Donald Trump Beats Up CNN in New Video He Tweeted

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published 2 July 2017

While Americans around the country prepare for Independence Day, President Donald Trump is continuing the game of bizarre Twitter one-upsmanship he started with himself earlier this week: After spending several days attacking Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough, Trump has now tweeted a video of himself "beating up" CNN:

It was intended—one has to assume—as a joke meant to celebrate the president's perceived victory over the network, which issued a retraction and an apology (and the resignation of three senior journalists) this week for a story about Trump's potential financial connections to Russia. But the result is far from funny.

Despite White House deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders' claim just three days ago—which CNN tweeted in response to the Trump's video—that the president "in no way form or fashion has ever promoted or encouraged violence," her boss has proven otherwise.

And in light of Trump's praise for last month's victory of Republican representative Greg Gianforte, who made national headlines just one day before his election for grabbing a reporter by the throat and throwing him to the ground, the president doesn't seem terribly concerned with violence against the press. If anything, to borrow Sarah Huckabee Sanders' words, it seems quite the contrary.

Amy Mackelden is a contributing editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.