Last night, at a rally onstage in Montana, President Donald Trump cheered on the assault of a reporter, when he reminisced about Rep. Greg Gianforte (R-Mont.) tackling the Guardian‘s Ben Jacobs before a special election.
On the internet, Trump’s biggest supporters were aghast, upset, and infuriated not about that, but instead that a reporter would use a swear word in a DM on Twitter.
CNN’s Jim Acosta, a favorite of vitriol on the right for what they believe is his grandstanding and bias, sent a DM to a person on Twitter that said simply “Fuck You.”
https://twitter.com/justincap_/status/1053130150102134785?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1053154610062520320&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailydot.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost-new.php
The tweet appears to be in response to Justin Caporale, a former employee of First Lady Melania Trump, after he tweeted “Dear Diary” in response to an Acosta tweet, a popular meme on the right. The meme makes fun of Acosta’s lengthy tweets where he bemoans the behavior of the Trump administration, joking that instead of public statements, they seem more like entries in a private journal.
https://twitter.com/justincap_/status/1053113587080851456
Acosta’s message ruffled feathers on the right, who frequently attack one of their least-favorite members of the White House Press Corps.
This is a very sad way for a member of the WH Press Corp to behave. https://t.co/4wgHKOkVC8
— Boris Epshteyn (@BorisEP) October 19, 2018
https://twitter.com/freedom_moates/status/1053158242887614464
Sad to see how unhinged @Acosta is https://t.co/RhlilkBax6
— Joe ‘Baboots’ Curci (@JoeyBaboots) October 19, 2018
Is it any surprise to see sewage slush from someone living in it and broadcasting it to the world as “News”. What happened to Journalism as a profession? https://t.co/wjKKqvYH0v
— Hassan Deedaur (@HassanDeedaur) October 19, 2018
@acosta and @CNN showing their true colors. https://t.co/fV945Q8nYv
— Anna (@jemmasmommy) October 19, 2018
Conservatives, it should be noted, aren’t likely appalled by Acosta’s behavior. If Sean Hannity has said “Fuck You” to a liberal critic, it would have been vociferously cheered as a righteous putdown of the left. It’s not about language or civility. It’s just because they don’t like him.
But also, don’t send DMs like that because they can be easily shared publicly.
