Trump blames 'intelligence leak' for damaging report on Sessions

International Desk: US President Donald Trump railed against the latest damaging report about his administration, tweeting on Saturday morning that the "illegal leaks" like the one he said was behind a Washington Post article must end.

The Post reported late Friday that Attorney General Jeff Sessions had discussed campaign-related matters with the Russian ambassador during the election, seemingly contradicting Sessions' claim that no such issues were discussed. The article cites current and U.S. officials who were familiar with U.S. intelligence intercepts.

"A new INTELLIGENCE LEAK from the Amazon Washington Post,this time against A.G. Jeff Sessions.These illegal leaks, like Comey's, must stop!" Trump tweeted.

The tweet came amid fresh tension between Trump and Sessions, after the president earlier this week heavily criticized his attorney general in a New York Times interview for recusing himself from the FBI's Russia probe.

The White House has since said Trump has confidence in Sessions, and Sessions said he has no current plans to step down.

Trump on Saturday morning also rebuked the Times for its coverage of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

"The Failing New York Times foiled U.S. attempt to kill the single most wanted terrorist, Al-Baghdadi," the president tweeted. Trump went on to pan The Times' for "their sick agenda over National Security" in a seemingly unfinished train of thought.

Though it is initially unclear which report Trump was alluding to, The Times reported late Friday that Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon that al-Baghdadi was still alive, adding:
“I’ll believe otherwise when we know we have killed him. We are going after him.”

A New York Times spokesperson told POLITICO that the news organization has asked the White House to clarify the president's tweet.

"We have asked the White House to clarify the tweet. If the President is referring to this 2015 story, the Pentagon raised no objections with the Times before publishing the story in 2015 and no senior American official ever complained publicly about it until now, as noted in Peter Baker's story this morning," a Times spokesperson said.

The on-the-record remarks were widely reported by other news outlets as well.

The president has frequently spoken out against damaging reports in the press dating back to the 2016 presidential race, bashing outlets for reporting on the so-called "illegal" leaks.

Trump has repeatedly derided as the "failing New York Times," has been a target of choice for the president.

In October of 2016, Trump's legal team threatened to sue the publication over its reporting of sexual harassment allegations from several women. Trump at other times has alluded to potential libel lawsuits against news outlets.

Agencies


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