Trump team clashes with CNN over intelligence report

Donald Trump’s top aides continued to clash with CNN on Wednesday night, hours after the president-elect lashed out at one of the cable network’s reporters during his news conference during his news conference at Trump Tower. Trump took exception to CNN’s report that U.S. intelligence officials had briefed him on claims that Russia had collected compromising information on him.

In a fiery, 25-minute exchange with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, Kellyanne Conway — Trump’s senior adviser — denied that intelligence officials presented Trump with such information.

“It’s not true,” Conway said, while refusing to say what, specifically, was false.

“We don’t discuss the classified information that is discussed,” she said.

“But you just said that it wasn’t true,” Cooper responded. “I guess what you still haven’t answered, though, is what is inaccurate in our reporting?”

On Tuesday, CNN reported that Trump was briefed by the heads of four U.S. intelligence agencies last week on a two-page synopsis that included allegations that Russian intelligence operatives collected compromising personal and financial information about him. BuzzFeed subsequently published what it said was a 35-page dossier compiled by a former British intelligence operative and filled with unverified memos, on which the synopsis was based. The Russian government denied it has any compromising information on Trump, dismissing the claims as a “total hoax.”

“You can’t answer this question,” Cooper said to Conway. “What is inaccurate about our reporting?”

“Sure I can,” Conway said. “Here’s the answer: If the four intelligence officials that gave the top secret briefing last week that some fools think they should leak to the media when it’s a top secret intelligence briefing for a reason so that we’re all protected — everybody — then why, according to your own report last night — ‘report’ used as a loose word here — why do they not tell the president-elect about it? Because your own reporting says that there’s no confirmation that they briefed him orally.”

In a statement Wednesday night, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said he spoke with Trump and condemned the leaks. But Clapper’s statement also seemed to confirm CNN’s report that Trump had been briefed on the findings.

On Thursday morning, Trump tweeted that Clapper had called him “to denounce the false and fictitious report that was illegally circulated.”

Clapper, however, said that the intelligence community “had not made any judgment that the information” in the report is reliable, but was obligated to inform Trump to “ensure policymakers are provided with the fullest possible picture of any matters that might affect national security.”

ON CNN, Cooper criticized incoming White House press secretary Sean Spicer for conflating the CNN and BuzzFeed reports.

“No,” Conway shot back. “Sean Spicer was exactly right, as was the president-elect, Anderson. CNN went first yesterday and BuzzFeed went second.”

At his press conference Wednesday afternoon, Trump called BuzzFeed “a failing pile of garbage” for publishing the dossier, and criticized CNN for “going out of their way to build it up.” Shortly afterward, CNN reporter Jim Acosta attempted to ask a question. Trump declined, calling Acosta “fake news.”

“I felt it was only fair if our news organization was going to be attacked, we get to ask a followup question,” Acosta said after the press conference.

Later, Spicer tweeted that Acosta’s behavior “was rude, inappropriate and disrespectful,” and that he owes Trump an apology.

“An unfortunate statement,” Costa replied. “You know that you threatened to throw me out of that news conference if I asked another question. #realnews.”

Acosta added: “I have covered 4 presidential campaigns. Democrats and Republicans. This has never happened. Let’s deescalate, find a way to work together.”

But Carl Bernstein, who co-authored the CNN report, does not appear willing to deescalate anything.

“One of the great anonymous sources of our era is Kellyanne Conway,” Bernstein told Cooper. “She does it every day — she has been an anonymous source for the last ten months particularly during this campaign when it suits her — and it’s time to talk about what we do as journalists, and what propaganda ministers do, and that is what she is: a propaganda minister.”

“We did our work,” Bernstein added. “The chief officials of the United States intelligence community believed they had something urgent enough to bring to the attention of the president and the president-elect of the United States. That is a story.”

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