President Donald Trump points to a member of the media as he takes questions during a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez... (Associated Press) 
 
 President Donald Trump points to a member of the media as he takes questions during a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) (Associated Press) 
 
 WASHINGTON (AP) — The leaks are real. But the news about them is fake. The White House is a fine-tuned machine. Russia is a ruse. 
 
 For its stunning moments and memorable one-liners, Donald Trump's first solo news conference as president has no rivals in recent memory. For all the trappings of the White House and traditions of the forum, his performance was one of a swaggering, blustery campaigner, armed with grievances and primed to unload on his favorite targets. 
 
 In nearly an hour and a half at the podium, Trump bullied reporters, dismissed facts and then cracked a few caustic jokes — a combination that once made the candidate irresistible cable TV fodder. Now in office, he went even further, blaming the media for all but sinking his not-yet-launched attempt to "make a deal" with Moscow. 
 
 That matters, Trump said in one of his many improvisational asides, because he'd been briefed and "I can tell you ... nuclear holocaust would be like no other." 
 
 This was his and his aides' attempt to get the boss his groove back. Trump used the event to try to claw his young administration back from the brink after a defeat in court and the forced resignation of his top national security adviser. 
 
 He taunted reporters and waved away their attempts to fact-check him in real time. He (incorrectly) touted his Electoral College total and repeatedly blasted his November opponent — somehow mentioning Hillary Clinton more than anyone else in his defense of his administration's early days. He bragged that his White House is "a fine-tuned machine" and claimed "there has never been a presidency that has done so much in such a short period of time." 
 
 If only the news media would give him credit. Over and over, he accused the political press of being dishonest and suggested that any negative coverage of his administration was "fake news." He unloaded a torrent of grievances while positioning himself as the stand-in for the everyman, who, he declared, hates and distrusts reporters as much as he does. 
 
 "The press — the public doesn't believe you people anymore. Now, maybe I had something to do with that. I don't know. But they don't believe you," Trump charged. "But you've got to be at least a little bit fair, and that's why the public sees it. They see it. They see it's not fair. You take a look at some of your shows and you see the bias and the hatred." 
 
 The hastily called news conference was not on the White House's original schedule for Thursday, and some of Trump's own aides were surprised when the president let slip at a morning meeting that he would hold the event in the East Room just hours later. 
 
 The performance was vintage Trump, a throwback to the messy, zinger-filled news conferences he held during the early stages of his campaign. And, when combined with a rally slated for Saturday in Florida, it appeared to be the start of a one-two punch meant to re-energize a president whose White House in recent days has been buffeted by crisis and paralyzed by dysfunction. 
 
 Yet it was a far cry from the "buck stops here" mantra popularized by Harry Truman and other presidents who believed that the ultimate responsibility for any White House struggles lay with the president himself. Trump was eager to assign blame elsewhere, ignoring the nation's healthy economy and relative peace when he took office to say "to be honest, I inherited a mess, a mess, at home and abroad, a mess." 
 
 He mostly blamed the media for his woes, rebuffing suggestions that he was undermining confidence in the press or threatening the First Amendment by trying to convince the nation that "the press honestly is out of control." 
 
 "The press has become so dishonest that if we don't talk about it, we are doing a tremendous disservice to the American people," he said. "Tremendous disservice." 
 
 Never before has a president stood in the White House and so publicly maligned the press or attacked reporters by name, according to presidential historians. Not even Richard Nixon in the days of Watergate. 
 
 "It was bizarre theater," said Douglas Brinkley, a professor of history at Rice University. "He turned a presidential press conference into a reality TV show in which he can be the star and browbeat anyone who objects to him with the power of his office." 
 
 But for Trump, it continued a defining theme and amplified his chief strategist Stephen Bannon's decree that the media are "the opposition party." 
 
 Trump had put claims of press prejudice at the center of his campaign in an unprecedented way and earlier this month falsely accused the media of refusing to cover terrorist attacks across the world. Though Thursday's news conference was a messy, fact-challenged affair, it may well have been cheered by Trump supporters across the country who had packed arenas last year to jeer reporters and chant "tell the truth" at the press pen. 
 
 An Associated Press-GfK poll taken on the eve of the election revealed that 87 percent of Trump's supporters saw the media as biased against him. 
 
 Trump retains support among Republicans, and solid majorities of Americans say he is following through on his promises and is viewed as a strong leader, according to a Gallup survey. But his overall job approval rating is much lower than those of past presidents at the same point in their administrations. According to a Pew Research Center survey, 39 percent of Americans approve of his job performance while 56 percent disapprove. 
 
 For all of Trump's complaints, he appeared to delight in sparring with reporters in what was only his second news conference since last July. Several times he extended the event in order to field more questions. 
 
 Not that he answered them all. He dodged inquiries about his campaign's links to Russia and talked down several reporters before they could finish their questions. 
 
 On one subject in the news, he did defend the national security adviser he recently fired. 
 
 But he also made a point of complimenting a softball inquiry about the first lady as "a very nice question." He teased CNN reporter Jim Acosta for having the same last name as his new pick for labor secretary — Alexander Acosta, whose appointment was ostensibly the reason for the news conference — and said he asked his staff to make sure the men weren't related. 
 
 There were startling moments aplenty. 
 
 He chided a Jewish reporter wearing a kippah for asking a question about anti-Semitism. He asked an African-American reporter whether she could help set up a meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus. He displayed a rare moment of introspection when he discussed his love for kids amid his "very, very hard" decision whether to potentially deport young immigrants who came to the United States illegally as children. 
 
 But mostly it was Trump's bravado on display, as when he incorrectly asserted that his Electoral College victory had been the largest of any president since Ronald Reagan — and then simply dismissed a reporter's attempt to correct him. 
 
 "Well, I don't know, I was given that information," said Trump. "But it was a very substantial victory, do you agree with that?" 
 
 ___ 
 
 Follow Lemire on Twitter at http://twitter.com/@JonLemire ||||| President Donald Trump harkened back to the free-wheeling style of his unconventional 2016 Republican primary campaign in a 77-minute press conference Thursday during which he touted his poll numbers and took on the “dishonest media.” 
 
 President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) 
 
 U.S. President Donald Trump answers questions during a news conference at the White House in Washington, U.S., February 16, 2017. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters) 
 
 President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) 
 
 President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) 
 
 WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump harkened back to the free-wheeling style of his unconventional 2016 Republican primary campaign in a 77-minute press conference Thursday during which he touted his poll numbers and took on the “dishonest media.” 
 
 Payback was in the air as the newly-elected president took on the role of media critic. He excoriated CNN for its poor ratings, mocked the BBC as “that’s another beauty,” and responded to a question about anti-Semitism, saying to his questioner, “OK, sit down, I understand the rest of your question.” 
 
 
 
 
 
 Ditching decorum and diplomacy, Trump told the press, “the public doesn’t believe you anymore.” 
 
 The president took on the White House press corps after a week of negative news. Monday night National Security Adviser Mike Flynn resigned after the Washington Post reported that a Justice official had told the White House Flynn was susceptible to blackmail because he had misled senior administration officials about a conversation with the Russian ambassador during the transition. 
 
