while covering Subtropical Storm Alberto's extreme weather in North Carolina in May."