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President Trump's Tweets Attacking MSNBC Host Denounced By Lawmakers

CHICAGO (CBS) -- President Trump's personal, vulgar Twitter attack on MSNBC television host Mika Brzezinski drew swift condemnation from Illinois politicians.

On Thursday morning the president posted two tweets assailing the "Morning Joe" host, referring to her as "low-IQ Mika" and calling her co-host Joe Scarborough "Psycho Joe." He then went even further, saying that Brzezinski was "bleeding badly from a face-lift" when she arrived at his Mar-A-Lago resort around New Year's Eve.

Rep. Jan Schakowsky called the tweets "vile" and "unbecoming of an American leader."

Rep. Adam Kinzinger implored the president to "tone down this divisive political rhetoric."

Rep. Cheri Bustos said "bullying women for how they look is insulting."

Rep. Mike Quigley called the tweets a "new low" and noted that his proposal to archive presidential tweets would preserve the historical record "so future generations can understand this president's legacy."

The White House defended the president's actions, with spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders saying there have been an "outrageous number of personal attacks" on the show against the president and his aides.

"I don't think that the president has ever been someone who gets attacked and doesn't push back," she said on Fox News. "This is a president who fights fire with fire."

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