 Then the New York Times reported that unnamed U.S. officials believed some Trump backers were in contact with Russian intelligence officials during the 2016 campaign. Wednesday the Wall Street Journal ran a story that suggested intelligence officials were withholding information from the commander-in-chief. 
 
 
 
 
 
 When Trump refused to take TV news reporters’ questions about Flynn and Russia at Wednesday’s joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, CNN’s Jim Acosta charged that Trump’s decision to call on only conservative and Christian media meant, “The fix is in.” 
 
 At a news conference called ostensibly to announce the nomination of law school dean Alexander Acosta as Labor Secretary, Trump joked to the CNN reporter that he had his staff “check the family tree” to make sure that his nominee with the same last name was not related. 
 
 “You can’t say he’s not responsive to the press,” Alice Stewart, a former reporter and current CNN contributor, GOP strategist and Trump supporter, said after the news conference. “He answered all the questions from all over the press corps and put to rest the long-standing dialogue that he shuts down certain news outlets.” 
 
 A week’s worth of pent up questions gushed forth at the briefing. 
 
 Did Trump fire Flynn? Yes, but not for what he said to the Russian ambassador, but because Flynn withheld information from Vice President Mike Pence. 
 
 Trump dismissed “the failing New York Times” story on alleged campaign contact with Russian officials as “a joke” and “fake news” — fabricated to explain away Democrat Hillary Clinton’s election loss. The problem, Trump contended, are leakers “probably from the Obama administration” who have been feeding classified information to the media. 
 
 
 
 
 
 “I said to myself,” said Trump, “‘What happens when I’m dealing with the problem of North Korea?’” 
 
 So how can Trump complain about leaks of from his shop when he said he loved Wikileaks when it was releasing e-mails from Clinton campaign operatives? The difference, said Trump, is that this week’s stories involve “highly-classified information” — not Clinton campaign chairman “John Podesta saying bad things about the boss.” 
 
 At one point, Trump suggested that “false, horrible, fake reporting makes it much harder to make a deal with Russia.” 
 
 As is his habit, Trump fudged a few facts himself – he said he won 306 electoral college votes, when in fact he won 304. He wrongly claimed that his win was “the biggest electoral college win since Ronald Reagan,” when George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama fared better in the electoral college. 
 
 “It’s just crazy,” opined former CNN correspondent Frank Sesno, author of the book, “Ask More: The Power of Questions to Open Doors, Uncover Solutions, and Spark Change.” “I know that this may scratch an itch that he has about the media and he feels this a really unfair situation and it may resonate with his base. This does not play well over time.” 
 
 Stewart is not so sure. “From a communications standpoint, I think attacking the media is not a smart move, but it’s worked for him,” she said. “His goal was to change the narrative and all you can say now is, ‘Mission accomplished.’” 
 
 On that point, Trump cited the latest Rasmussen poll, which found 55 percent of Americans approving of his performance in office. 
 
 For his part, Sesno believes the optics are bad as Trump came across as overly obsessed with the media. “He’s certainly not winning over the skeptics and the fence sitters.” 
 
 Trump, however, thinks the optics are bad for those who cover him. “And I’ll tell you what else I see,” Trump said during the epic press conference. “I see tone. You know the word ‘tone.’ The tone is such hatred. I’m really not a bad person, by the way. No, but the tone is such — I do get good ratings, you have to admit that — the tone is such hatred.” 
 
 At the White House, however, Trump argued life is good. “I turn on the TV, open the newspapers, and I see stories of chaos,” he said. “Chaos. Yet, it is the exact opposite. This administration is running like a fine-tuned machine.” 
 
 Contact Debra J. Saunders at dsaunders@reviewjournal.com or at 202-662-7391. Follow @DebraJSaunders on Twitter. ||||| Jeffrey Lord on CNN with Jake Tapper and Wolf Blitzer (CNN/YouTube) 
 
 President Donald Trump’s Thursday press conference had many people talking. Addressing the latest White House scandal involving former national security advisor Gen. Michael Flynn, Trump said “Russia is fake news” noting later, “the leaks are absolutely real, the news is fake.” 
 
 In reality, Trump gave a weapons-grade crazy 77-minute press conference. However, CNN contributor and Trump supporter Jeffrey Lord had a different take on that “meltdown.” Speaking with CNN hosts Jake Tapper and Wolf Blitzer, Lord said, “I think we saw two different press conferences.” 
 
 “From my perspective, I thought he was relaxed, he was funny, he was on point. He took the whole issue of the media, and he had a very candid conversation,” Lord said. “This is the kind of conversation that I personally had with him a couple years ago in which he said some version of this same thing that he said today, except he was more specific.” 
 
 Lord described the president as “candid, very dedicated to the job, very in command.” 
 
 “What about some of the back and forth that he had with reporters? You used to work in the Reagan White House — is that really presidential four weeks into a new term?” Blitzer asked. “I think this is going to be his presidential style,” Lord replied. 
 
 Tapper later mentioned a reporter from NBC who called out President Trump for incessantly calling the media “fake news” while also “saying things that are not true,” noting the reporter was asking, “How do you have credibility to call us fake news?” 
 
 “I think it was a simple mistake,” replied Lord, calling the reporter’s question “nitpicky.” He then proceeded to launch an attack on the network. “I had somebody here locally say to me during the campaign, you know, they recognized me, and they came over and they said — and it was a comment about CNN, which I’ll be happy to make on air here, just so you know,” Lord started. 
 
 He continued, “They said if Donald Trump sneezed, CNN would spend four days talking about his damage to the environment. That’s the kind of perception, not just about CNN, but about the media at large, and that’s the kind of feeling that he addresses.” 
 
 Watch the full clip below. ||||| President Donald Trump seemed at varying points exasperated, energized, amicable and aggressive as he sparred with reporters Thursday. | Getty All the things Trump covered at his epic news conference The president went over a lot of ground during his 80-minute impromptu performance. 
 
 President Donald Trump held court with reporters for 80 minutes Thursday, producing no shortage of news in his first solo press conference as commander in chief. 
 
 Facing a host of issues and controversies that have swirled around his administration in the four weeks since he inherited the White House, Trump confronted them, seeming at varying points exasperated, energized, amicable and aggressive as he sparred with reporters. 
 
 Story Continued Below 
 
 Here are the key moments from the president’s exchanges on a range of topics: 
 
 OBAMA 
 
 “To be honest, I inherited a mess,” Trump said, blaming former President Barack Obama for handing off what Trump claimed was “a mess.” “We’ll take care of it, folks,” he added. “We’re going to take care of it all. I just want to let you know, I inherited a mess. Beginning on Day One, our administration went to work to tackle these challenges.” 
 
 OBAMACARE 
 
 Trump said Republicans are in the final stage of repealing and replacing Obamacare, setting mid- to early March as a timeline to submit a plan. “We should be submitting the initial plan in March — early March — I would say,” Trump said. “And we have to, as you know, statutorily and for reasons of budget, we have to go first. It’s not like — quite frankly, the tax would be easier, in my opinion. But for statutory reasons and for budgetary reasons we have to submit the health care sooner. So we’ll be submitting health care sometime in early March, mid-March.” 
 
