Trump Yanks WaPo’s Credentials Over ‘Incredibly Inaccurate’ Coverage

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at Saint Anselm College Monday, June 13, 2016, in Manchester, N.H. Trump attacked Hilary Clinton by name in his speech in the aftermath of the Orlando shooting. C... Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at Saint Anselm College Monday, June 13, 2016, in Manchester, N.H. Trump attacked Hilary Clinton by name in his speech in the aftermath of the Orlando shooting. Clinton did not mention Trump by name in her speech an hour earlier. During the national security speech, Trump repeatedly criticized Clinton's immigration plan, her attempts to tighten the nation's gun control laws and for not using the phrase "radical Islamic terrorism" when describing recent attackers. (AP Photo/Jim Cole) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Donald Trump said Monday that he was revoking The Washington Post’s press credentials to cover his campaign after the publication gave him “incredibly inaccurate” coverage.

Here’s what the presumptive GOP nominee posted on Facebook Monday:

Minutes before posting that he would revoke the publication’s access he said:

Trump had suggested earlier in the day on Fox News that President Obama’s response to the worst mass shooting in U.S. history showed he was either secretly working with terrorists or else naive about terror threats. The Washington Post’s headline on a story on the comment read, “Donald Trump seems to connect President Obama to Orlando shooting.”

“Donald Trump’s decision to revoke The Washington Post’s press credentials is nothing less than a repudiation of the role of a free and independent press. When coverage doesn’t correspond to what the candidate wants it to be, then a news organization is banished,” The Post’s Executive Editor Martin Baron said in a statement.

“The Post will continue to cover Donald Trump as it has all along – honorably, honestly, accurately, energetically, and unflinchingly. We’re proud of our coverage, and we’re going to keep at it,” Baron said.

There have been a slew of reporters and publications that have been denied access to Trump’s campaign events, including The New York Times, BuzzFeed News, Telemundo, Politico and The Des Moines Register.

Trump released a statement later in the day further claiming that the Post has “no journalistic integrity” and wagered that its owner, Jeff Bezos who founded Amazon, was using the publication for tax purposes.

Here’s his full statement:

The Washington Post unfortunately covers Mr. Trump very inaccurately. Today’s headline, “Donald Trump Suggests President Obama Was Involved With Orlando Shooting” is a perfect example. We no longer feel compelled to work with a publication which has put its need for “clicks” above journalistic integrity.

They have no journalistic integrity and write falsely about Mr. Trump. Mr. Trump does not mind a bad story, but it has to be honest. The fact is, The Washington Post is being used by the owners of Amazon as their political lobbyist so that they don’t have to pay taxes and don’t get sued for monopolistic tendencies that have led to the destruction of department stores and the retail industry.

This post has been updated.

Latest Livewire
Comments
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Associate Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: