On the flight back from Washington to Cincinnati last Friday, I was doing what I usually do on flights – reading. Among my reading material was the New York Times and the Washington Post. As I’m sure you know, other news media outlets look to these papers (especially the Times) when they’re considering their own coverage – what’s newsworthy, and what’s not.
Now when Barack Obama was president, the typical headline seemed to be something along the lines of “Why Are Those Mean Republicans Being Unfair to Our Wonderful President?” I’m exaggerating (but only slightly.) There were exceptions – but not often. The coverage Obama got from the mainstream press was overall very positive (except for FOX News, The Wall Street Journal, and talk radio.)
But for Donald Trump? Well, it’s awful. Yes, some of it might be self-inflicted. He’ll for example tweet something, often in response to what some actress or critic has said, which he should have just let go. But it’s his nature to strike back when he thinks he’s been wronged.
Anyway, it’s my contention that the mainstream press is far more critical of Donald Trump than they ever were of Barack Obama. Virtually every story they do relative to the Trump Administration is negative. And to illustrate my point, I’ll use just one day’s headlines (last Friday) in the New York Times and the Washington Post. And this was BEFORE the media feeding frenzy which occurred later on Friday, when Trump’s new policy on “extreme vetting” of immigrants from seven Middle East and North African countries was announced (or the banning of Muslims as many in the press refer to it.)
First, from the New York Times. (Trump’s) “Tax Plan Sews Confusion as Border Tensions Soar”. The gist of this article is that Trump’s wall is a bad idea, his tax plan sucks, and Mexico now hates us and it’s Trump’s fault.
(Trump’s) “Illegal Voting Claims, and Why They Don’t Hold Up”. The gist of this article is that Trump is awful, because he’s suggested that a lot of people, especially illegal aliens in California, voted. (And they didn’t vote for him.) According to the press, you can’t prove it, so shut up.
“Migrants Less Likely to Commit Crimes”. The New York Times in this article argues that Trump is wrong to want to keep illegal aliens out in the first place, because our own citizens are more dangerous to us than illegals are. Balderdash!
“Donald Trump’s Mexico Tantrum”. In this doozey, the Times in its oh-so-unbiased fashion, claims that there has been “a torrent of lies, dangerous policy ideas, and threats from the White House since Mr. Trump was sworn in last Friday.” (Sounds like they’ve really got an open mind.)
“An Extremist Holding the Purse Strings”. The “extremist” referred to in this editorial is President Trump’s pick to be head of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Congressman Mick Mulvaney. In the eyes of the Times, Mulvaney is an extremist because he’s actually serious about trying to get to a balanced budget. They find his views on this “terrifying.”
“The Politics of Cowardice”. In this diatribe, those of us who support Donald Trump are “cowards” because Donald Trump has apparently brainwashed us into being afraid of Mexicans, Muslims, Asians, and virtually anyone who is different from us.
So much for the New York Times – now to the Washington Post. Here’s a sampling of their anti-Trump headlines (and my comments on the articles.)
“Our Country’s CEO (Trump) is Bad at Business”. The gist of this editorial in the Washington Post is that Trump has picked a lousy cabinet (which is patently absurd), he’s trying to reduce too much Washington bureaucracy (those poor bureaucrats), and he actually intends to build that wall that he talked so much about during the campaign. (Imagine that, we’ve actually elected someone who was serious about keeping the promises he made.) And that makes him a “bad CEO?”
“Gingrich Joins Trump’s ‘Running War with the Media’ – One Americans Could Lose”. The point of this piece in the Washington Post is that when Trump attacks the press, he’s attacking the American people. Again, balderdash!
“Abroad, Immigration Actions Shatter Families’ Dreams”. You pretty much get the gist of this one from the headline: enforcing our immigration laws, and making sure that immigrants trying to come here from areas where there is rampant terrorism are properly vetted, is just, well, it’s unfair, and mean-spirited, and intolerant. (Let’s first make sure the American people are safe.)
“Trump’s Questioning of the Accuracy of Jobs Data has Economists Worried”. This article basically says that if the Department of Labor says unemployment is 4.7%, well it’s 4.7%. Our 45th President looks at it a different way. His point of view is that if a person was working full time, and he’s now only working part time, and the Department of Labor counts it the same; and if a person was making $100,000 a year, and he’s now only making $10,000 a year, and the Department of Labor counts it the same; and if a person was working, lost his job, and was so frustrated looking for a new job that he stopped looking, and the Department of Labor no longer even counts that person as being unemployed, there’s something wrong with the numbers. Trump’s right.
“The Trouble with The President’s Tweets”. This one’s also pretty self-explanatory – The Washington Post doesn’t like Donald Trump tweeting. Okay, I get it. This is something I hear from even Trump supporters pretty often. But here’s the thing – it works for him! He’s able to get around the mainstream press (who detest him, as evidenced by the previously discussed articles) and speak directly to millions and millions of Americans. You sure can’t say he doesn’t stay in touch with the people.
There were a few more headlines I was going to discuss, but I think that’s enough for one sitting. The bottom line is, the mainstream press hates Trump. Virtually every bit of coverage he’s gotten to date, and is likely to get in the future, is negative. No wonder one of Trump’s top advisors, Steve Bannon, said a few days ago that “the media is the opposition party.” (Not surprisingly, the media criticized Trump for that being said as well.)
My advice to Trump would be, not to get discouraged, or distracted by negative press coverage. You’re a Republican now – it goes with the territory. Stay focused on doing what you said you would do, and you’ll be just fine. And with a few exceptions, that’s exactly what he’s doing.