Carlos Barria/Reuters
Asked Thursday about President Trump’s retweeting this week of three anti-Islam videos, Sarah Huckabee Sanders claimed the president was simply “elevating the conversation.” The three unverified videos, originally posted by a notorious British far-right activist, have caused internal waves, as CNN reported that the U.S. State Department warned the White House that Trump’s retweets could put embassies abroad in harm’s way. “I think the president feels that bringing up important issues of our time like extreme violence and terrorism are important to do,” Sanders, the White House press secretary, said. “That was what he was doing in that process.” Asked whether Trump has any obligation to verify the information he posts online, Sanders said, “I think what he’s done is elevate the conversation to talk about a real issue and threat; and that’s extreme violence and extreme terrorism.” On a separate tweets-related issue, Sanders said she has nothing to add on why Trump tweeted a conspiracy theory about MSNBC host Joe Scarborough’s ex-intern’s 2001 death.