CNN investigative reporter Nathan Dermott tweeted a joke after Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei shared a photo of himself reading Fire and Fury on Friday—but not everyone was amused by it.
Just days after President Donald Trump said he was backing out of a nuclear accord with Iran, Khamenei shared a photo of himself reading the controversial tell-all book on the president’s administration. Many saw it as the Ayatollah’s way to troll Trump.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bio-EWqnIIv/?taken-by=khamenei_ir
In his tweet, Dermott welcomed Khamenei to “the resistance.”
https://twitter.com/natemcdermott/status/995012558686957568
Folks on Twitter did not find Dermott’s tweet funny or entertaining. Instead, they found it troubling that a member of the American press would think it was appropriate to joke with the leader of a nation that hasn’t always been too fond of the U.S.
Trump supporters and conservative media members, like editors of Breitbart, took the opportunity to bash on the “mainstream” media. Quite a few Twitter accounts that appear to be bots joined in on the conversation, as well. (We didn’t include any tweets we believe to have been tweeted by a bot).
What a weird time we are in when we are willing to jokingly side with the leader of a country that would do anything to destroy us. https://t.co/8qaH3TBLDF
— MacKay (@Myideasweretook) May 12, 2018
https://twitter.com/RaheemKassam/status/995027063466790912
https://twitter.com/Derjucar/status/995308547813474305
Another useful idiot—a CNN reporter welcoming the leader of one of world’s most repressive regimes to the “resistance!” https://t.co/mnib2oKP6z
— Mariam Memarsadeghi (@memarsadeghi) May 12, 2018
Behold Nathan McDermott
— Simone Laurey (@SimoneLaurey) May 11, 2018
Nathan works for CNN
CNN is Fake News
Nathan sides with terrorists
Don’t be like Nathan. https://t.co/AK9nctNk4p
https://twitter.com/ARTurOFWAR/status/995029969330954247
https://twitter.com/anthonypiccone/status/995023754936901632
Dermott, meanwhile, clarified in a tweet later that he was being sarcastic. Some users came to his defense.
https://twitter.com/natemcdermott/status/995027764012093442
https://twitter.com/HashtagGriswold/status/995026741709156352
https://twitter.com/RobProvince/status/995096063865491456
https://twitter.com/sashaengle/status/995303330279763969
After Trump announced he was backing out of the nuclear accord, Khamenei condemned the decision.
“This man will turn to dust and his body will become food for snakes and ants,” he said. “And the Islamic Republic will still be standing.”
