Friday, August 18, 2017

Trump is Inelegant, Media is Culpable

Is there a contradiction in the media criticizing the President for agitating North Korea while also criticizing him for calling out the Charlottesville counter demonstrators’ culpability in violence? And, do not twist that to mean the President is wrong on North Korea.
President Trump is not a statesman. He does not understand that the whole truth sometimes needs to be held for another day so that one, clear, more important message can ring forth. This is how he mismanaged his communications regarding the horrible episode at Charlottesville this week. But after watching President Trump for the past two years, does anyone expect him to be savvy about striking the correct chord? If so, reset your expectations. President Trump has demonstrated that he is not “presidential” in the historical view of “presidential.”
The vast majority of Americans despise neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and the Klu Klux Klan. America is no longer living in the 1950s. However, to respect all those who have suffered, we must continue to be clear about the condemnation of racist hate groups. President Trump emphatically stated that he condemns these groups. Then, unfortunately, he said that the counter demonstrators also acted badly.
President Trump was correct in condemning the hate groups and correct in noting the horrific acts of the counter demonstrators. But, he should have held off on criticizing the counter demonstrators. He was not wrong, he just had bad timing. Most Americans see it this way, bad timing not supporting hate groups. Most Americans understand that President Trump is not elegant, but he does put forth common sense policies that Americans support. That is why America made him our President. He is unorthodox and at times even unwise, but he has the right plan. Americans realize this and realize that the media seizes any opportunity to create the image that our President is evil. He is not.
It is still bad timing but because the President put the issue out there, it needs analysis. Counter demonstrations, no matter what is being demonstrated against, need to lawful. Clearly, the Charlottesville counter demonstrators were not lawful. They contributed to the violence. They felt justified in doing so because the groups they were protesting are so repulsive that they even support President Trump and anyone associated with President Trump is so abhorrent that violence is justified. To this point, a state representative in Maine stated that if he gets within ten feet of the President, “he will be a half-term President.” We have become an irrational society thanks to the news media convincing the public that hatred of the President, and even violence, is acceptable. In fact, it is a virtue.
Watching the political debate in our society is akin to watching the gladiators spar in the Colosseum. The media is so hateful of our President that they foment hatred of anyone with an open mind toward our President. The media seek out any Republican making a negative comment about the President as validation of their foregone conclusion that the President is evil. And, they present it in that fashion.
The President is not a great communicator. But he does have great ideas to improve America. It was these ideas/policies that won him the election. All the President’s policies are vehemently opposed by the left-leaning news media but supported by most Americans. Because the media cannot win the debate on ideas, they engage in smear campaigns and foment hate. This hate was evident in the counter demonstrators at Charlottesville and the violence it caused is the media’s responsibility.
Like all other false attacks on President Trump, this too shall pass. Hopefully, the media’s penchant for fomenting hate and violence shall also pass.
Bottom line: The news media is just as culpable for the violence perpetrated in Charlottesville, Virginia this week as the Klu Klux Klan. The false, twisted narrative put forth by the media caused some spineless business leaders to withdraw from serving our country. Therefore, the media is also responsible for delaying President Trump’s plan to make America great again. The largest irony of all is that the news media criticizes our President for not uniting our country after the horrors of Charlottesville. Are there no mirrors in the newsroom?