 RUSSIA 
 
 Trump said he did not direct former national security adviser Michael Flynn to discuss sanctions with the Russian ambassador. “I fired him because of what he said to Mike Pence. Very simple,” he told reporters. “Mike [Flynn] was doing his job. He was calling countries and his counterparts. So it certainly would have been OK with me if he did it. I would have directed him to do it if I thought he wasn’t doing it. I didn't direct him, but I would have directed him because that’s his job.” 
 
 There’s no comparison between WikiLeaks and U.S. government leaks, Trump said. “When WikiLeaks, which I had nothing to do with, comes out and happens to give, they’re not giving classified information,” he said. “They’re giving stuff — what was said in an office about Hillary cheating on the debates, which, by the way, nobody mentions.” One case involves “highly classified information,” Trump said, while the other is “John Podesta saying bad things about his boss.” 
 
 Hillary Clinton’s “stupid plastic button” made Americans look like “a bunch of jerks.” Clinton in 2009 gave the Russian foreign minister a red button as a gift to represent the reset between both nations. The button, however, misspelled the Russian word for “reset” on it, instead having the word for “overcharged.” “Hillary Clinton did a reset — remember — with the stupid plastic button that made us all look like a bunch of jerks. ‘Here, take a look.’ He looked at her like, ‘What the hell is she doing with that cheap plastic button?’” Trump said. 
 
 “The greatest thing I could do is shoot that ship that’s 30 miles offshore right out of the water,” Trump said, referring to a Russian spy ship spotted off the coast of Connecticut. “Everyone in this country’s gonna say, ‘Oh, it’s so great.’ That’s not great. That’s not great. I would love to be able to get along with Russia.” 
 
 Not good, not good, not good, the president said as a reporter mentioned the Russian spy ship found on the East Coast of the U.S., North Korea’s recent test-launch of a ballistic missile and a Russian plane that buzzed a U.S. Navy ship before delivering a bizarre response. “When did it happen? It happened when — if you were Putin right now, you would say: ‘Hey, we’re back to the old games with the United States. There’s no way Trump can ever do a deal with us because’ — you have to understand, if I was just brutal on Russia right now — just brutal — you would say, ‘Oh, isn’t that wonderful.’ But I know you well enough. Then you would say: ‘Aww, he was too tough. He shouldn’t have done that.’ 
 
 “Nuclear holocaust would be like no other,” Trump said. He stressed that it’s OK if the U.S. got along with Russia and said he wants to do the right thing for the American people and, secondarily, the world. “Don’t forget: We’re a very powerful nuclear country and so are they,” he added. “There’s no upside. We’re a very powerful nuclear country and so are they. I’ve been briefed, and I can tell you one thing about a briefing that we’re allowed to say because anybody that ever read the most basic book can say it: Nuclear holocaust would be like no other.” 
 
 Does anyone believe Clinton would be tougher on Russia, Trump asked incredulously. “Does anybody in this room really believe that?” Trump said, noting Clinton’s attempted reset with Russia as secretary of state. “They say I’m close to Russia. Hillary Clinton gave away 20 percent of the uranium in the United States,” Trump said. “She’s close to Russia. You know what I gave to Russia? You know what I gave? Nothing.” 
 
 Trump won’t telegraph his moves. “I’m not gonna tell you anything about what response I do. I don’t talk about military response,” Trump said, refusing to publicly state a potential response to the Russian spy ship spotted off the coast of Connecticut or North Korea’s test-launch of a ballistic missile over the weekend. He went on to mock past administrations for announcing their every move. “I don’t want to be one of these guys that say, ‘Yes, here’s what we’re going to do,” Trump said with glee. “I don’t have to do that. I don't have to tell you what I’m gonna do in North Korea. And I don’t have to tell you what I’m gonna do with Iran. You know why? Because they shouldn’t know, and eventually you guys are gonna get tired of asking that.” 
 
 “Russia was a ruse,” the president charged. Aside from speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin twice since winning the election, Trump maintained that he has nothing to do with the Kremlin and hasn’t even made a call there in years. “We had a very good talk, especially the second one — lasted for a pretty long period of time,” Trump said of his calls with Putin. “I’m sure you probably get it because it was classified so I’m sure everybody in this room perhaps has it, but we had a very, very good talk. I have nothing to do with Russia. To the best of my knowledge, no person that I deal with does.” 
 
 DISCRIMINATION 
 
 No one is less racist or anti-Semitic than Trump, according to the president. “No. 1, I am the least anti-Semitic person that you’ve ever seen in your life,” he told a reporter. Trump, however, drew widespread condemnation last month for omitting the slaughtering of 6 million Jews in his Holocaust Remembrance statement, although Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday declared at a joint news conference that “there is no greater supporter of the Jewish people and the Jewish state than President Donald Trump.” “No. 2, racism,” Trump continued. “The least racist person … I hate the charge. I find it repulsive. I hate even the question.” 
 
 IMMIGRATION 
 
 Blame Homeland Security Secretary James Kelly for the travel ban executive order rollout, which the president insisted was “very smooth” and “perfect,” actually, despite it causing chaos at airports and sparking massive protests. Trump said a “bad court” made a “bad decision” when it blocked his executive action from being enforced nationwide and added that he would introduce a new order next week. Trump said he wanted to give a month’s heads-up. “But General Kelly, now Secretary Kelly, said if you do that all these people will come in the month — the bad ones. You do agree there are bad people out there right, that not everybody [is] like you?” he asked. “You have some bad people out there, so Kelly said you can’t do that, and he was right. … Now if I would have done it a month, everything would have been perfect. The problem is we would have wasted a lot of time and maybe a lot of lives because a lot of bad people would have come into the country.” 
 
 “We are gonna deal with DACA with heart,” Trump pledged, softening his position on undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children. Casting what to do with the program as a very difficult decision for a father and grandfather who loves children, Trump conceded that it’s tough for him to follow the law on that issue but argued that while some of the children who come in join gangs and deal drugs, many are “absolutely incredible.” “I have to deal with a lot of politicians — don’t forget — and I have to convince them that what I’m saying is right,” he added. 
 
 MEDIA 
 
 The president blasted media from all over the country, accusing outlets from Washington, New York and Los Angeles, specifically, of speaking “not for the people but for the special interests and for those profiting off a very, very obviously broken system.” He maintained that the press is dishonesty, which he added was “out of control.” Trump credited his administration for its “incredible progress” in just one month. “I don't think there's ever been a president elected who in this short period of time has done what we’ve done,” he said. “I turn on the TV, open the newspapers and I see stories of chaos. Chaos. Yet it is the exact opposite. This administration is running like a fine-tuned machine.” 
 
 The media with hatred, Trump charged. The public, Trump argued, may not be able to discern what’s true when they read reports, but he knows what’s real and what’s fake. “I know when you’re telling the truth or when you’re not,” the president said. “I just see many, many untruthful things. And I’ll tell you what else I see: I see tone. You know the word: tone. The tone is such hatred.” 
 
 Trump revised his characterization of CNN, which he often derides as fake news. “I’m changing it from fake news, though,” he told CNN’s Jim Acosta, pausing for emphasis. “Very fake news. … And you’re not related to our new — you know, I looked at that name,” Trump said, referencing his newly named labor secretary nominee, Alexander Acosta. “I said: ‘Wait a minute. Is there any relation there, Alex?’ No, I checked it. They said, ‘No, sir.’ I said, ‘Do me a favor and go back and check the family tree.’” 
 
