NYT taunts Donald Trump with 'pure fiction' on potential 2020 GOP challengers

Is the New York Times taunting President Donald Trump with this front page article today? It sure looks like it:

Waking up, scanning the front page of the NYT, wondering how the president will react to seeing this headline pic.twitter.com/ORls0je4Ay

— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) August 6, 2017

Not only is the headline bad, one of the examples from the first freakin line of the piece is a lie:

WASHINGTON — Senators Tom Cotton and Ben Sasse have already been to Iowa this year, Gov. John Kasich is eyeing a return visit to New Hampshire, and Mike Pence’s schedule is so full of political events that Republicans joke that he is acting more like a second-term vice president hoping to clear the field than a No. 2 sworn in a little over six months ago.

Yes, Ben Sasse went to Iowa earlier this year. But he went to pay off a debt to IJR’s Benny Johnson over last year’s Nebraska-Iowa football game. Nebraska lost which meant Sasse had to go to Iowa and drive an Uber:

As for Sen. Tom Cotton, he was in Iowa for a fundraising dinner in May:

Tom Cotton headlined Pottawattamie Co (Iowa) GOP’s annual fundraiser on Friday – https://t.co/IsTu3qEGJH

— Reid Wilson (@PoliticsReid) May 22, 2017

But if Cotton wants to run against Trump in 2020, why would he partner with the president on immigration?

WATCH my remarks at the @WhiteHouse on the RAISE Act: pic.twitter.com/HqLCDsMbTa

— Tom Cotton (@SenTomCotton) August 2, 2017

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As for Ohio Governor John Kasich, we’ll give the Times that one. Who knows what he’ll do?

Kasich & Hickenlooper doing another joint appearance this AM on Face The Nation. The 2020 Bull Moose ticket?

— Scott Detrow (@scottdetrow) August 6, 2017

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway called the NYT piece “pure fiction” in an appearance on George Stephanopoulos’ show Sunday morning:

.@KellyannePolls: Rumors of @VP Mike Pence Setting up Shadow Campaign for 2020 Are ‘Complete Fiction’ https://t.co/E9QcaNxfqV pic.twitter.com/UcRutG8hcD

— Free Beacon (@FreeBeacon) August 6, 2017

Update. Here’s Mike Pence’s response:

My statement regarding the absurd @NYtimes article. pic.twitter.com/htvYSbS2dy

— Vice President Mike Pence (@VP) August 6, 2017

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