Trump Hits Georgia Democratic Candidate, Media in Tweets
Jon Ossoff calls president ‘misinformed’ after being slammed as ‘super liberal’
Updated 12:26 p.m. | President Donald Trump kicked off his twelfth week in office by labeling the Democrat in a special Georgia House race as “super liberal” and slamming the media for “slanted” coverage.
The super Liberal Democrat in the Georgia Congressioal race tomorrow wants to protect criminals, allow illegal immigration and raise taxes!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2017
A day before Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff will try to pull off a major upset in Georgia’s 6th District, which has long been safe for Republicans, Trump warned voters about Ossoff’s stances on immigration, taxes and criminal justice.
Ossoff is trying to cross 50 percent in Tuesday’s open primary to fill the seat that former Rep. Tom Price vacated to become Health and Human Services secretary. If no one clears that threshold, the top two vote-getters, regardless of party, would head to a June runoff.
While recent polls have shown Ossoff comfortably leading the 18-candidate field, hovering around the 40-percent mark, 11 Republicans are competing to make the runoff and to prevent the Democrat from winning outright Tuesday. An Ossoff win would mark a major defeat for the GOP and Trump, just shy of his 100th day in office.
“While I’m glad the president is interested in the race, he is misinformed,” Ossoff said in a statement. “I’m focused on bringing fresh leadership, accountability, and bipartisan problem-solving to Washington, to cut wasteful spending and grow metro Atlanta’s economy into the Silicon Valley of the South.”
The president seemed to pin some of the blame for Ossoff’s numbers on one of his favorite targets: the news media. In a tweet Sunday night, he described the recent Kansas special election as a “really big media event until the Republicans won.” Kansas Treasurer Ron Estes, a Republican, defeated Democrat James Thompson by 7 points, in a district Trump carried by 27 points last fall.
Trump contended on Twitter that media organizations are trying to “play the same game with Georgia-BAD!”
The recent Kansas election (Congress) was a really big media event, until the Republicans won. Now they play the same game with Georgia-BAD!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2017
In another Monday morning tweet, the president fired off a somewhat confusing post, again criticizing the media — or at least some news outlets. He wrote that “The Fake Media (not Real Media) has gotten even worse since the election,” adding that every story from those outlets is “badly slanted.” He urged his followers to hold news outlets accountable.
The Fake Media (not Real Media) has gotten even worse since the election. Every story is badly slanted. We have to hold them to the truth!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2017
Trump did not specify which outlets are “fake” and which he considers “real.”