 “I’d be a pretty good reporter,” the president mused at one point. Trump contended that he knows when he should get a good or bad story but accused the media of often turning “positive” stories into “negative” or “OK” articles. “I understand it. Because I’m there,” Trump said. “I know what was said, who’s saying it. I’m there. So it’s very important to me. Look, I want to see an honest press. … It’s so important to the public to get an honest press. The public doesn’t believe you people anymore. Now maybe I had something to do with that. I don’t know. But they don’t believe you.” 
 
 The president disputed media reports of a White House in chaos, insisting there’s “zero chaos” in his “fine-tuned machine” of an administration and that “half” of chief of staff Reince Priebus’ job consists of “putting out lies by the press.” “He’s working so hard just putting out fires that are fake fires. I mean, they’re fake,” Trump said. “They’re not true. And isn’t that a shame? Because he’d rather be working on health care. He’d rather be working on tax reform.” 
 
 Trump called out for a “friendly reporter” after tense exchanges with reporters. “I want to find a friendly reporter. Are you a friendly reporter?” Trump asked. “Watch how friendly he is.” Trump wasn’t a fan of the unfinished question, which delved into an uptick of anti-Semitic threats and how the administration planned to address them. “He said he was going to ask a very simple, easy question, and it’s not,” Trump said. “It’s not. It’s not a simple question, not a fair question. OK, sit down. I understand the rest of your question.” 
 
 “Now that’s what I call a nice question,” Trump said moments later, praising a UNF News reporter who inquired about first Lady Melania Trump’s decision to open the White House visitor’s office. “Thank you very much.” 
 
 “Do you want to set up the meeting?” Trump asked April Ryan, a black reporter who covers the White House for American Urban Radio Networks. Ryan asked the president if he would speak to congressional black and Hispanic caucuses about his agenda for urban areas and inner cities. “No, no, no, I’m just a reporter,” she said to Trump, who in turn asked if the lawmakers were friends of hers. “Set up the meeting. Let’s go,” he told Ryan. “Set up a meeting. I would love to meet with the black caucus.” 
 
 CABINET 
 
 Trump opened his news conference by announcing his new nominee to head the Labor Department: Alexander Acosta. “He’s a member and has been a member of the National Labor Relations Board and has been through Senate confirmations three times — confirmed, did very, very well,” Trump said. “So Alex, I wished him the best. We just spoke and he’s going to be — I think he’ll be a tremendous secretary of labor.” Trump’s former nominee, Andrew Puzder, withdrew his nomination Wednesday after Senate Republicans informed the White House that Puzder lacked the votes to be confirmed. 
 
 
 
 ISLAMIC STATE 
 
 Trump has ordered the Pentagon to submit a plan to defeat the Islamic State, he said, noting that Defense Secretary James Mattis is “over there now working very hard.” Trump described the Islamic State as a “small group” that has burgeoned and “celebrates the murder and torture of innocent people in large sections of the world.” “They’ve spread like cancer,” in the president’s words. “ISIS has spread like cancer. Another mess I inherited.” 
 
 
 
 ELECTORAL COLLEGE 
 
 Trump wasn’t supposed to win, he reminded reporters. “I wasn’t supposed to get 222 [Electoral College votes]. They said, ‘There’s no way to get 222 — 230 is impossible. 270, which you need — that was laughable,” Trump said. “We got 306. Because people came out and voted like they’ve never seen before. So that’s the way it goes. I guess it was the biggest Electoral College win since Ronald Reagan.” Some of Trump’s claims, however, are false. Obama won 332 electoral votes in 2012, and Trump only received 304 votes in the Electoral College due to a couple of faithless electors who voted against him. 
 
 
 
 DRUGS 
 
 “Drugs are becoming cheaper than candy bars,” Trump said. He announced that he has instructed the homeland security and justice departments “to coordinate on a plan to destroy criminal cartels coming into the United States with drugs.” The U.S. is “becoming a drug-infested nation,” he said, promising to curb the flow of drugs. ||||| President turns fire on media in erratic display as his labor secretary pulls out and replacement for disgraced national security adviser turns job down 
 
 Donald Trump dismissed reports of chaos and conspiracy in his administration and claimed his team was running like “a fine-tuned machine” during an extraordinary press conference at which he tried to reset his beleaguered presidency. 
 
 In a boisterous and often bizarre session, he fired off numerous broadsides at the media as he skipped from topic to topic in what critics saw as an attempt to deflect attention from his alleged ties to Russia. 
 
 “I turn on the TV, open the newspapers and I see stories of chaos, chaos,” Trump scolded reporters. “Yet it is the exact opposite. This administration is running like a fine-tuned machine, despite the fact that I can’t get my cabinet approved.” 
 
 But soon afterwards that same “fine-tuned” administration was plunged into further disarray. On Thursday night, it was confirmed that Trump’s preferred replacement for his disgraced national security adviser has turned the job down. 
 
 'Russia is fake news': Trump decries reports of pre-election communication Read more 
 
 The president’s first solo media briefing since taking office was held ostensibly to announce Alexander Acosta as his new pick for labour secretary after his first choice, Andrew Puzder, withdrew from consideration. 
 
 
 
 But the event at the White House rapidly turned into a sprawling, freewheeling and pugnacious defence of his first four weeks as president and a bitter denunciation of the press. 
 
 In a remarkable press conference – spanning 77 minutes in which he took questions from 17 reporters – Trump: 
 
 Denied any connections to Russia or any knowledge of his election campaign team having contacts with Moscow, dismissing stories as a “ruse” 
 
 
 
 Slammed the “dishonest” media for putting out what he called fake news and doing a “disservice” to the American people 
 
 
 
 Claimed he had achieved more in his first four weeks in office than any previous US president, adding: “We’re just getting started” 
 
 
 
 Denied that his ban on travellers from Muslim-majority countries had been poorly executed, insisting: “We had a bad court” 
 
 Argued that he had “inherited a mess”, both domestically and abroad 
 
 
 
 Was told he was wrong to claim he had the biggest electoral college win since Ronald Reagan. He replied: “I was given that information” 
 
 
 
 Asked a black journalist, April Ryan, if she would set up a meeting for him with the Congressional Black Caucus to discuss his inner-city agenda: “Are they friends of yours?” 
 
 He argued that there had been “incredible progress” over the past four weeks: “I don’t think there’s ever been a president elected who in this short period of time has done what we have done.” 
 
 
 
 The measures taken so far include withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, eliminating regulations that “undermine manufacturing”, plans to smash international drug cartels and strengthening the country’s borders. Trump contrasted himself with past politicians who made promises only to break them. 
 
 In a swipe at Barack Obama’s administration, Trump said: “To be honest, I inherited a mess. It’s a mess. At home and abroad, a mess. 
 
 “Jobs are pouring out of the country – you see what’s going on with all of the companies leaving our country, going to Mexico and other places, low pay, low wages, mass instability overseas, no matter where you look. The Middle East is a disaster. North Korea – we’ll take care of it, folks; we’re going to take care of it all. I just want to let you know, I inherited a mess.” 
 
