Donald Trump Ripped As ‘Crass’ For Comments About Cokie Roberts

“I never met her. She never treated me nicely,” Trump said, per a pool report. “But I would like to wish her family well. She was a professional and I respect professionals. Never treated me well, but I certainly respect her as a professional.”
Per pool, here’s Trump on the death of Cokie Roberts: “I never met her. She never treated me nicely. But I would like to wish her family well. She was a professional and I respect professionals…Never treated me well, but I certainly respect her as a professional.”
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 17, 2019
Trump’s comments were in stark contrast to the tributes paid by former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
The Bush family described Roberts as “a talented, tough, and fair reporter” who “became a friend.” Obama called her “a trailblazing figure; a role model to young women at a time when the profession was still dominated by men.”
CNN’s Jake Tapper noted how Roberts grilled Trump over the telephone about the effects of his divisive rhetoric ahead of the 2016 election:
Here’s Cokie in 2016 asking then-candidate Trump about reports of white kids in the US using his rhetoric and campaign promises to tease and harass minority kids. https://t.co/pXd91LPbNK
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) September 17, 2019
Others called the president’s response to her death “crass” and “unreal” and said Trump found a way of making Roberts’ death all about himself:
Because Cokie was a person of character, she didn’t have a high opinion of Donald Trump. But because she was a shrewd political observer, she often said during the 2016 campaign that we shouldn’t underestimate his chances of victory. https://t.co/jXcrIVPVgM
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) September 17, 2019
On the passing of NPR’s Cokie Roberts…
Barack Obama: “A trailblazing figure.”
Bill Clinton: “An institution.”
George W. Bush: “Talented, tough and fair”
Donald Trump: “She never treated me nicely, but I would like to wish her family well.” pic.twitter.com/cNKcE3DMKs— Bob Mondello (@Bob_Mondello) September 17, 2019
Oh, well. I was going to say that, based on what I’d seen on Twitter, Cokie Roberts might be the last departed journalist to get universal praise across the political spectrum. Of course, there’s one out-liar. https://t.co/NLWURaxiHL
— Robert A George (@RobGeorge) September 17, 2019
The guy can’t contain his malignant narcissism for one minute, not even in the most banal situations with the most obvious social etiquette. https://t.co/lWjl7lYULM
— Max Kennerly (@MaxKennerly) September 17, 2019
@realDonaldTrump So Cokie Roberts was an honest reporter. And she probably was honest about you. Did no one tell you not to speak ill of the dead – even if they are right about you? Acting with class is just not something you are capable of is it? Crass, crass, crass, ..ass.
— Janet Schulz (@LadyRoryBlack) September 18, 2019