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- An erroneous tweet from The Hill sparked a feud between White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Democratic Rep. Ted Lieu of California.
- Lieu retweeted a now-removed tweet that distorted Sanders’ quote, adding that she was “lying.”
- Sanders fired back on Twitter and added that Lieu “should spend less time tweeting” and spend “more time doing your job.”
An erroneous tweet from The Hill sparked a feud between White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Democratic Rep. Ted Lieu of California on Monday, in which the two officials accused the other of lying and spending too much time on Twitter.
In a now-removed tweet linking to a story on the Republican Party’s tax reform efforts, The Hill tweeted: “Huckabee Sanders: GOP ‘begged’ Dems to work on tax reform.”
In the article, Sanders is quoted in an interview on “Fox and Friends” saying President Donald Trump “would’ve been happy” to work with Democrats to pass the Republican Party’s tax code reform that has since passed in the House.
“That’s something that Democrats shouldn’t need to be begged to be a part of,” Sanders reportedly said. “They should’ve been begging and banging down the door of the building behind me to be part of this process and to be part of helping more Americans be more successful.”
The Hill has since published a new tweet with the corrected title: “Huckabee Sanders: Dems should have been ‘begging’ to participate in tax reform.”
Lieu shared The Hill’s erroneous tweet before its removal, adding: “Dear @PressSec: You don’t serve in Congress. I do. And I can say with absolute certainty that you are lying.”
Nearly an hour later, Lieu replied to a MarketWatch columnist who suggested that “everybody knows she’s lying”: “That is a fair point,” Lieu said.
Around two hours later, Sanders quoted Lieu’s first tweet and fired back.
“Dear @tedlieu – I don’t serve in Congress, but I can read,” Sanders said on Twitter. “If you had read the story, not an incorrect tweet, you would see that what I said was Dems should be begging to help Americans keep more of their money.”
“You should spend less time tweeting, more time doing your job,” Sanders continued.
Lieu later admitted to his flawed tweet and deleted it, but included a partisan quip in another statement: “Dear @PressSec: If the Hill tweet was incorrect, then my tweet based on it would also be incorrect,” Lieu tweeted.
“Unlike the Trump Administration, I am confident enough to admit errors,” Lieu continued. “Also, I dare you to give the same tweeting advice you gave me to your boss.”
Lieu has been vocal about his opposition toward various Trump administration officials and policies on Twitter, most recently lambasting Republican efforts to reform the US tax code, and accusing the party of hindering special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russia’s meddling in the 2016 presidential election and possible ties with the Trump campaign.
