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Trump Defends Social Media Use After Controversial Tweets

By Paul LeBlanc

PHILADELPHIA (CNN) -- President Donald Trump defended his use of Twitter on Saturday after several days of controversial tweets.

"My use of social media is not Presidential- it's MODERN DAY PRESIDENTIAL. Make America Great Again!" the tweet read. The statement was an apparent response to backlash he's received over an attack on MSNBC "Morning Joe" cohosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski.

Earlier on Saturday Trump attacked critiques of his social media use: "I had to beat #FakeNews, and did. We will continue to WIN!" he wrote.

At a Kennedy Center event honoring veterans Saturday night, sponsored by the First Baptist Church in Dallas, Trump again attacked the news media.

"The fake media is trying to silence us, but we will not let them," Trump said, without offering any evidence that journalists -- who cover every public remark made by the President -- have attempted to silence him.

"The fake media tried to stop us from going to the White House," Trump said. "But I'm President and they're not."

Trump sparked controversy Thursday morning with tweets about MSNBC "Morning Joe" hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski.

"I heard poorly rated @Morning_Joe speaks badly of me (don't watch anymore). Then how come low I.Q. Crazy Mika, along with Psycho Joe, came ... to Mar-a-Lago 3 nights in a row around New Year's Eve, and insisted on joining me. She was bleeding badly from a face-lift. I said no!" the tweets read.

The following day Trump tweeted again about the MSNBC morning show, calling the program "FAKE NEWS" and bringing up a National Enquirer article. Scarborough and Brzezinski claimed the President threatened the possibility of a hit piece in the tabloid unless they changed their news coverage.

Early Saturday, Trump tweeted again, saying the hosts weren't bad people. But he called Scarborough "crazy" and Brzezinski "dumb as a rock."

Trump went on to attack CNN, a tweet he pinned to the top of his account, with the hashtag #FraudNewsCNN.

"I am thinking about changing the #FakeNews CNN to #FraudNewsCNN!" he wrote.

The-CNN-Wire ™ & © 2017 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.

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