Trump tweets about 'TREASON' after NYT publishes anonymous op-ed

Donald Trump.
(Image credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

On Twitter Wednesday evening, President Trump reacted to the senior member of his administration who anonymously penned a scathing New York Times op-ed about Trump's competency and agenda.

In the piece, the official describes Trump as acting "in a manner that is detrimental to the health of our republic," someone who "is not moored to any discernible first principles that guide his decision making." This person said other members of the administration have discussed invoking the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office, but "no one wanted to precipitate a constitutional crisis."

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders quickly released a statement blasting the anonymous author, and Trump told reporters the mystery source is "probably failing and probably here for all the wrong reasons." He didn't stop there — Trump then tweeted Fox News' footage of his off-the-cuff remarks, with the caption, "The Failing New York Times!" followed by a one-word message: "TREASON?" It's a tweet that can be taken several different ways — was he assailing the anonymous source? Trolling Democrats so they could fire back, "You finally admitted it!" Honestly asking for someone to please define the word for him? Go ahead and make of it what you will.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.