Trump tweets continue after weekend rant, says ‘Fake News’ blaming him for New Zealand shooting

ABC News(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump tweeted six times before noon Monday — following up on a weekend tweetstorm that sparked widespread criticism.

In one of the Monday tweets, he once again attacked the “Fake News Media” he said was trying to blame him for Friday’s mass shooting that left 50 people dead at two mosques in New Zealand.

The Fake News Media is working overtime to blame me for the horrible attack in New Zealand. They will have to work very hard to prove that one. So Ridiculous!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 18, 2019

Over the weekend, he was especially prolific on Twitter, commenting on topics ranging from the late Sen. John McCain to a shuttered auto plant in Ohio to Fox News host Jeanine Pirro.

On Monday, one of the president’s top White House aides, Kellyanne Conway, defended the president’s weekend tweets, saying that “the president tweeted about a number of things” and accused the media of “cherry-picking” the president’s tweets.

Known for his frequent use of his favorite social media platform, the president fired off a flurry of some 50 tweets and retweets over the course of an otherwise quiet weekend spent at the White House, save for a brief outing to attend church on Sunday morning.

Days after the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a resolution expressing their support for special counsel Robert Mueller’s report to be made public, President Trump tweeted Saturday to claim that he encouraged Republican leadership to let all Republicans vote for transparency” and to “Play along with the game!”

On the recent non-binding vote (420-0) in Congress about releasing the Mueller Report, I told leadership to let all Republicans vote for transparency. Makes us all look good and doesn’t matter. Play along with the game!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 16, 2019

The president’s tweet stood in contrast to a tweet he sent on Friday in which he argued there should have never been an investigation in the first place and that “there should be no Mueller report.”

The president also went after the late Sen. John McCain, who passed away in August, accusing him of “spreading the fake and totally discredited dossier” and of sending it to the FBI and the media “hoping to have it printed BEFORE the Election.” But the president’s claim is not accurate. McCain wasn’t made aware of the dossier until after the election when he passed it on to the FBI.

So it was indeed (just proven in court papers) “last in his class” (Annapolis) John McCain that sent the Fake Dossier to the FBI and Media hoping to have it printed BEFORE the Election. He & the Dems, working together, failed (as usual). Even the Fake News refused this garbage!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 17, 2019

On ABC’s “The View” on Monday, McCain’s daughter Meghan fired back at Trump, saying he “spends his weekend obsessing over great men” because “he will never be a great man” like her father.

The president also sent multiple tweets related to a GM auto plant in Ohio that shuttered earlier this month, using his platform on Twitter to urge GM to get the Lordstown plant back up and running.

On Sunday, the president said he spoke to the CEO of GM, Mary Barra, and “asked her to sell it or do something quickly.” The president said Barra blamed the workers’ union, to which he said: “I don’t care, I just want it open!” He even went so far as to blast the local union chapter president – by name – and called on him to “get his act together and produce.”

Democrat UAW Local 1112 President David Green ought to get his act together and produce. G.M. let our Country down, but other much better car companies are coming into the U.S. in droves. I want action on Lordstown fast. Stop complaining and get the job done! 3.8% Unemployment!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 17, 2019

The president also tweeted in support of FOX News host Jeanine Pirro, with whom he is friendly, after her usual Saturday night show did not air following controversial comments she made on her previous week’s show in which she questioned whether Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Islamic religious beliefs are opposed to the U.S. Constitution. Fox News later condemned Pirro’s comments.

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