 But as so often during the election campaign, it was the media that became his primary punchbag. He claimed it was serving not the people but special interests profiting from a broken system. “The press has become so dishonest that if we don’t talk about, we are doing a tremendous disservice to the American people. Tremendous disservice. We have to talk to find out what’s going on, because the press honestly is out of control. The level of dishonesty is out of control.” 
 
 Trump claimed he was talking about an entrenched “power structure” that needed attention. “We’re not going to let it happen, because I’m here again to take my message straight to the people.” 
 
 He singled out broadcasters and individual reporters for particular criticism, insisting that they had lost the trust of the public. “I just see many, many untruthful things. It’s about tone. The tone is such hatred. I’m really not a bad person. I do get good ratings, you have to admit that.” 
 
 The coverage of the press conference itself would be skewed, he added. “I love this. I’m having a good time doing it. Tomorrow, the headlines are going to be: ‘Donald Trump rants and raves.’ I’m not ranting and raving.” 
 
 Allegations about Trump’s connections with Russia hovered over the entire news conference. Apparently trying to square a circle, Trump claimed: “The leaks are absolutely real. The news is fake because so much of the news is fake.” 
 
 He argued: “You know, you can talk all you want about Russia, which was all fake news, fabricated deal, to try and make up for the loss of the Democrats, and the press plays right into it.” 
 
 The president was asked repeatedly about whether his advisers had contact with Russia during the US presidential election campaign. He eventually conceded: “Nobody that I know of. How many times do I have to answer this question? Russia is a ruse.” 
 
 Not so business-savvy: the CEO in the White House is bad at hiring people | Lucia Graves Read more 
 
 Trump claimed that media reports about his administration’s relationship with Russia might make it difficult for him to strike a deal with Vladimir Putin. “Putin probably assumes that he can’t make a deal with me any more because politically it would be unpopular for a politician to make a deal.” 
 
 
 
 He mocked Hillary Clinton, his defeated election opponent and a former secretary of state, for an attempt to “reset” relations with Russia, which included a mocked-up plastic button that he said “made us all look like a bunch of jerks”. And he challenged the room, asking whether anyone seriously thought Clinton would be tougher on Russia than he was. 
 
 The Trump administration was thrown into turmoil by Monday’s resignation of the national security adviser, Michael Flynn, over his secret discussion of US sanctions with Russia’s ambassador to Washington, Sergey Kislyak. On Thursday night, Robert Harward, who Trump wanted to replace Flynn, was confirmed to have refused the offer. 
 
 The president confirmed he asked Flynn to resign but insisted he was a “fine person” who did nothing wrong by speaking to Russia’s ambassador about sanctions. 
 
 “Mike was doing his job,” he said. “He was calling countries and his counterparts. So, it certainly would have been OK with me if he did it. I would have directed him to do it if I thought he wasn’t doing it. I didn’t direct him, but I would have directed him because that’s his job.” 
 
 Instead, Flynn’s mistake was to mislead officials including the vice-president, Mike Pence. “He didn’t tell the vice-president of the United States the facts,” Trump said. “And then he didn’t remember. And that just wasn’t acceptable to me.” 
 
 He added: “I fired him because of what he said to Mike Pence: very simple ... I don’t think he did anything wrong. If anything, he did something right.” 
 
 The president insisted the “real story” was that the intelligence community leaking information about Flynn’s conversations and details of the investigation into his campaign advisers. 
 
 “I’ve actually called the justice department to look into the leaks,” he said. “Those are criminal leaks.” 
 
 Trump also railed against embarrassing leaks of his phone calls with world leaders including Australia and Mexico, suggesting that people within the White House could potentially put the US at risk by leaking confidential future conversations about how to handle North Korea. 
 
 Trump has been accused of stoking division and hiring a white nationalist, Steve Bannon, as his chief strategist. He angrily turned on a reporter who asked him if his administration had incited acts of antisemitism. “Sit down!” he barked. “Number one, I am the least antisemitic person you’ve ever seen in your entire life. Number two, racism, the least racist person.” 
 
 When the journalist tried to interject, Trump shouted over him: “Quiet, quiet, quiet. See, he lied that he was going to get up and ask a straight, simple question, so, you know, welcome to the world of the media.” 
 
 Trump was also caught in a falsehood about his electoral college victory being the biggest since Ronald Reagan but brushed it off. Zigzagging through various topics, he again insisted: “There’s zero chaos. This is a fine-tuned machine.” 
 
 Out of the loop: Rex Tillerson finds state department sidelined by White House Read more 
 
 But his grandstanding is unlikely to go down well on Capitol Hill. On Thursday, Chuck Schumer, leader of the Democratic minority in the Senate, demanded investigations by both Congress and the justice department into ties between the Trump administration and Russia. 
 
 “We do not know all of the facts, and in the coming days and weeks, more information may well surface about these disturbing revelations,” Schumer said on the Senate floor. “But we already know that something is rotten in the state of Denmark. 
 
 “I have been in Congress for a long time, and I’ve never, ever seen anything like this. The institutions of government are being tested in a way they have not been tested in some time ... I believe the stakes to be very high. This is not a drill. Nothing less than our system of checks and balances, the rule of law, and our national security is at stake.” 
 
 The Democratic House minority leader, Nancy Pelosi, is pushing the interim director of national intelligence for a “comprehensive” briefing over the next two weeks. Pelosi will seek transcripts of the intercepted conversations Flynn had with Kislyak. 
 
 Trump’s original pick for labor secretary, Andrew Puzder, abruptly withdrew from consideration on Wednesday. 
 
 Trump said Acosta, who did not appear with the president, “has had a tremendous career”. He noted that unlike Puzder, Acosta had been confirmed by the Senate three times and “did very, very well”. 
 
 If confirmed anew by the Senate, Acosta would become the first Hispanic member of Trump’s cabinet. He is now dean of the Florida International University law school. 
 
 Acosta has served on the National Labor Relations Board and as a federal prosecutor in Florida. He was named assistant attorney general for civil rights by George W Bush. 
 
 Additional reporting by Spencer Ackerman in New York and Ben Jacobs in Washington ||||| Fox News anchor Shepard Smith on Thursday criticized President Trump Donald John Trump Airstrikes hit Syria air base: Syrian state media Trump, Macron agree on 'strong, joint response' to alleged Syria chemical attack Trump congratulates Patrick Reed on Masters win MORE for bashing reporters gathered at a lengthy Thursday press conference, calling on him to answer legitimate questions from news outlets. 
 
 "(Trump) keeps repeating ridiculous throwaway lines that are not true at all and sort of avoiding this issue of Russia as if we're some kind of fools for asking the question. Really?" Smith said. "Your opposition was hacked and the Russians were responsible for it and your people were on the phone with Russia on the same day it was happening and we're fools for asking the questions?" 
 
 Trump was repeatedly asked by reporters from different publications about reported conversations between his campaign aides and Russian officials. Trump blasted such stories as "fake news" and berated journalists. 
 
 "Russia is fake news. Russia — this is fake news put out by the media," he said at one point. 
 
 Trump maintained that he is not aware that any of his campaign aides had any improper communications with Russian officials. 
 
