Top Trump deputy retweets 'gut her' attack on Megyn Kelly

Donald Trump and his allies have escalated a feud with Fox News moderator Megyn Kelly, with top deputy Michael Cohen retweeting a tweet from an account named “surfersfortrump” that said, “#boycottmegynkelly @realDonaldTrump we can gut her.”

The tweet came after Thursday night’s Republican presidential debate, during which Kelly and Trump clashed onstage over her tough questions about the mogul’s history of taking liberal positions and insulting women he dislikes.


Trump himself had fanned the flames of anger toward Kelly, bashing her in post-debate interviews for what he called unfair treatment, and using his own Twitter account to further attack her.

While it was unclear if it was Trump himself tweeting from his official account, at 3:24 a.m. early on Friday, Trump retweeted a supporter calling Kelly a “bimbo.” At 3:31 a.m., he called her “overrated” and “angry.” At at 3:59, Trump helped a supporter wondering about Kelly’s “hidden agenda.”

Cohen, executive vice president of the Trump Organization and special counsel to Trump, is not apologizing for the “gut her” retweet.

“It is interesting to note that the only attacks against Mr. Trump last night came from the moderators,” said Cohen, who pointed out that he retweeted many tweets Thursday night, in a statement. “It appeared to all viewers that it was a coordinated effort. Megyn Kelly clearly tried the hardest and failed as Mr. Trump has been deemed the winner of last night’s debate by multiple polls and media outlets.”

“I didn’t and don’t believe that the tweet implied physical violence against Ms. Kelly,” Cohen added in a follow-up statement to POLITICO. “I do not condone violence against anyone, male or female.”

Cohen has recently gotten in hot water for his comments about women, specifically in relation to old rape claim allegations from Trump’s then-wife Ivana Trump.

He apologized late last month after telling the Daily Beast that legally “you cannot rape your spouse.”