President Trump Attacks The Times, in a Week of Unease for the American Press

Even by his standards, President Trump’s biting attacks on the press this week stand out. He has praised a libel lawsuit against The Washington Post, called for “retribution” against NBC for satirizing him on “Saturday Night Live” and, issued his sharpest words yet against The New York Times, calling the newspaper “a true ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE!” They have added up to a rough few days for freedom of the press, a once-sacrosanct American notion that has been under sustained assault since Trump made fiery denunciations of journalists — and the rallying cry “Fake news!” — into hallmarks of his campaign and presidency. On Feb 20 President Trump wrote,  “The Press has never been more dishonest than it is today. Stories are written that have absolutely no basis in fact. The writers don’t even call asking for verification. They are totally out of control.” He went on to write, “The New York Times reporting is false.”