President Donald Trump snapped at a female reporter who pressed him on the growing list of Republicans who are giving his midterm convention a pass.
The thin-skinned president’s latest outburst came as he spoke to reporters Wednesday on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews before departing for Dallas, where he is headlining the first-ever GOP midterm convention.
While Trump, 80, is billing it as the “greatest rally of them all,” the event is shaping up to be an embarrassing snub-fest as Republicans opt out over fears that appearing alongside the deeply unpopular president could be a political death wish.
At least 45 House Republican candidates and members told Politico they would skip the event, while vulnerable senators Susan Collins of Maine and Dan Sullivan of Alaska are also staying home.
Trump’s response to ABC News chief White House correspondent Mary Bruce’s question about the growing no-show list suggests the subject is a sore spot for the president.
“Mr. President, several Republicans in competitive races are not coming to the convention. Do you understand why they’re not deciding to come?” Bruce asked.
“Everybody that’s come—everybody is coming to the convention,” Trump replied before rambling on, “Everybody wants to come, but we only want, and the people that are coming—by the way, we’re going to be sold out tonight, just so you understand.”
The elderly president then asked Bruce, who has covered him for years and whom he has lashed out at in the past, “Who are you with?”
“ABC News, sir,” Bruce responded.
“ABC fake news,” Trump barked. “One of the worst—you are the worst of all, in my opinion.”
He then blamed the Republican no-shows on the venue’s size, even though the American Airlines Center seats roughly 20,000 people.
“Uh, the reason that some people are not coming is because we don’t have room for 500 politicians,” he said. “We have room for the ones that have a close race if they’re slightly behind or slightly ahead or tied. But we don’t have room for people that are 35 points up and don’t need to be there. We said stay back and campaign. Every politician that we’ve wanted to be there is there.”
However, many of the Republicans steering clear of the convention are, in fact, facing tough re-election contests, including Collins and Sullivan, as well as Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar of Florida, Tom Barrett of Michigan, Juan Ciscomani of Arizona, and David Valadao of California.
While entry to the convention was a steep $25,000, the GOP is now giving away free tickets in a frantic bid to fill seats, with unsolicited text messages sent out last week directing recipients to a ticket registration page.
Bruce has previously faced the kind of personal insults Trump routinely directs at female journalists.
In November, one day after referring to Bloomberg News correspondent Catherine Lucey as “piggy,” the president melted down at Bruce after she asked him about his hesitation to release the Jeffrey Epstein files.
“I think the way you ask the question, with the anger and the meanness, is terrible. You go back and learn how to be a reporter. No more questions from you,” he said.
