CNN’s Jim Acosta receives a Bronx cheer from attendees of a Trump rally in Tampa

CNN’s Jim Acosta receives a Bronx cheer from attendees of a Trump rally in Tampa
Image: MRCTV video screen grab

Maybe CNN should choose a different reporter to cover Trump rallies, or maybe Jim Acosta should decline when asked to do so. Regardless of who or what started the running feud between the network’s chief White House correspondent and the president, it should now be clear to the network that when Acosta is sent into the lion’s den, the story is going to be about him, not the president.

This was the case once again Tuesday night when Acosta turned up at a Trump rally in Tampa. As NewsBusters’s Curtis Houck reports:

Acosta was heckled yet again by the arena of Trump supporters, chanting “CNN sucks.” Of course, Acosta chose not to ignore them and asserted that it’s “false” that the Jeffery Zucker-led network “sucks.” Okay, Jim.

Acosta began his 5:05 p.m. Eastern live shot on The Situation Room concerning the Manafort trial and a new legal argument by Trump and his legal team with a smattering of boos but nothing that was negligible.

[…]

Three minutes later when the taped portion of his report ended, Acosta came back live with an even larger crowd shouting “CNN sucks” as he bemoaned the lack of White House press briefings as there were “only three briefings for the press this month and eight total since the end of May.”

“There is no other way to describe what the White House is doing these days, Wolf, top officials including the President are hiding from the press,”Acosta continued. He should have stopped there, but the self-centered liberal journalist couldn’t help but offer proverbial return fire in the direction of the crowd.

Videos of the event appear to show Acosta doing what some on social media are calling a “stand-up” routine. For some reason, the reporter stands on a desk or table and is elevated above the crowd that surrounds him.

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One social media user wrote: “I find it hard to generate much sympathy for him. Acosta wouldn’t keep it classy even in North Korea, when the seemingly impossible was happening. He’s been writing this check with his mouth for months. He isn’t just distrusted, he’s *disliked* by some potential customers.”

The likely reference of the comment is Acosta’s boorish behavior at the summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un in Singapore. When the two world leaders appeared on a balcony, Acosta embarrassed himself and American journalists by loudly shouting out questions. When his colleagues looked at him quizzically after the two men inside, Acosta doubled down, saying, “Hey, if they’re not going to let me in the f*cking meeting, then that’s what happens.” His remark was picked up by a hot mic.

As for last night, post at Twitchy called the crowd’s reaction “pretty rude,” but then observed that “if CNN could just find a way to suck less, maybe it would die down a little.”

If is a mighty big word.

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Joe Newby

Joe Newby

Joe Newby is an IT professional. He has written for Conservative Firing Line, Examiner, NewsBusters, and Spokane Faith and Values.

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