CNN's Jake Tapper tore into President Trump on Friday after Trump defended his administration's wiretapping claims at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Though Trump himself tweeted the baseless claim that former President Barack Obama wiretapped his phones at Trump Tower during the presidential election — and White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer then rehashed the unfounded claims that British spy agency GCHQ was involved — Trump on Friday blamed Fox News for spreading the allegations. "We said nothing. All we did was quote a very talented legal mind," Trump said, referring to former judge Andrew Napolitano, who suggested on Fox News that Obama "used" GCHQ to get intelligence on Trump.
"In a fevered effort to try to force this outlandish claim into something remotely resembling — passably, perhaps, maybe — the truth, the White House appears actually willing to repeat another wild accusation that potentially could alienate our nation's most important ally," Tapper said, referring to Britain. A GCHQ spokesperson on Friday said the allegation repeated by Spicer is "utterly ridiculous."
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.
-
Violent videos of Charlie Kirk’s death are renewing debate over online censorshipTalking Points Social media ‘promises unfiltered access, but without guarantees of truth and without protection from harm’
-
What led to Poland invoking NATO’s Article 4 and where could it lead?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION After a Russian drone blitz, Warsaw’s rare move to invoke the important NATO statute has potentially moved Europe closer to continent-wide warfare
-
Africa could become the next frontier for space programsThe Explainer China and the US are both working on space applications for Africa
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to TrumpSpeed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raidsSpeed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raidSpeed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearingSpeed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mountSpeed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own listspeed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battleSpeed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants
