President Donald Trump on Monday said CNN refuses to report accurately on the decrease in migrants crossing the southern border because "they hate our country."
During a meeting with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office, Trump talked about military and law enforcement recruitment that has surged.
"Actually, what you're doing with the border is remarkable. It has dropped, what, 95%? It's incredible," Bukele said to Trump.
"As of this morning, 99%, 99.1% to be exact," Trump replied.
"Why are those numbers not in the media?" Bukele asked.
"Well, they get out, but the fake news, you know, like CNN — CNN over here doesn't want to put them out because they don't like putting out good numbers … because I think they hate our country, actually," Trump said.
Trump then asked Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to comment.
"It's just been absolutely phenomenal what a great leader can do," Noem said. "Clear direction. Our laws matter. We should only have people in our country that love us. And our Border Patrol and our ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) officers and law officers have done fantastic work. So we're proud of them.
"Now, we just need to get the criminals and murderers and rapists and dangerous gang members and terrorist organizations out of our country."
After the media availability ended, CNN's Dana Bash took issue with Trump's words.
"I just want to say, for the record, since we heard President Trump say in the Oval Office that CNN hates our country, CNN does not hate our country," she told viewers. "That should go without saying."
Bash added, "I've been here for 32 years, and I see a rhetorical device in him trying to say such a thing. That said, I want to focus on the news that we heard."
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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