President Trump tweeted personal attacks from the @POTUS Twitter account, the White House press secretary cited a fake terror attack, and the Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch, called Trump’s comments against the judiciary “disheartening” and “demoralizing.” Here’s a rundown of what is happening under the Trump administration and why it matters.
White House press secretary cites fabricated terror attack
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has cited an Atlanta terror attack committed by someone from overseas that never occurred three times this week. The last terror attack in the city, the Centennial Olympic Park bombing, was 21 years ago and was carried out by Eric Rupert Rudolph, a white man from Florida.
Spicer first cited the Atlanta terror attack in defense of Trump’s muslim ban on ABC’s “This Week,” according to CNN.
“What do we say to the family who loses somebody over a terroristic (sic) — to whether it’s Atlanta or San Bernardino or the Boston bomber? Those people, each of whom had gone out to a country and then come back,” Spicer said.
Spicer again mentioned the supposed Atlanta attack on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
“There was a very short period of time in which we had something to execute that ensured that the people of the United States were safe. Everybody’s been protected,” Spicer said. “What happened if we didn’t act and somebody was killed? ... Too many of these cases that have happened — whether you’re talking about San Bernardino, Atlanta, Boston --would you wait until you do? The answer is we act now to protect the future.”
Spencer alluded to the Atlanta attack at a White House press briefing Jan. 30.
When a reporter asked Spencer why some countries linked to terrorism aren’t on the travel ban list, Spencer said, “right, and we’re reviewing the entire process over this period of time to make sure that we do this right, but I don’t think you have to look any further than the families of the Boston Marathon, in Atlanta, in San Bernardino to ask if we can go further.”
Trump retweets jab at Nordstrom from @POTUS
Trump tweeted a jab at Nordstrom on Wednesday after the company dropped Ivanka Trump’s fashion line from their stores “based on performance,” according to CNN.
“My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom. She is a great person — always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!” Trump tweeted.
Press Secretary Sean Spicer defended the president’s use of the @POTUS handle to discuss his daughter’s business.
“This was less about his family’s business and an attack on his daughter,” Spicer said. “For someone to take out their concern with his policies on a family member of his is not acceptable and a president has every right as a father to stand up for them.”
Nordstrom responded Wednesday, according to CNN.
“Over the past year, and particularly in the last half of 2016, sales of the brand have steadily declined to the point where it didn’t make good business sense for us to continue with the line for now,” the company said. “We’ve had a great relationship with the Ivanka Trump team. We’ve had open conversations with them over the past year to share what we’ve seen and Ivanka was personally informed of our decision in early January.”
SCOTUS nominee calls Trump’s tweets about the judiciary “disheartening”
Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch, told Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, that Trump’s tweets against the judiciary are “disheartening” and “demoralizing.”
“He said very specifically that they were demoralizing and disheartening, and he characterized them very specifically that way,” Blumenthal said of Gorsuch, according to MSNBC. “I said they were more than disheartening, and I said to him that he has an obligation to make his views clear to the American people, so they understand how abhorrent or unacceptable President Trump’s attacks on the judiciary are.”
Trump’s tweets could cause problems for Gorsuch in his upcoming confirmation hearings, according to CNN. Liberals are concerned about Gorsuch’s record and how he will maintain independence from Trump.
However, some believe Gorsuch’s statements regarding the Trump tweets will help him, according to CNN. Gorsuch told Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-New York, in a meeting Tuesday that an attack on his fellow judges is an attack on all. He also told Schumer judges are used to being criticized and are no one’s lackeys.