 "No sir," Smith continued. "We are not fools for asking this question, and we demand to know the answer to this question. You owe this to the American people. Your supporters will support you either way. If your people were on the phone, what were they saying? We have a right to know, we absolutely do and that you call us fake news and put us down like children for asking these questions on behalf of the American people is inconsequential. The people deserve an answer to this question at very least." 
 
 Smith also defended CNN reporter Jim Acosta, who pressed Trump for answers on several points. Acosta and Trump have frequently sparred at past press conferences. Thursday Trump said he was upgrading CNN from "fake news" to "very fake news." 
 
 Smith defended Acosta during the segment Thursday, calling him "an accomplished reporter, a guy I've never met, but a good reporter." 
 
 Jim Acosta thanked Smith for his defense in a tweet shortly after the segment aired. 
 
 During Thursday's press conference, Acosta told Trump, "Just for the record, we don't hate you. I don't hate you," as he prefaced his question for the president. 
 
 Trump shot back, “Ask [CNN President] Jeff Zucker how he got his job, OK?” adding that CNN’s ratings aren’t “good right now.” ||||| Trump Decries 'Fake News' Stories About Aides' Ties To Russia 
 
 President Trump held a free-flowing wide-ranging news conference on Thursday to defend his administration and decry what he called "fake news" stories about his associates' ties to Russia. 
 
 KELLY MCEVERS, HOST: 
 
 Today President Trump held his first full news conference since his inauguration. It was wide-ranging. It lasted more than an hour. And at times, it was pretty tense after a week of headlines about setbacks, controversy and chaos surrounding the White House. Today the president pushed back. 
 
 (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) 
 
 PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: I mean it's - story after story after story is bad. I won. I won. And the other thing - chaos. There's zero chaos. We are running - this is a fine-tuned machine. 
 
 MCEVERS: NPR national political correspondent Mara Liasson was at the news conference and joins us now from the White House. Hi, Mara. 
 
 MARA LIASSON, BYLINE: Hi there. 
 
 MCEVERS: So this news conference was announced with just about an hour's notice. What prompted it? 
 
 LIASSON: Well, ostensibly it was to announce his new labor secretary nominee, but that was really just a blip. I think it was about showing that he could do this. He stood there for almost 80 minutes. He took tough questions not just from friendly reporters. I think he wanted to seize back the narrative and defend his administration's accomplishments. 
 
 And of course, as he often does, he provided his own real-time color commentary and tried to anticipate his next day's box office and work the refs all at the same time. Here's a little bit of that. 
 
 (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) 
 
 TRUMP: Tomorrow they will say, Donald Trump rants and raves at the press. I'm not ranting and raving. I'm just telling you, you know, you're dishonest people. But I'm not ranting and raving. I love this. I'm having a good time doing it. 
 
 LIASSON: This is the Donald Trump we got to know during the campaign. He was defensive. He was frustrated. He was aggrieved. He was combative. But he was also funny and charming like he was with the press during all those years in New York as a fixture in the tabloids. I am told he was pretty pleased with his performance today and that he is now in high spirits. 
 
 MCEVERS: When the news up till now has been all about Russia. I mean let's start with the resignation of Trump's national security adviser, Michael Flynn. What'd he say about that? 
 
 LIASSON: Well, I got the first question, and I asked him about why he let Flynn go. He said it was because of what he did or didn't tell the vice president. Then I asked him why he had kept Vice President Pence in the dark for almost two weeks. Pence found out about Flynn misleading him from the media. And Trump seemed to say the reason he kept him in the dark was that he just didn't think what Flynn did was that big a deal. 
 
 The president also addressed stories alleging contacts between people associated with his campaign and Russian intelligence officials. He said, the leaks are real, but the news is fake. He said, I have nothing to do with Russia. And he was repeatedly asked about those contacts between his campaign officials and Russian officials, and he finally said, not that I know of. 
 
 MCEVERS: It wasn't all Russia and Flynn. What other news did the president make today? 
 
 LIASSON: He said that there will be an Obamacare replacement by mid-March. He's going to have a new executive order revising the travel ban next week that will be tailored to address the objections by the appeals court. 
 
 MCEVERS: Any other moments stand out to you? 
 
 LIASSON: Yeah, there were so many of them. There was one when he was called out about using inaccurate numbers about how his Electoral College win compared to past presidents. He was asked why Americans should trust him when he keeps on providing information that isn't accurate. And he had to back off of that. He just said, well, I was given that information. And what that shows you is when a president stands up and opens himself up to real questions from the media and follow-ups, he can retreat. 
 
 He was also asked twice about anti-Semitic incidents - swastikas on Jewish centers, things like that - that were committed by his supporters sometimes in his name. And he blamed those incidents on his opponents. Here's what he said. 
 
 (SOUNDBITES OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) 
 
 TRUMP: They'll do signs, and they'll do drawings that are inappropriate. It won't be my people. It will be the people on the other side to anger people like you. 
 
 LIASSON: So not taking any responsibility for that at all. 
 
 MCEVERS: Now, before I let you go, Mara, I mean you were there in the room, like you said - I mean any takeaways about, like, the mood there? What was the feeling in the East Room? 
 
 LIASSON: Well, I don't think we've ever seen a presidential press conference performance like this one. It was really extraordinary. He pretty much put himself on the couch, inadvertently or not. I think that he will get a lot of credit for doing this. I think it will thrill his supporters. I think if he was trying to show nervous Republicans on Capitol Hill that he's in control, that the dysfunction they've been complaining about from the White House isn't real, as he said, we're like a well-oiled machine. Whether he truly calmed the waters or not after a chaotic first month remains to be seen. 
 
 MCEVERS: That's NPR national political correspondent Mara Liasson. Thank you very much. 
 
 LIASSON: Thank you. 
 
 Copyright © 2017 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. 
 
 NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by Verb8tm, Inc., an NPR contractor, and produced using a proprietary transcription process developed with NPR. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. ||||| Minutes after President Donald Trump’s press conference concluded on Thursday afternoon, CNN’s Jake Tapper called it “unhinged�? and “wild.�? 
 
 Here are nine quotes from the presser that back up that assessment. 
 
 1) At the beginning of the press conference, Trump blasted intelligence community leaks about his campaign’s alleged contact with Russia as “fake news.�? A reporter asked Trump to clarify whether he meant the leaks were fake. 
 
 Here’s the exchange: 
 
 REPORTER: I just want to get you to clarify this very important point. Can you say definitively that nobody on your campaign had any contacts with the Russians during the campaign? And on the leaks, is it fake news or are these real leaks? TRUMP: Well, the leaks are real. You’re the one that wrote about them and reported them; I mean, the leaks are real. You know what they said, you saw it, and the leaks are absolutely real. The news is fake because so much of the news is fake. So one thing that I felt it was very important to do — and I hope we can correct it. Because there’s nobody I have more respect for — well, maybe a little bit, but the reporters, good reporters. 
 
 2) After reporter April Ryan asked Trump about the Congressional Black Caucus, the president asked if she could set up a meeting with them. Ryan, who is black, is the White House correspondent and Washington bureau chief for American Urban Radio Networks in Baltimore. 
 
