Rubio rips media for ‘hypocrisy’ in coverage of Trump’s meeting with Kim

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) on Tuesday charged that the news media’s coverage of President Trump’s meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was “hypocritical.”
“Presidents meeting with [Kim Jong Un] exposed incredible hypocrisy of many in media. When Obama did these things, he was described as enlightened. When Trump does it he is reckless & foolish. 1 yr ago they attacked Trump for leading us towards war, now attack for being too quick for peace,” Rubio said in a tweet.
Presidents meeting with #KJU exposed incredible hypocrisy of many in media. When Obama did these things,he was described as enlightened. When Trump does it he is reckless & foolish. 1 yr ago they attacked Trump for leading us towards war,now attack for being too quick for peace
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) June 12, 2018
{mosads}The senator went on to comment on an opinion piece from The New York Times’s Nicholas Kristof that was critical of the outcome of Trump’s meeting with Kim, saying Trump made “a huge concession” in exchange for “astonishingly little.”
Rubio said that although he is “uncomfortable” with Trump’s decision to suspend military exercises with South Korea, the U.S. can quickly react by increasing sanctions if Kim does not follow through in negotiations.
“I’m uncomfortable with suspending military exercises & if this becomes permanent in exchange for nothing you are 100% correct. However after Trump bent over backwards to be conciliatory, if [Kim Jong Un] does nothing, intl sanctions will be easier to enforce & increase,” he tweeted.
.@NickKristof I’m uncomfortable with suspending military exercises & if this becomes permanent in exchange for nothing you are 100% correct. However after Trump bent over backwards to be conciliatory, if #KJU does nothing, intl sanctions will be easier to enforce & increase https://t.co/rMplXVkANY
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) June 12, 2018
Rubio also said media had a double standard in comparison to how reporters covered former President Obama’s meeting with Cuban leader Raul Castro.
“I too have concerns about how all this with #NorthKorea will turn out. But I don’t recall all the ‘experts’ criticizing Obama when he met with a brutal dictator in #Cuba who also oversaw a police state & also killed & jailed his opponents,” he tweeted.
I too have concerns about how all this with #NorthKorea will turn out. But I don’t recall all the “experts” criticizing Obama when he met with a brutal dictator in #Cuba who also oversaw a police state & also killed & jailed his opponents. #DoubleStandard https://t.co/j5x6wPiMGb
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) June 12, 2018
Rubio’s comments come after Trump and Kim signed a joint statement making a broad commitment for the U.S. to provide North Korea with “security guarantees” in return for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
“President Trump committed to provide security guarantees to [North Korea], and Chairman Kim Jong Un reaffirmed his firm and unwavering commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula,” Trump and Kim said in a joint statement on Tuesday.
Trump lavished praise on Kim at the conclusion of the summit, calling him a “very talented man” who “loves his country very much.”