President Donald Trump raised the possibility of jailing reporters over leaks on Thursday, telling members of the press that he has not taken that step “yet.”
The president made the remarks while speaking to reporters on the tarmac in Dallas during a trip to Texas and Oklahoma.
The comments come amid an ongoing clash between the White House and several media outlets. On Sept. 18, Trump announced a ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House, citing “their constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!”
The three outlets sued in response. Judge Timothy Kelly, a Trump appointee, then issued a 14-day temporary restraining order directing the administration to restore their access.
CNN has continued to be a target of the president. The network was removed from its press pool duties for Trump’s trip to Texas and Oklahoma on Thursday.
During the exchange in Dallas, a reporter brought up the president’s criticism of the media.
“You’ve been critical of CNN and the other media outlets for their coverage,” the reporter said.
“They’re terrible!” Trump interjected.
The reporter followed up with a question about the president’s use of executive authority.
“What do you feel about those who feel like you’re doing too much with your executive power, you’re using it too much to go after political opponents, against the media — things like that?” the reporter asked.
Trump rejected the premise and turned the focus to former President Barack Obama.
“I don’t think I’ve used it at all. If you look at [former President Barack] Obama, what he did was far worse,” Trump said. “He’d go and use his executive powers at a much [unintelligible].”
The president then described how he said the Obama administration dealt with leaks.
“For instance, when he had leaks, they would arrest the people — the reporters — unless they gave them the names and the addresses of the reporter or whoever it was that gave the leak,” Trump said.
He continued to lay out his account of Obama’s approach.
“Obama used to go in, and if there was a leak, they would say to people, ‘You have 15 minutes, and if you don’t give us the information, you’re going to jail,'” Trump said. “I guess two people went to jail. 10 people gave it up.”
The president then added a warning of his own.
“I haven’t done that — yet,” Trump said.
After a pause, he repeated the word: “yet.”
This is not the first time Trump has gone after those who leak information. The president has previously blasted leakers, describing them as “people that are cowards, people that are unpatriotic, people that are treasonous, in many cases.”
Thursday’s remarks come as the White House’s battle with CNN, MS NOW and Politico continues. While a federal judge appointed by Trump has ordered the administration to restore the outlets’ access for now, the president has made clear he remains unhappy with their coverage, calling the networks “terrible.”
By pointing to Obama’s record on leaks, Trump pushed back on critics who say he is using his executive power too aggressively against political opponents and the media, arguing that his predecessor went “far worse.”
The president’s final word on the matter, however, left the door open to tougher action in the future.
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