White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders Won't Condemn Harassment of CNN Reporter During Trump Rally

The White House did not condemn a group of people who heckled a CNN reporter at President Trump's rally in Tampa (FL). "While we support freedom of the press, we also support freedom of speech. Those things go hand in hand," White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said when asked whether President Trump supports that behavior. She criticized the media for reporting on classified information, but in doing so cited an example that has been widely debunked. 

“The president does think that the media holds a responsibility — we fully support a free press but there also comes a high level of responsibility with that,” Sanders said. “The media routinely reports on classified information and government secrets that put lives in danger and risk valuable national security tools,” she added. She highlighted a report in the late 1990’s that disclosed U.S. officials were able to listen in on Osama bin Laden’s satellite phone. She blamed the press for alerting bin Laden to the tactic, saying he stopped using the phone and “the country lost valuable intelligence” as a result. However, as multiple reporters quickly noted on Twitter, the report Sanders referred to has been deemed an “urban myth.”