“I don’ t think that’s a surprise to anybody that he fights fire with fire, ” Sanders said.
President Trump only needled MSNBC host Mika Brzezinski for “bleeding badly from a face-lift” to fight back against liberal elite bullies, his spokeswoman argued Thursday.
“I think the American people elected somebody who’s tough, who’s smart and who’s a fighter, ” Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said during the daily briefing. “I don’ t think that’s it’s a surprise to anybody that he fights fire with fire.”
“He’s not going to sit back and be attacked by the liberal media (and) Hollywood elites.”
A testy Sanders fended off a barrage of questions hours after the President launched a bizarre personal Twitter attack on Brzezinski’s physical appearance — decried as inappropriate by liberals and conservatives alike.
The ugly American President
“I heard poorly rated @Morning_Joe speaks badly of me (don’t watch anymore) . Then how come low I. Q. Crazy Mika, along with Psycho Joe, came.., ” Trump tweeted just before 9 a.m.
“…to Mar-a-Lago 3 nights in a row around New Year’s Eve, and insisted on joining me. She was bleeding badly from a face-lift. I said no!” he added minutes later.
But the White House flak maintained Trump’s tweets were just counterpunching for the drubbing he regularly takes on left-leaning “Morning Joe” — and insisted the outrage Thursday showed a double standard.
“I don’ t think so, ” Sanders replied when asked if Trump had crossed a line. “The President has been attacked mercilessly on personal accounts by members on that program. And I think he’s been very clear that when he gets attacked, he’s gonna hit back.”
Trump mocks Mika Brzezinski for ‘bleeding badly from a face-lift’
Sanders argued that “Morning Joe” had lobbed “very personal” attacks on Trump and his staffers, herself included.
“I guess it’s kind of like we’ re living in ‘The Twilight Zone,’ ” she said. “They do this day after day after day, and then the President responds and defends himself and everybody is appalled and blown away.”
As for charges of sexism levied against Trump as he singled out yet another woman’s looks, Sanders dismissed the so-called “false narrative.”
“Everybody wants to make this an attack on a woman, ” she said. “What about the constant attacks that he receives, or the rest of us?”
STASI: Lunatic Trump has dangerous fixation on women he dislikes
The President’s tweets drew bipartisan disgust and even brought rare Trump critics out of the woodwork, including House Speaker Paul Ryan.
“Obviously, I don’ t see that as appropriate comment, ” Ryan said. “Look, what we’ re trying to do around here is improve the tone, the civility of the debate. And this obviously doesn’ t help do that.”
Even Trump pal Sean Hannity, who initially defended the POTUS, admitted it was in his “best interest not to do it, in my humble opinion.”
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called Trump’s salvo “so beneath the dignity of the President of the United States” and declared “something’s wrong there.”
“Look, the American people elected a fighter. They didn’ t elect somebody to sit back and do nothing. They knew what they were getting when they voted for Donald Trump and he won overwhelmingly, ” Sanders said of Trump, who captured the electoral college handily despite losing the popular vote by nearly 3 million.
