United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the media should stop its “endless hostility” and “false attacks”, AFP reported. The remark came hours after a suspicious package was found at the Time Warner Center in Manhattan, where news network CNN is based. Similar packages, addressed to former US President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her husband Bill Clinton were also found near their homes.
At a campaign rally in Mosinee, Wisconsin, Trump said: “No one should carelessly compare political opponents to historical villains, which is done, it’s done all the time. We should not mob people in public spaces or destroy public property. There is one way to settle our disagreements. It’s called peacefully at the ballot box.”
“As part of a larger national effort to bridge our divides and bring people together, the media also has a responsibility to set a civil tone and stop the endless hostility and constant negative and often times false attacks and stories,” he added.
Trump also said the act of sending the suspicious packages was “despicable”, according to The Guardian. He said a major federal investigation was underway, and that the explosive devices found in the packages were being tested.
“We have to unify. We have to come together,” he said. “Acts or threats of political violence of any kind have no place in the United States of America.”
Meanwhile, a suspicious package was also sent to Democratic Party Representative Maxine Waters, AP reported. Another package was found at one of the offices of Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz. A package was found at the office of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, but it was unrelated to the ones sent to Hillary and Bill Clinton and the Obamas, law enforcement officials said.
The package delivered to CNN is thought to have contained a crude pipe bomb, two unidentified law enforcement officials said, but it was addressed to Central Intelligence Agency Director John Brennan.
CNN President Jeff Zucker said in a statement: “There is a total and complete lack of understanding at the White House about the seriousness of their continued attacks on the media. The President, and especially the White House Press Secretary, should understand their words matter. Thus far, they have shown no comprehension of that.”
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