President Trump seeks to discredit news report that he sought ally to oversee hush money investigation

President Donald Trump sought to discredit a news report that says he asked his then-acting Attorney General Matthew G. Whitaker whether he could put a Trump ally in charge of an investigation into hush money paid to women during the 2016 campaign. “The New York Times reporting is false,” President Trump said in a tweet. “They are a true ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE!” President Trump was asked on Feb 19, after the Times story published online, about his reported inquiry to Whitaker. “No, I don’t know who gave you that, that’s more fake news,” President Trump told reporters. “There’s a lot of fake news out there. No I didn’t.” On Feb 20, President Trump tweeted, "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. Sadly, I kept many of them in business. In six years, they all go BUST!" New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman refuted President Trump's claim that reporters fail to reach out to the White House for comment, calling it "a lie".