Fox News star Bret Baier says there is a lot of credence to House Speaker Paul Ryan’s theory about the president “trolling” reporters.
The host of “Special Report with Bret Baier” says outrage over President Trump possibly stripping Obama-era officials of security clearances may be exactly what he wants.
In short: Mr. Trump lays rhetorical bait for biased reporters knowing full well that they will overreact — thus making him look good.
“This president sometimes does troll the media and the left,” Mr. Baier said Tuesday. “I think that he wants heads to explode.”
Mr. Trump’s critics displayed anger on Monday after White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders acknowledged the possibility of former FBI Director James B. Comey, former CIA Director John O. Brennan and others losing security clearances.
“I think he’s trolling people, honestly,” Mr. Ryan told reporters Monday. “This is something that’s in the purview of the Executive branch.”
SEE ALSO: Paul Ryan: Donald Trump is ‘trolling’ people over security clearance threats
“People’s heads explode,” Mr. Baier added. “And then they overreact. And then we cover the overreaction and then the people in the middle of the country say, ’you know what?’”
The network’s chief political anchor used a tweet in which Mr. Trump surmised Russia might interfere with the midterm elections as an example of trolling the media.
“This president, more than any other before, knows how to control the news cycles,” Mr. Baier said, Mediaite reported. “And he knows how to be the story.”
I’m very concerned that Russia will be fighting very hard to have an impact on the upcoming Election. Based on the fact that no President has been tougher on Russia than me, they will be pushing very hard for the Democrats. They definitely don’t want Trump!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 24, 2018
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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