During his long, combative press conference Thursday, President Donald Trump once again rehashed the results of the November election. "I got 306 Electoral College votes," Trump said. "I wasn't supposed to get 222." He then noted that you only need 270 electoral votes to win — and as he had in the past, described his presidential victory as the "biggest win since [former President] Ronald Reagan."
Trump's claims are false on two fronts: He received only 304 electoral votes, and his victory margin in the Electoral College was the 13th-slimmest in history. When pressed on his verifiably false claims by NBC News' Peter Alexander, Trump merely said, "I was given that information":
Reacting to Trump's press conference, CNN anchor Jake Tapper said Thursday that Trump is "not dealing with the world in which we live." Tapper highlighted Trump's exchange with Alexander as evidence the president is "still fixated on whether or not he legitimately won the presidency." That's when Tapper turned directly to the camera to deliver some pointed advice. Watch below. Kimberly Alters
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Cryptocurrency and the future of politicsIn The Spotlight From electoral campaigns to government investments, crypto is everywhere and looks like it’s here to stay
-
Ssh! UK libraries worth travelling forThe Week Recommends From architectural delights to a ‘literary oasis’, these are some of the best libraries around the country
-
A fentanyl vaccine may be on the horizonUnder the radar Taking a serious jab at the opioid epidemic
-
Senate votes down ACA subsidies, GOP alternativeSpeed Read The Senate rejected the extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits, guaranteeing a steep rise in health care costs for millions of Americans
-
Abrego García freed from jail on judge’s orderSpeed Read The wrongfully deported man has been released from an ICE detention center
-
Indiana Senate rejects Trump’s gerrymander pushSpeed Read The proposed gerrymander would have likely flipped the state’s two Democratic-held US House seats
-
Democrat files to impeach RFK Jr.Speed Read Rep. Haley Stevens filed articles of impeachment against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
-
$1M ‘Trump Gold Card’ goes live amid travel rule furorSpeed Read The new gold card visa offers an expedited path to citizenship in exchange for $1 million
-
US seizes oil tanker off VenezuelaSpeed Read The seizure was a significant escalation in the pressure campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro
-
Judge orders release of Ghislaine Maxwell recordsSpeed Read The grand jury records from the 2019 prosecution of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein will be made public
-
Miami elects first Democratic mayor in 28 yearsSpeed Read Eileen Higgins, Miami’s first woman mayor, focused on affordability and Trump’s immigration crackdown in her campaign
