As many of you already know, Trump foolishly went after Maggie Haberman of the NY Times over the weekend for a report she did on how Cohen might flip because Trump has abused him over the years.
In case you missed it, here are his tweets:
The New York Times and a third rate reporter named Maggie Haberman, known as a Crooked H flunkie who I don’t speak to and have nothing to do with, are going out of their way to destroy Michael Cohen and his relationship with me in the hope that he will “flip.” They use....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 21, 2018
....non-existent “sources” and a drunk/drugged up loser who hates Michael, a fine person with a wonderful family. Michael is a businessman for his own account/lawyer who I have always liked & respected. Most people will flip if the Government lets them out of trouble, even if....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 21, 2018
....it means lying or making up stories. Sorry, I don’t see Michael doing that despite the horrible Witch Hunt and the dishonest media!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 21, 2018
This morning CNN interviewed Haberman, who stood by her story of how abusive Trump has been to Cohen over the years:
.@MaggieNYT responds to President Trump's attacks on her from over the weekend: Michael Cohen's criminal probe "is hitting a nerve with him" pic.twitter.com/sjyAesehDV
— New Day (@NewDay) April 23, 2018
She points out that this ‘abuse’ probably wouldn’t be the only reason to make Cohen turn on Trump, as he has been quite loyal to Trump.
It’s worth noting that this ‘drunk/drugged up loser’ that Trump is referring to in his tweet as one of Haberman’s sources is none other than Roger Stone. When it comes to Trump’s orbit, that’s not a bad source. Why would he lie about this? Also he’s only one of a half-dozen sources saying this.
Here’s the original NY Times article if you want to read it…
UPDATE: A little more on Haberman. As the Epoch times reminds us…
Haberman’s cozy relationship with the Clinton campaign was exposed in internal emails published by Wikileaks. In a January 2015 email, Nick Merrill, the communications director for the Clinton campaign, wrote that the campaign has had a “very good relationship with Maggie Haberman of Politico over the last year.”
“We have had her tee up stories for us before and have never been disappointed,” Merrill continues. “While we should have a larger conversation in the near future about a broader strategy for reengaging the beat press that covers HRC, for this we think we can achieve our objective and do the most shaping by going to Maggie.”
The email goes on to explain which information would be shared “on background” and what would be shared “on the record” while outlining how the story will help the campaign shape its message. The campaign’s goal was to induce Haberman to write a story that demonstrated how thorough and transparent Clinton was in her decision-making process.
Haberman went on to publish two stories, on February 20 and 27. Both articles are nuanced and include a dose of criticism, but ultimately achieved the campaign’s goals.
Haberman was also among 38 reporters and media personalities who accepted an invitation to a ritzy, completely off-the-record dinner hosted by the Clinton campaign on April 10, 2015, according to another email. The campaign’s goal for the dinner was to frame Clinton’s message and the race, according to the event memo.
I’m not suggesting her report in this instance is wrong or even misleading, but it’s a good reminder that she has hacked it up in the past for Hillary and often people like that just keep on hacking.
One question though. If Trump knew all this about her, and I’m sure he did, why has he given her so much access?