President Trump held a raucous rally in Tampa, Florida, Tuesday night. Thousands of supporters packed a local arena to hear Trump hammer his critics and tout his administration’s accomplishments.
The event had all the elements of a good Trump rally. Hecklers, comedy and chants about Hillary abounded. During the speech, Trump stopped to pick on one of his favorite targets: the media. The president heckled the press as “fake news” and the audience reacted accordingly.
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One of the favorite targets of the audience was CNN’s Jim Acosta, who tweeted multiple videos of the crowd mocking him and chanting ‘CNN Sucks!’ before and after the rally. In one tweet, Acosta blamed Trump for the vitriol, saying “I’m very worried that the hostility whipped up by Trump and some in conservative media will result in somebody getting hurt.”
Just a sample of the sad scene we faced at the Trump rally in Tampa. I’m very worried that the hostility whipped up by Trump and some in conservative media will result in somebody getting hurt. We should not treat our fellow Americans this way. The press is not the enemy. pic.twitter.com/IhSRw5Ui3R
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) August 1, 2018
Politico reporter Mark Caputo responded to Acosta, insinuating that Trump supporters are toothless. The tweet has since been deleted after being up for hours.
Caputo and POLITICO faced major backlash for the offensive tweet. The View co-host Meghan McCain gave Caputo a root canal, saying, “This is so gross and this kind of statement is what so many in the middle of the country think the media thinks of them. @politico should hold their reporters to a higher standard.”
This is so gross and this kind of statement is what so many in the middle of the country think the media thinks of them. @politico should hold their reporters to a higher standard. https://t.co/LEDZBKq96g
— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) August 1, 2018
A POLITICO spokesperson said the tweet did not match the sites editorial standards.