De-pressing

If this Tweet from Mr. Trump doesn’t chill each of us to our democracy-loving bones, then I truly fear for the continuance of our Republic and the principles set forth by our forebears. This goes beyond hinting at demagoguery and is yet another salvo against a free press, a necessary part of a free society. Some supporters of Mr. Trump will, no doubt, take this and run with it, attempting to further bend public opinion against news outlets who report unflattering pieces against Mr. Trump.

Did Mr. Tillerson call Mr. Trump a “moron” (or possibly with the descriptive “f******” in front of it, as some reports note) at a Pentagon meeting earlier this summer? I don’t know if he did, but many of us have. That’s besides the point, I guess, but news outlets seem to have sources that they trust on this and Mr. Tillerson, himself, didn’t deny it when asked. I’d love to hear a recording of the original exchange, if it exists.

So, what is Mr. Trump’s goal in these continued attacks on the press, especially those who don’t buy into the rosy picture of everything being great and wonderful and the best it’s ever been and acquiesce to his self-adulation and self-proclaimed monumental greatness? Certain press outlets are strongly opposed to the Trump and GOP agendas, calling the players out for their words and actions that are harmful to vast swaths of the American electorate and world population. So what? That is their job.

Like it or not, Mr. Trump and Trump sycophants, you can’t control what the press disseminates. At least not yet. It seems that the suppression of the oppositional press is what Mr. Trump desires, with all of his ludicrous and hypocritical whining about “fake news.” He, the purveyor of birtherism and Clinton hits against political opponents, has the cojones to try to convince the public that he is a paragon of justice and square business dealings when there is a building mountain of evidence to the contrary? Sadly, there are many who will continue to hew to Mr. Trump’s distortions despite any and all evidence disproving his claims.

Not that I’m a fan of corporate media, or anything. When we have just a handful of massive corporations controlling what is spoon-fed to the public, it is very easy for these media concerns to warp the message and set the narrative. The sanitized “news” that is splayed across electronic and print media, to a large extent, has been filtered through corporate-friendly membranes, stripped of any traces of material that may shine a light in the shadows. Is this anything new? Not really, but it seems to have become more and more pronounced as corporations gobble up media sources. Take a look at the Sinclair Broadcast Group and the Trump Administration’s abandonment of FCC rules in allowing it to control an ever-increasing local news market share.

Where are these attacks on the media going? None of us really know. What makes this so alarming is that it is another tool being used to wedge us apart. In my opinionated prognostication, Mr. Trump is using “the Big Lie” to convince people that he is the victim of a cadre of evil leftists bent on harming his presidency via media outlets so when things do fall apart, as I and many believe, he already has in place an excuse that many of his adherents have accepted as truth. When the Mueller team releases damning evidence of Mr. Trump’s shady dealings and illegal activities, both previous to and during the 2016 election cycle, Mr. Trump will mount whatever stage and implore his loyal followers that he has done nothing wrong and that it’s all about a press wanting to pull him down because of their bad ratings or something like that. Many will believe him, thus throwing our already teetering country further out of balance.

Just like so much during our present political era, very little that is happening has precedent.