Biden’s former press secretary Jen Psaki has come under fire after demanding Republicans tone down their “rhetoric” after Donald Trump was shot on Saturday.
Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, grazed Trump’s ear, killing one bystander and injuring two more before a counterattacking Secret Service agent killed him.
Donald Trump’s family and supporters have criticised the liberal media for downplaying Saturday night’s assassination attempt and publishing insensitive op-eds in the wake of the atrocity.
On Sunday, Psaki appeared on Meet the Press and further angered Republicans by putting the onus on them to stop the anger.
“One thing we all need to remember is that there doesn’t seem to be a pause tomorrow or Tuesday. And part of that is because the convention is just starting and unless the schedule changes, the rhetoric and the way the schedule is being set up is not calming the tone or restoring civility,” he said.
Biden’s former press secretary Jen Psaki has come under fire after she called on Republicans to tone down their “rhetoric” following Donald Trump being shot on Saturday.
“We’ll see if that schedule changes, but if it stays the same, that’s an escalation. It’s not a civilized way to approach a convention,” the former press secretary added.
Psaki was immediately criticized on social media, similar to how the Trump family attacked the press earlier this weekend.
One X user wrote: ‘Jen Psaki said Republicans have created a ‘tone’ but it’s Biden and the Democrats who have called Trump a Nazi, a rapist, a criminal, a terrorist. They’ve called MAGA supporters domestic terrorists and cult members. Biden promised unity but instead incited violence and division. GO TO HELL.’
“Stop lying and adding fuel to the fire and you won’t be afraid,” added another.
She then turned the spotlight on herself and her media colleagues in her call to end the angry rhetoric.
“Anyone who has a platform and thinks that now is the time to play politics and attack the other party is fuelling the danger. They are making retaliation more likely. I am very scared. I am scared for journalists. I am scared for people who have public platforms from all parties,” she said.
Right-wing commentator Stephen Miller said: “She simply cared about all lives and there was an assassination attempt on the Republican candidate.”
“You probably should have thought about that before you started treating basic standards and journalistic objectivity like a piñata,” another user said on X.
Donald Trump’s family and supporters have criticised the liberal media for downplaying Saturday night’s assassination attempt and publishing tone-deaf op-eds in the wake of the atrocity.
CNN, The New York Times and NBC have all come under fire from Republicans online for their reactions to one of the worst instances of violence ever seen in American political history.
The editors were criticized for describing the shots as “loud popping noises” and for describing Trump “falling” off the stage without reference to the assassination attempt.
The New York Times also came under fire for publishing an op-ed titled “Donald Trump Is Unfit to Lead” that encouraged voters to “reject him in November” the morning after the shooting.
Printed over a sinister backlit silhouette of Trump’s profile, the title page also reads: “He failed the tests of leadership and betrayed America.”
The president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., led the criticism on X, calling CNN “vile” and “a disgrace” for its coverage of the incident at the Butler, Pennsylvania, campaign event.
He shared a 30-second clip from CNN where correspondent Jamie Gangel noted that Trump stood up and said “fight, fight, fight” in the seconds after he was shot.
“What we’re hearing from people is that that’s not the message we want to send right now, we want to tone it down,” Gangel said of the reaction.
In a harsh response to the tweet, Trump Jr. said: “Someone tried to assassinate my father tonight and that’s what CNN is focusing on. These people are vile.”
Thomas Matthew Crooks was identified as the gunman at Trump’s rally on Saturday night
The broadcaster has also been widely criticized for running a headline that read “Secret Service rushes Trump off stage after he falls at rally” without mentioning a shooting.
Meanwhile, critics have slammed the New York Times for its Sunday morning newspaper headline, which read: “Trump Wounded, But Safe, After Shooting,” presenting the atrocity in the mildest possible light.
Critics also pointed out that the newspaper cropped the American flag waving over Trump in the image of him raising a fist with blood on his face, moments after a bullet hit him in the right ear.
NBC was criticized for describing the former president “clutching his ear” after “popping noises” were heard at the campaign rally.
Gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, fired several shots from a rooftop, including one that hit Trump in the ear. The shooting came just days before the former president accepted the Republican nomination for the 2024 election.
Crooks, a registered Republican who donated $15 to the liberal political action committee ActBlue on Biden’s inauguration day in 2021, killed former fire chief Corey Comperatore and wounded two others before he was shot dead by police.
The Biden administration quickly returned the president to the White House from his home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, immediately after the incident, and he condemned the shooting at X.