Trump brands Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski 'ditzy airhead' in latest sexist attack

Donald Trump launched another sexist attack on Mika Brzezinski, calling the "Morning Joe" co-host who often criticises him a "ditzy airhead" as he tries to court suburban female voters.

The president began his Thursday, after the United States recorded more coronavirus deaths on Wednesday since mid-May, by focusing on cable news ratings and reviving a feud with two MSNBC hosts.

"Very poor morning TV ratings for MSDNC's Morning Joe, headed by a complete Psycho named Joe Scarborough and his ditzy airhead wife, Mika, and also @CNN, headed by complete unknowns," he wrote before 7 a.m. (ET). The latter remark was a dig at CNN "New Day" hosts John Berman and Alisyn Camerota.

The president also touted another cable morning show that typically defends and fawns over him on a friendly network.

"Congratulations to @foxandfriends on dominating the mornings (thank you President Trump!)," he tweeted.

After Mr Trump's tweet about the show, "Morning Joe" hosts and guests mocked the president for being, as one put it, a "ring-a-ding-ding 1950s" thinker and politician.

The sexist dig was just the latest in a long series of anti-woman statements by Mr Trump.

He called Senator Kamala Harris "nasty" on Tuesday after his general election foe, former Vice President Joe Biden, named her his 2020 running mate.

That prompted Mr Biden at his introductory event for Ms Harris a day later to blast the president for, in his words, having a problem with "strong women."

Mr Trump and his surrogates, somehow, appeared caught a bit off guard by Ms Harris joining the Democratic ticket. The tried labelling her as "radical" and too progressive, but have yet to settle on one consistent message.

The president passed on multiple opportunities to politically damage Ms Harris during a Wednesday evening coronavirus press briefing during which he appeared flat, uttered a new string of misleading statements, and repeated himself over and over.

He began Wednesday by overtly trying to court "suburban housewives" by touting his move to end a rule on low-income housing that drew charges of racism. About 24 hours later, he lashed out at a woman using sexist language, another sign of how his re-election bid continues to sputter.

Asked about his "housewives" tweet on Wednesday evening, he gave a muddled response.

"What I mean is people are going to become they are going to be opening up areas of your neighbourhood which they are doing and now they are going to do they wanted to expand it and they will expand it. If for any reason they are going to in my opinion, destroy suburbia," he said. " And when they go in and they want to change zoning so that you have lots of problems where they want to build low income housing--you want something where people can aspire to be there not something where it gets hurt badly. And that's what happens."