'Huffington Post' no longer considers Trump entertaining

Arianna Huffington is not amused by the latest shocking statement from Republican front-runner Donald Trump.

At one time the online news publication considered the billionaire businessman's candidacy a lark. After Trump announced his candidacy, The Huffington Post announced it would cover his campaign, which it called a "sideshow," as part of its entertainment section.

"If you are interested in what The Donald has to say, you'll find it next to our stories on the Kardashians and The Bachelorette," the website's editorial director and Washington bureau chief wrote.

Well, after Trump called for the "total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States," the publication's founder and editor-in-chief decided the joke had run its course.

Huffington writes that his "vicious" statement shows that his campaign has "morphed into something else: an ugly and dangerous force in American politics."

Trump, aided by the media, has doubled down on the cruelty and know-nothingness that defined his campaign's early days, the 'can you believe he said that?' novelty has curdled and congealed into something repellent and threatening -- laying bare a disturbing aspect of American politics.

Although no longer classified as entertainment, Huffington says Trump won't be treated like any other campaign.

"Many in the media, addicted to the ratings buzz he continues to deliver, have been legitimizing his ugly views," Huffington writes.

Instead, the publication will label Trump's comments as it sees them.

"So if Trump's words and actions are racist, we'll call them racist. If they're sexist, we'll call them sexist. We won't shrink from the truth or be distracted by the showmanship," Huffington writes.