Trump about official statistics? 'They may have been phony in the past, but it's very real now' [View all]

[question everything]

White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer rightly suspected that reporters might ask him Friday about President Trump's past comments questioning the accuracy of government data on employment.

So when a reporter asked whether Trump stood by his remarks that the data were "phony," Spicer had a ready answer — and used words that he said were the president's.

"They may have been phony in the past, but it's very real now," Spicer said. He also said Trump's instructions were to quote him "very clearly" on that point.

Spicer laughed as he shared the sentiments and elicited laughter from some reporters as well. But what Spicer, and Trump, were admitting to was a stark reality: that Trump appears content to undermine facts that don't serve his interests, but will not hesitate to embrace them when they do.

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http://www.latimes.com/politics/washington/la-na-essential-washington-updates-to-trump-once-phony-employment-data-1489176837-htmlstory.html