Trump, White House Staff Escalate War Against CNN After Outlet Reported Iranian Nuclear Sites Had Not Been Destroyed

President Trump and his White House staff are not relenting in their war against CNN after the outlet reported that the three Iranian nuclear sites struck over the weekend were not entirely destroyed. Since the report came out, the president himself as well as his top aides have been attacking the reporter behind the piece by name. On Tuesday, CNN reported that officials at the Defense Intelligence Agency came to the assessment that the Fordow nuclear site in Iran had not been completely destroyed, as the administration has said. The intelligence analysts believed that Iran’s nuclear capabilities faced setbacks that could amount only to months, according to the outlet. At a briefing on Thursday, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt went directly after the CNN reporter behind the piece, Natasha Bertrand, who has worked as a national security and intelligence reporter for the better part of a decade. “This was a low-confidence, preliminary … assessment,” Ms. Leavitt said Thursday. “Only tidbits of that assessment were leaked to CNN, and we have seen this playbook run before, where you have people in the intelligence community or perhaps on Capitol Hill … leaked bits and pieces of an intel assessment to push a false narrative.” Ms. Levitt brought up some of Ms. Bertrand’s past reporting, including a piece for Politico in 2020 detailing a letter signed by 51 national security officials who claimed that Hunter Biden’s laptop and its leak to the New York Post had “all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.” Mr. Biden later conceded during his two criminal trials that the laptop was, in fact, his. Ms. Bertrand has “had 51 intelligence analysts falsely lie to her, but she still put it on paper for some reason, that the Hunter Biden laptop story was Russian disinformation,” Ms. Leavitt said from the podium Thursday. She also attacked Ms. Bertrand for a 2020 report that “a top intel agency ruled out the man-made, lab-leak theory of the coronavirus.” Ms. Leavitt further accused her of pushing “the suckers and losers hoax,” and the “fine people hoax, which was taking the president’s words purposely out of context.” “This is a reporter who has been unfortunately used by people who dislike Donald Trump in this government to push fake and false narratives. She should be ashamed of herself,” the press secretary said. “Journalism is trying to find the facts and the truth and this week, we saw this same reporter being used to push a fake narrative to try to undermine the president of the United States.”Earlier that morning, Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social that he believed reporters at CNN and at the New York Times, which also reported on the intelligence assessment, will be let go. “Rumor is that the Failing New York Times and Fake News CNN will be firing the reporters who made up the FAKE stories on the Iran Nuclear sites because they got it so wrong. Let’s see what happens?” the president wrote. In a statement, CNN said that it stands behind Ms. Bertrade “100 percent” and that it does not believe “it is reasonable to criticize CNN reporters for accurately reporting the existence of the assessment and accurately characterizing its findings, which are in the public interest.”Shortly after Ms. Leavitt’s briefing concluded, the White House sent out a list of quotes from analysts regarding the Iranian strikes. “Experts Agree: Iran’s Nuclear Facilities Have Been Obliterated,” the press release stated. It included quotes from the CIA director, John Ratcliffe, the director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, retired military officers, the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, analysts from think tanks, and officials from Israel and Iran, among others. In a social media post on Wednesday, Mr. Trump said one of the reporters who worked on the story should be thrown out “like a dog.”The entirety of the administration was quick to push back on CNN’s reporting. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff called the leak of the DIA intelligence assessment “treasonous” and said the leaker should be punished. Ms. Leavitt said Thursday that the FBI is investigating to determine who leaked the report. On Wednesday, the White House press office sent out a lengthy defense of its assertion that the Fordow site attack was nothing less than “total obliteration.”“President Trump directed the most complex and secretive military operation in history, and it was a resounding success,” the White House press office said Wednesday. “The precision strikes perfectly hit their targets and destroyed Iran’s nuclear facilities. … Parts of this inconclusive, low-confidence intelligence assessment were leaked to Fake News CNN to undermine the President.”The “fact sheet” from the West Wing lists quotes from 17 individuals, ranging from members of the president’s Cabinet to the Iranian government.The DIA says that the report was only preliminary, and that it “will continue to be refined as additional intelligence becomes available.” It further stated that it is working with authorities to find the person who leaked their initial intelligence assessment. The White House press office also cited an Israeli military official and the country’s Atomic Energy Commission, both of which claim that Fordow is inoperable and would take years to rebuild. The White House further quotes the Iranian foreign minister, who says that his country’s nuclear capabilities were “badly damaged.”Mr. Trump added his own voice to the chorus on Wednesday, saying that one of the individuals who reported the story should be fired. “Natasha Bertrand should be FIRED from CNN! I watched her for three days doing Fake News. She should be IMMEDIATELY reprimanded, and then thrown out ‘like a dog,’” Mr. Trump says. Ms. Bertrand has been a national security reporter for CNN since 2021. “She should not be allowed to work at Fake News CNN. It’s people like her who destroyed the reputation of a once great Network,” Mr. Trump wrote. “Her slant was so obviously negative, besides, she doesn’t have what it takes to be an on-camera correspondent, not even close. FIRE NATASHA!”

Trump, White House Staff Escalate War Against CNN After Outlet Reported Iranian Nuclear Sites Had Not Been Destroyed

More from the New York Sun

‘Top Gun’ at 40: The Real Story Behind the Blockbuster That Sealed Tom Cruise’s Stardom

Justice Alito’s Duty To Sit

Progressive Candidates in Colorado Call for Democratic Governor’s Impeachment

More from the New York Sun

‘Top Gun’ at 40: The Real Story Behind the Blockbuster That Sealed Tom Cruise’s Stardom

Justice Alito’s Duty To Sit

Progressive Candidates in Colorado Call for Democratic Governor’s Impeachment

Women’s Sports Podcasts Are Fueling the Next Media Gold Rush

Trump Drops IRS Lawsuit as DOJ Creates $1.776 Billion ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’

New York Times Reporters ‘Exasperated’ by Column Claiming Israeli Abuse of Palestinian Prisoners, ‘Suspicious’ of Sourcing

Israel Reportedly Jams Gaza Flotilla’s Radio With Britney Spears Hit

Judge Throws Out Some, Permits Some of Evidence Collection in Mangione Trial