VIDEO: 'No anonymous sources,' Trump tells media — after White House uses them

President Donald Trump speaks in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017. The president denounced threats against Jewish community centers as "horrible," his first forceful statement against anti-Semitism. Earlier botched attempts to address the issue and an angry encounter with a Jewish reporter last week have fueled concerns that Trump emboldens bigots. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump speaks in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017. The president denounced threats against Jewish community centers as "horrible," his first forceful statement against anti-Semitism. Earlier botched attempts to address the issue and an angry encounter with a Jewish reporter last week have fueled concerns that Trump emboldens bigots. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump used his first presidential appearance before the nation's largest gathering of conservative activists Friday to criticize the news media and take direct aim at the use of anonymous sources. Reporters "shouldn't be allowed to use sources unless they use somebody's name," he declared, just hours after members of his own staff held a press briefing and refused to allow their names to be used.

"A source says that Donald Trump is a horrible, horrible human being, let them say it to my face," Trump told the Conservative Political Action Committee. "Let there be no more sources."

Members of Trump's White House team regularly demand anonymity when talking to reporters.

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Trump said he wasn't against all the press, just "the fake news media or press."

"I'm against the people that make up stories and make up sources," he said. "They shouldn't be allowed to use sources unless they use somebody's name."

The president has chafed at a number of anonymously sourced stories, including numerous reports describing contacts between his campaign officials and the Russians, which the White House has sharply disputed.

"The fake news doesn't tell the truth," Trump insisted. "It doesn't represent the people. It will never represent the people and we're going to do something about it."

After his criticism of the press, Trump turned to a recitation of his agenda, promising action on health care, trade, energy policy and more.

"One by one, we're checking off the promises we made to the American people," he said, telling the group "I will not disappoint you."

Trump told the conservatives that the health care law he inherited from President Barack Obama threatens to bring about "total catastrophe," reiterating his promise to repeal and replace it. He highlighted his efforts to get tough on illegal immigration, saying that "as we speak today, immigration officers are finding gang members, drug dealers and criminal aliens and throwing them the hell out."

He promised changes to the welfare system, saying, "It's time for all Americans to get off welfare and get back to work," adding that: "You're going to love it."

Read Saturday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.

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