 RYAN: When you say the inner cities, are you going — are you going to include the CBC, Mr. President? In your conversations with your — your urban agenda, your inner city agenda, as well as — TRUMP: Am I going to include who? RYAN: Are you going to include the Congressional Black Caucus and the Congressional — TRUMP: Well, I would. I tell you what, do you want to set up the meeting? Do you want to set up the meeting? RYAN: No, no, no. I’m not — TRUMP: Are they friends of yours? RYAN: I'm just a reporter. TRUMP: Well, then set up the meeting. RYAN: I know some of them, but I'm sure they're watching right now. TRUMP: Let's go set up a meeting. I would love to meet with the Black Caucus. I think it's great, the Congressional Black Caucus. I think it's great. 
 
 3) Trump also used the question about fake news as an opportunity to criticize the ratings of CNN, saying he no longer watches the network because of its “anger and hatred.�? At one point, CNN’s Jim Acosta began trying to ask a question before Trump told his employer to be “straight.�? 
 
 TRUMP: I mean, I watch CNN, it’s so much anger and hatred, and just the hatred. I don’t watch it anymore because it’s not very good. ... I think it should be straight. I think it should be — I think it would be frankly more interesting. I know how good everybody’s ratings are right now, but I think that actually — I think that’d actually be better. I don’t watch it any more because it’s very good — he’s saying no. It’s OK, Jim. It’s OK, Jim, you’ll have your chance. But I watch others too. You’re not the only one so don’t feel badly. But I think it should be straight. I think it should be — I think it would be frankly more interesting 
 
 4) At another point in the press conference, Trump explained why he wouldn’t explain whether he will retaliate against reports of Russian provocation. 
 
 I'm not going to tell you anything about what I’m going to do. I'm not going to talk about military stuff. I will not say, “We are going to attack Mosul in four months. We are going to attack in one month. Next week, we are going to attack Mosul.�? In the meantime, Mosul is very, very difficult — you know why? I don't talk about military and certain other things. You were going to be surprised to hear that, by the way, my whole campaign I said that. I don't have to tell you. 
 
 5) Trump was also asked whether by attacking “fake news,�? he’d be undermining the press. It’s hard to summarize his answer, which touched on the negativity of the press, the importance of the institution, and whether he’d be a good reporter. 
 
 REPORTER: When you call it "fake news," you're undermining confidence in our news media. ... TRUMP: No, no. I do that. Here's the thing. Okay. I understand what you're — and you're right about that, except this. See, I know when I should get good and when I should get bad. And sometimes I'll say, "Wow, that's going to be a great story." And I'll get killed ... But I know what's good. I know what's bad. And when they change it and make it really bad, something that should be positive — sometimes something that should be very positive, they'll make okay. They'll even make it negative. So I understand it. So, because I'm there. I know what was said. I know who's saying it. I'm there. So it's very important to me. Look, I want to see an honest press. When I started off today by saying that it's so important to the public to get an honest press. The press — the public doesn't believe you people anymore. Now, maybe I had something to do with that. I don't know. But they don't believe you. If you were straight and really told it like it is, as Howard Cosell used to say, right? 
 
 6) At another point, Trump talked about how the press would misrepresent the press conference he was giving. He said that he was not “ranting and raving,�? but that the media coverage would say he had been. (The precise wording of the question in the exchange below is unclear.) 
 
 I won with news conferences and probably speeches. I certainly didn't win by people listening to you people. That's for sure. But I'm having a good time. Tomorrow, they will say, "Donald Trump rants and raves at the press." I'm not ranting and raving. I'm just telling you. You know, you're dishonest people. But -- but I'm not ranting and raving. I love this. I'm having a good time doing it. But tomorrow, the headlines are going to be, "Donald Trump rants and raves." I'm not ranting and raving. 
 
 7) Trump was also asked if “there was anything�? he could reveal to convince the media and public that the leaks over Russia and Flynn amounted to “fake news.�? He began by citing a Rasmussen poll showing his approval rating north of 50 percent, before talking about the dangers of uranium and how Hillary Clinton had a “stupid plastic button�? as part of her Russian reset. 
 
 By the way, it would be great if we could get along with Russia. Just so you understand that. Tomorrow, you will say, "Donald Trump wants to get along with Russia; this is terrible." It is not terrible. It is good. We had Hillary Clinton try to do a reset. We had Hillary Clinton give Russia 20 percent of the uranium in our country. You know what uranium is, right? It’s this thing called nuclear weapons. And other things. Like lots of things are done with uranium. Including some bad things. But nobody talks about that. I did not do anything for Russia. I've done nothing for Russia. Hillary Clinton gave them 20 percent of our uranium. Hillary Clinton did a reset, remember, with the stupid plastic button that made us all look like a bunch of jerks? 
 
 8) Later, Trump was asked if Vladimir Putin was “testing�? him with military provocations. Trump’s response included a warning about how nuclear war “would be like no other�?: 
 
 If Russia and the United States actually got together and got along — and don't forget, we're a very powerful nuclear country, and so are they. There's no upside. We're a very powerful nuclear country, and so are they. I have been briefed. And I can tell you one thing about a briefing that we're allowed to say because anybody that ever read the most basic book can say it: Nuclear holocaust would be like no other. They're a very powerful nuclear country, and so are we. If we have a good relationship with Russia, believe me, that's a good thing, not a bad thing. 
 
 9) In one of his most relaxed moments, Trump ruminated on a career he decided not to pursue. “I'd be a pretty good reporter,�? he said. “Not as good as you.�? ||||| The president spoke to and took questions from reporters at the White House for more than an hour, Feb. 16. Here are key moments from that event. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post) 
 
 President Trump on Thursday aired his grievances against the news media, the intelligence community and his detractors generally in a sprawling, stream-of-consciousness news conference that alternated between claims that he had “inherited a mess” and the assertion that his fledgling administration “is running like a fine-tuned machine.” 
 
 “To be honest, I inherited a mess,” Trump said, in a news conference that lasted more than an hour and was at times rambling, combative and pointed. “It's a mess. At home and abroad, a mess. Jobs are pouring out of the country.” 
 
 Yet moments later, the president seemed to acknowledge the widespread reports of turbulence and upheaval emanating out of his West Wing, only to claim that his White House — which so far has been marred by staff infighting, a controversial travel ban, false statements and myriad leaks — was operating seamlessly. 
 
 “I turn on the TV, open the newspapers and I see stories of chaos — chaos,” he said. “Yet it is the exact opposite. This administration is running like a fine-tuned machine, despite the fact that I can't get my Cabinet approved.” 
 
 President Trump said he asked for former national security adviser Michael Flynn's resignation on Feb. 13, but also defended him, saying, "what he did wasn't wrong," during a news conference on Feb. 16 at the White House. (Reuters) 
 
 Asked about recent reports that Mike Flynn, his former national security adviser who resigned Monday evening, had improperly discussed Russian sanctions with the Russian ambassador to the United States before Trump was sworn in, the president defended Flynn as a “fine person,” saying he had done nothing wrong in engaging the Russian envoy. 
 
 But, Trump said, Flynn had erred by misleading government officials, including Vice President Pence, about his conversations, which is why the president ultimately demanded his resignation. 
 
 “He didn't tell the vice president of the United States the facts,” Trump said. “And then he didn't remember. And that just wasn't acceptable to me.” 
 
