Trump completely loses it — at a Fox host

During an interview on Fox Business that mostly consisted of softball questions, Trump angrily berated reporter Maria Bartiromo and described her as “fake news” when she dared to ask him a question he didn’t like.

Bartiromo’s interview began with praise: “Under you Mr. President, we’ve seen growth in the economy, in jobs, the stock market,” she said — failing to mention that the economic recovery began under President Barack Obama.

But then Bartiromo mentioned Trump’s recent bizarre attacks on the late Sen. John McCain, noting that it seems counterproductive for Trump to have spent so much time over the last week attacking a dead man who cannot respond.

Trump didn’t like that one bit.

“I didn’t bring it up, I didn’t mention John McCain until you asked me a question about John McCain. Now I could say I have no comment, but that’s not me,” Trump blustered.

And then he indicated that he thought he had an agreement with Fox not to even discuss the issue.

“But you shouldn’t have brought it up,” he said. “Actually, I thought you weren’t supposed to bring it up, but that’s okay — fake news every once in a while.”

“It’s not fake news,” Bartiromo objected. “You just told me why you have an issue with him, it’s real.”

The right-wing propaganda network is clearly concerned that Trump might have spilled the beans and made it look bad. Fox released a brief video clip of Bartiromo strenuously denying that questions were set up ahead of time.

It wouldn’t be the first time something like this has happened. Just a few months ago Trump’s then-EPA head, Scott Pruitt, had his office feed Fox News friendly questions to be asked on-air.

Trump has largely avoided serious news outlets asking him questions. And his reaction to Bartiromo was unhinged, especially since the interview largely consisted of the reporter — a fan of his — asking him softball questions.

It’s been almost a week since Trump started raging about John McCain again, seven months after the Arizona Republican senator passed away, and his petty cruelty sparked widespread shock and outrage.

Trump insists that the controversy is the media’s fault for asking him questions about McCain — but Trump himself is the one who started it by insulting McCain, and Trump himself is the one keeping the story going by complaining about being asked about it.

During one of those complaints, Trump sunk to a new low by complaining that no one thanked him for approving McCain’s funeral — even though his approval wasn’t needed for it.

Trump appeared to still be upset about the interview on Friday morning as he left the White House on the way to Mar-a-Lago.

“Upset with Fox?” ABC reporter Jonathan Karl asked on Twitter, referring to Trump, and noting that Trump “took questions from several reporters, but ignored [Fox News reporter John Roberts], avoiding eye contact with him until he started walking away and glared at him.”

“It was a rather chilly March morning,” Roberts noted, replying to Karl’s tweet.

Trump is fragile and lashes out viciously at anyone who deigns to point out how weak he truly is — even if it’s Fox.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.