When tens of thousands of protesters marched arm-in-arm down the streets of major cities across the United States, mainstream media was silent.
They did not call the groups out on failing to social distance.
They did not call the groups out on failing to wear a mask.
They did not call the groups out on them potentially spreading the coronavirus.
They did not even call them out for doing millions of dollars in damage to private and public property.
But, when President Trump held a press conference at a country club in New Jersey in a room of more than 25 people, the media called him out.
Go figure.
“Just in this room, you have dozens of people who are not following the guidelines in New Jersey which say you should not have more than 25 –,” a reporter at the event said to Trump. His comment was met with boos from the rest of the room before Trump addressed him.
“You’re wrong on that because it’s a political activity,” Trump interjected, via the Daily Wire. “They have exceptions, political activity.”
Then Trump turned the situation back on the reporter and called his event a “peaceful protest.”
“And it is also a peaceful protest,” he said.
According to the Daily Wire, the crowd praised the comment.
The president continued: “To me, they look like they all, pretty much all have masks on. You have an exclusion in the law, it says ‘peaceful protest or political activity,’ right?”
“In fact, it specifically, yeah, it says exactly, ‘political activity or peaceful protest,’ and you can call it political activity, but I’d call it ‘peaceful protest’ because they heard you were coming up and they know the news is fake, they understand it better than anybody,” he added, much to the delight of the crowd.
Trump also called out fake news or agenda-driven news outlets. He said:
They asked whether or not they could be here, like the question about Russia. He doesn’t mention Iran was in the report, he doesn’t mention, or he mentions very late that China was in the report, because that’s the way they are.
If the press in this country were honest – it wasn’t corrupt, if it wasn’t fake – our country would be so much further ahead, but we’re doing really great.
Watch the exchange below:
A reporter tries to say President Trump is violating New Jersey’s Coronavirus guidelines.
Trump: It’s a peaceful protest.
MASTER TROLL pic.twitter.com/8c7NfyuLFP
— Benny (@bennyjohnson) August 8, 2020