 Trump made clear he had no problem with Flynn discussing the sanctions imposed on Moscow by the Obama administration with the Russian ambassador even if he was not directly told to do so by Trump, saying it was Flynn's job to reach out to foreign officials. 
 
 “No, I didn't direct him, but I would have directed him if he didn't do it,” he said. 
 
 Trump was asked several times about whether his campaign had contact with Russia and grew testy as reporters pushed him for a yes-or-no answer. 
 
 He said he certainly hadn’t and that he was not aware of such contacts during the campaign. 
 
 “I can tell you, speaking for myself, I own nothing in Russia,” Trump said. “I have no loans in Russia. I don't have any deals in Russia. President Putin called me up very nicely to congratulate me on the win of the election. He then, called me up extremely nicely to congratulate me on the inauguration, which was terrific. But so did many other leaders, almost all other leaders from almost all of the countries. So that's the extent.” 
 
 Trump also used the questions to press his case that the United States would be well-served by a better relationship with Russia and to mock his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, for her efforts to “reset” the relationship between the two countries while she was secretary of state. 
 
 Trump derisively referred to that “stupid plastic button that made us all look like jerks,” a reference to the red “reset” button that Clinton presented to the Russian foreign minister early in the Obama administration. 
 
 1 of 103 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad × See what President Trump has been doing since taking office View Photos The beginning of his term has featured controversial executive orders and frequent conflicts with the media. Caption The beginning of his term has featured controversial executive orders and frequent conflicts with the media. March 17, 2017 President Trump greets German Chancellor Angela Merkel outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington. Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post Buy Photo Wait 1 second to continue. 
 
 The news conference was ostensibly billed as a chance for Trump to announce his new pick to head the Labor Department — Alexander Acosta, who would be the first Latino in Trump’s Cabinet — after Andrew Puzder, his original choice, withdrew from consideration Wednesday amid mounting opposition on Capitol Hill. But for one hour and 17 minutes, the president offered the verbal equivalent of the brash and impetuous early morning tweets that have become the alarm clock for much of Washington, taking aim at everything from “illegal immigrant violence” to the “criminal leaks” within his intelligence community. 
 
 Trump said he would use his remarks to bypass the “dishonest media” and speak directly to the American people about the “incredible progress” his administration has made. 
 
 “The media is trying to attack our administration because they know we are following through on pledges we made, and they’re not happy about it for whatever reason,” he said. 
 
 Though the president began on a subdued, almost melancholy note, looking down repeatedly to read from prepared remarks on his lectern, he became more fiery and animated — joyful, even — when he began to banter and joust with the assembled reporters. At times, he seemed to reprise some of his favorite themes from the campaign trail, complaining about Clinton and criticizing President Barack Obama’s policies, from his Affordable Care Act to his failed reset with Russia. 
 
 Trump repeatedly lambasted the “fake news” media — which at one point he upgraded (or downgraded) to the “very fake news” media — while promoting some dubious claims and fake news of his own. 
 
 Pressed on his incorrect assertion that he had the largest margin of victory in the electoral college since President Ronald Reagan, Trump blamed faulty facts. 
 
 “I was given that information,” he said. “Well, I don’t know, I was given that information.” 
 
 On a substantive note, Trump said his administration would submit a replacement plan for the Affordable Care Act in early to mid-March and should have a tax reform package around the same time. 
 
 “Tax reform is going to happen fairly quickly,” Trump said. “We're doing Obamacare. We're in final stages.” 
 
 During the news conference, Trump alternated between showering the media with scorn and taking a more playful tone. 
 
 At one point, he insisted he was enjoying himself. “I’m not ranting and raving — I love this,” he said. “I’m having a good time doing this.” 
 
 Trump’s Thursday performance seemed an acknowledgment, by the president, that he may be his own best press secretary and adviser, and allowed him to appear both confident and comfortable. While many of his comments, as well as the sometimes disjointed nature of his delivery, are certain to alarm official Washington, they are also the sorts of red-meat talking points that delighted his base during the campaign and helped propel him to victory. 
 
 “I won with news conferences and probably speeches,” he told the assembled reporters. “I certainly didn't win by people listening to you people.” 
 
 Read more: 
 
 Donald Trump’s combative, grievance-filled news conference, annotated 
 
 The simple reason that Trump is holding a rally in Florida this weekend 
 
 When governing beckons, Trump keeps campaigning
– President Trump ripped into the "dishonest" and "out of control" media during his press conference Thursday—and it didn't take long for the media to fire back. Fox News anchor Shepard Smith was among those who criticized the president, saying he "keeps repeating ridiculous throwaway lines that are not true at all and sort of avoiding this issue of Russia as if we're some kind of fools for asking the question," the Hill reports. Smith said Trump "owes it to the American people" to answer legitimate questions liked the ones about Russia that he dismissed as "fake news." But not all the reviews were so negative. A look at coverage: Yes, he was "combative," observes Mara Liasson at NPR, "but he was also funny and charming like he was with the press during all those years in New York as a fixture in the tabloids. ... I think that he will get a lot of credit for doing this. I think it will thrill his supporters." The Washington Post fact-checks what it describes as 15 "dubious claims" from the conference, including Trump's claim that he had the "biggest electoral college win since Reagan." Trump had a total of 304 electoral college votes, which ranks sixth in the eight elections since Reagan's 525-vote 1984 landslide. Only George W. Bush won with fewer than Trump. "I was given that information," Trump said when a reporter challenged him on the statement. The AP takes a close look at Trump's "I inherited a mess line" and decides the claim itself is messy. CNN contributor Jeffrey Lord, reacting to scathing reviews: “Lord, I think we saw two different press conferences," he said, per Raw Story. "From my perspective, I thought he was relaxed, he was funny, he was on point. He took the whole issue of the media, and he had a very candid conversation." Politico has an exhaustive list of the topics Trump covered during the 77-minute presser, ranging from nuclear holocaust to CNN, which he downgraded from "fake news" to "very fake news." BuzzFeed has video of one of the conference's most heavily commented upon moments: when Trump asked a black reporter if she could set up a meeting between him and the Congressional Black Caucus. Presidential historians tell the AP that no president, including Nixon during the Watergate scandal, has publicly turned on the press the way Trump did. "It was bizarre theater," says Rice University history professor Douglas Brinkley. "He turned a presidential press conference into a reality-TV show in which he can be the star and browbeat anyone who objects to him with the power of his office." GOP strategist and CNN contributor Alice Stewart also found a few things to praise in Trump's performance. "You can't say he's not responsive to the press," she tells the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "He answered all the questions from all over the press corps and put to rest the long-standing dialogue that he shuts down certain news outlets." Vox lists nine moments that it suggests back up Jake Tapper's description of the press conference as "wild" and "unhinged," including Trump's claim that "the leaks are real" but "the news is fake." Late-night hosts approached the press conference as gleefully as a kid unwrapping Christmas presents, and the Washington Post rounds up some of their best lines. "My guess is he did it because he's mad and he just wanted to blow off some steam," Jimmy Kimmel said. "The tone of the press conference was like if your dad found a pack of cigarettes under your mattress." David Graham at the Atlantic looks at the continual theme of complaint in the conference and wonders: Does Trump hate his new job?