On Saturday morning, President Donald Trump took to Twitter to blast former Vice President Joe Biden and the media, The Hill reported.
In one of the tweets, Trump said that Biden — the Democratic Party’s presumptive presidential nominee — is “not even a factor” in the 2020 presidential election. Trump added that he is not actually running against Biden, but against the Democratic-leaning media.
“I’m not running against Sleepy Joe Biden. He is not even a factor. Never was, remember 1% Joe? I’m running against the Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats & their partner, the real opposition party, the Lamestream Fake News Media! They are vicious & crazy, but we will WIN!”
As The Hill noted, Trump launched his attacks on Biden less than 24 hours after the former vice president’s campaign announced that it views Texas, Arizona and Georgia — traditionally Republican-leaning states — as key to winning the November election.
The campaign said that those three states are being viewed as battlegrounds, adding that Biden can win back a slew of states former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lost in 2016. Ohio, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina and Florida will all be in play, according to team Biden.
Trump has previously argued that the media is protecting Biden from scrutiny.
“We have a sleepy guy in the basement of a house that the press is giving a free pass to who doesn’t want to do debates because of COVID,” Trump said during an April press conference.
In another tweet, Trump blasted Biden again, sharing a clip of the former vice president’s recent interview with MSNBC anchor Lawrence O’Donnell. Trump also slammed O’Donnell, bragging about confronting the host over disputes pertaining to the reality television program The Apprentice.
Really sad, but even “sadder”, watch flunky @Lawrence CRY when I whipped his mind & he was FORCED to apologize to me over Apprentice fees. Even Psycho Cold Case Joe Scarborough (bad ratings) beat him up, on air, unmercifully. Find tapes & play (5 years back?). https://t.co/JPbJd4f5UV
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 16, 2020
In a third Twitter message, Trump slammed the “Lamestream Media” over what he claims is biased coverage of his administration, arguing that the press is echoing Democratic Party talking points and not giving him enough credit amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“I made everybody look good, but me!” Trump said, writing that the federal government’s actions have helped governors across the nation do their jobs.
Tensions between Trump and Democratic governors have been brewing since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker recently said that “the governors that have risen to the challenge” without much help from the White House, accusing the president of not acting quickly enough.
On a number of occasions, Trump expressed support for demonstrators opposed to social distancing and lockdown measures, encouraging them to “liberate” their states. The remarks were met with criticism from Democratic politicians, with Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington arguing that Trump is undermining his own administration’s efforts.