Trump slams 'phony' book as distraction from Russia collusion 'hoax'

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Trump looks to stop the distribution of Michael Wolff book

Fox News senior judicial analyst Judge Andrew Napolitano on why President Trump won’t be able to stop the distribution of Michael Wolff’s book “Fire and Fury.”

President Trump on Friday dissed and dismissed Michael Wolff’s newly released White House tell-all as a distraction from what he described as the unraveling Russia collusion "hoax."

“Well, now that collusion with Russia is proving to be a total hoax and the only collusion is with Hillary Clinton and the FBI/Russia, the Fake News Media (Mainstream) and this phony new book are hitting out at every new front imaginable. They should try winning an election. Sad!” Trump tweeted Friday morning.

Wolff’s book, “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House,” was released Friday morning – four days before it was initially scheduled to hit the shelves. Wolff and his publisher rushed the release to seize on public interest, after Trump’s personal attorneys sent a “cease and desist” letter demanding the book be retracted.

The book paints an unflattering portrait of Trump and features numerous associates -- especially former adviser Steve Bannon -- trash-talking the president.

The White House has slammed Wolff and the book as "fraudulent."

“The book is mistake after mistake after mistake,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Thursday. “I’m not going to waste my time or the country’s time going page by page correcting [the book].”

Sanders added that it was “sad,” “pathetic,” and a “fantasy,” noting that Wolff’s requests to interview the president were repeatedly denied.

“We saw him for what he was,” Sanders said Thursday. “No reason to waste the president of the United States’ time.”

But in an exclusive interview on NBC’s “Today” early Friday, Wolff claimed he did, in fact, interview the president.

“I absolutely … spoke to the president, whether he realized it was an interview or not –it certainly was not off the record,” Wolff said. “I had spent about three hours with the president over the course of the campaign and as president.”

Wolff added: “My window into Donald Trump is pretty significant.”

But the president’s tweet, pointing fingers back at Hillary Clinton, comes hours after it was revealed that the Justice Department had launched a new investigation into the potential “pay to play” politics with the Clinton Foundation during her tenure as secretary of state.

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Republicans have repeatedly called for a second special counsel to investigate Hillary Clinton on a number of different issues.

Late last year, Attorney General Jeff Sessions told prosecutors to evaluate “certain issues” raised by congressional Republicans related to the Clinton Foundation, leading to speculation about the potential appointment of another special counsel.

In September, conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch said that emails from Clinton aide Huma Abedin’s account showed Clinton Foundation donors requesting and receiving favors from the State Department.

Fox News' Jake Gibson contributed to this report.