Trump slams 'proud member of the opposition party' CNN over report on TSA call-outs

President Trump has slammed CNN, calling it “a proud member of the Opposition Party,” in response to the network’s recent report about TSA staffing issues amid the partial government shutdown.

“Great Tweet today by Tyler Q. Houlton @SpoxDHS on the #FakeNews being put out by @CNN, a proud member of the Opposition Party. @TSA is doing a great job!” Trump wrote in a Saturday tweet.

Houlton, a Department of Homeland Security press secretary, tweeted about the CNN story on Friday, “More #FakeNews from @CNN. Security operations at airports have not been impacted by a non-existent sick out. CNN has the cell numbers of multiple @TSA public affairs professionals, but rather than validate statistics, they grossly misrepresented them.”

The CNN report states: “Hundreds of Transportation Security Administration officers, who are required to work without paychecks through the partial government shutdown, have called out from work this week from at least four major airports, according to two senior agency officials and three TSA employee union officials.”

Related: U.S. Department of Homeland Security:

It also cites call-out figures at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, and two airports in North Carolina.

And, according to sources, reasons for the absences include protests over delayed payments, the inability to cover child care, and the pull of cash jobs to pay for expenses.

The TSA has since issued a statement about the CNN report, acknowledging an increase in call outs but also arguing that the issue is “causing minimal impact” on security and performance.