Trump calls for revocation of 2018 Pulitzer Prize, cites Russian collusion misreporting
Former President Donald Trump known as on the Pulitzer Prize Board to rescind the 2018 Nationwide Reporting awards granted to the New York Instances and the Washington Submit for his or her protection of the Russian collusion story, claiming the tales have been based mostly on “false reporting” and a “full lack of proof.”
“As has been broadly publicized, the protection was not more than a politically motivated farce which tried to spin a false narrative that my marketing campaign supposedly colluded with Russia regardless of a whole lack of proof underpinning this allegation,” Trump wrote in a letter addressed to Bud Kliment, the interim administrator of the awards.
Trump pointed to the indictment of Michael Sussmann, a former consultant for Hillary Clinton’s presidential marketing campaign, by particular counsel John Durham as proof for his criticism. Durham alleged Sussmann lied to the FBI when he tipped the company in September 2016 to a potential hyperlink between the Trump marketing campaign and Alfa Financial institution , which has ties to the Kremlin.
TRUMP SAYS NEW YORK TIMES REPORTER MAGGIE HABERMAN SHOULD ‘GIVE BACK’ HER PULITZER PRIZE
The Sussmann indictment “serves as a damning repudiation of the media’s obsession with the collusion story. The indictment pointedly accuses Mr. Sussman of creating false statements to the FBI when he offered ‘proof’ purporting to point out secret communications between my group and the Russia-based Alfa Financial institution,” Trump added within the letter.
The previous president additionally complained concerning the framing of the sources featured by the media retailers that obtained awards for the work, particularly pointing to articles that credited “’folks with information,’ ’present and former officers,’ ’some senior U.S. officers,’ and different vaguely outlined people.”
Trump stated the PPB “should act accordingly,” saying the awards carry a “degree of reverence” that suggests the reporting being honored is “deemed credible, well-sourced and reliable.”
“I might count on that you’ll take the required steps to rectify the state of affairs, together with stripping the recipients of their prize and retracting the false statements which stay on the Pulitzer web site,” Trump stated. “With out holding the recipients to such a excessive customary of accountability, the integrity of the Pulitzer Prize namesake stands to be wholly compromised.”
Trump beforehand known as for the prizes to be revoked in March 2019.
The Washington Examiner contacted the PPB however didn’t instantly obtain a response.
