Carl Bernstein

Donald Trump is ‘An American War Criminal in His Own Country’ ~ Carl Bernstein

Posted by on July 25, 2021 at 11:57 am. 1 Comments :

For the past six months Donald Trump has persisted with his reckless and inflammatory “Big Lie” rhetoric that the 2020 presidential election was “rigged” and “stolen” from him. That egomaniacal blather led directly to the January 6th insurrection in Washington, D.C. And it continues to this day with Trump’s most recent cult rally in Phoenix, Arizona, where he spent nearly all of his 90+ minutes ranting about the last election.

Donald Trump, QAnon, Dictator

However, Trump’s phony election fraud fetish only scratches the surface of his danger and dementia. On Sunday’s Reliable Sources on CNN, famed Watergate reporter, Carl Bernstein, delivered a convincing argument for changing the context with which we view Trump. His self-serving distortions of reality are not merely examples of his narcissistic thirst for adoration and power. They represent a much more serious breach of societal norms and international law. Bernstein began by noting that “What we’re talking about is a kind of delusional madness.” Then he elaborated saying that…

“I think when we’re talking about Trump’s crimes as an American war criminal in his own country, that he has perpetrated upon our people, including the tens of thousands who died because of his homicidal negligence in the pandemic, putting his own electoral interests above the health of our people as they were slaughtered in this pandemic.

“Looking at his actions in terms of fomenting a coup to hold on to office, in which the head of the American military, the Joint Chiefs of Staff [Gen. Mark Milley], has now compared Trump – not the press, not reporters comparing Trump to Hitler – but rather the head of the American military, comparing him and his movement to Brownshirts, to the Reichstag fire. This is a huge wake up call to this country.”

Bernstein is articulating what many Americans have already been thinking for months (years?). And he is providing just the right evidence to support his opinion. Trump has brazenly placed his own interests above those of the nation. He has gone to extreme lengths to persuade his dimwitted cult disciples that his goals are the same as theirs. And he has grievously harmed millions by doing so. This same point was made by historian Steven Beschloss, who tweeted that…

“We are living in a country in which tens of millions are continuing participants in a death cult committed to a sociopathic conman and criminal who occupied the White House to enrich himself and feed his broken ego.”

While Trump is certainly guilty of forming and encouraging that “death cult,” the liability of the conservative, Trump-fluffing media cannot be ignored. First, and still foremost, is Fox News, where Trump’s lies are not just tolerated, they are supported by a roster of anchors, contributors, and guests, who are almost uniformly devotees of the Cult of Trump. They believe the coronavirus was a hoax created to hurt Trump. They believe that President Biden is a communist. They believe that Trump won the election. In short, they are hopelessly bonkers. And they are spreading that sickness to their viewers.

It is crucial that the nation recognize just how detrimental Trump has been to America, and will continue to be if the American people don’t hold him accountable. That means our legal institutions need to step up and charge him for the crimes he’s committed. Unless they do it will just be setting the precedented for the next aspiring dictator to take over where Trump left off. Bernstein and Beschloss are saying exactly the right things. But if we do nothing in response, the American experiment will end in failure.

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How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

North Korea? NFL? Oh Wait – Russia Probes Are ‘Closing In’ on Donald Trump

Posted by on September 25, 2017 at 2:12 pm. NO Comments :

For much of the past week Donald Trump has been tweeting in a frenzy over subjects not previously in the news. He has escalated the debate over professional athletes expressing themselves on matters of significant social importance. And he has also created a crisis situation with North Korea that wasn’t an issue until he starting mouthing off.

Carl Bernstein

Both of those issues are newsworthy on their own now. Certainly the message behind the movement that quarterback Colin Kaepernick started needs to be addressed. Systemic racism in America continues to cause real harm. And Trump’s overtly bigoted contribution has had the unintended effect of getting the issue more positive attention. As for North Korea, Trump’s childish feuding with Kim Jung Un has thrust the world into a rhetorical firestorm. And this one has frightening, nuclear overtones. The media can hardly ignore that.

And that may be the point. Trump is trying to control the news cycle to keep it clear of something that he’s truly afraid of. By injecting new and melodramatic subjects into the media, he hopes to prevent further revelations about his own scandals. To some degree it’s working. But in a segment on CNN’s Reliable Sources host Brian Stelter and famed Watergate journalist Carl Bernstein were not fooled. (Video below):

Stelter: It was reported this week that special counsel Robert Mueller is asking the White House to provide documents related to Trump’s actions as president. Not just pre-campaign or pre-election day, but issues recently. That request includes at least thirteen areas in which investigators are seeking information. Including statements made about former FBI Director James Comey made in the presence of Russian officials. Also the firing of Michael Flynn. And the meeting at Trump Tower with Donald Trump, Jr. As you recall, he sought to get damaging information about Hillary Clinton from a Russian individual.

That introduction covered a broad swath of the potential criminal behaviors emanating from the White House. And Carl Bernstein’s response closed the circle with a concise summary of the President’s unsavory avtivities:

Bernstein: Robert Mueller, the special counsel, is looking at the conduct of President Donald Trump and members of his family, especially Jared Kushner. Also his closest campaign aides in terms of their dealings with Russia, ethno-Russians, during the campaign and before. And in business. But there’s a much larger context that now informs the whole investigation. And that is the conclusion of the American intelligence community – under Donald Trump, not under Obama – that now is certain that the Russians were very, very, effective at undermining the campaign of Hillary Clinton and specifically helping Donald Trump.

And we keep hearing the word collusion, which is not a legal term. What Mueller is focused on is quite different than the simple idea of collusion. It’s whether or not Donald Trump, and perhaps his family and business associates, knew that the Russians were trying to help his campaign. And if they knew that, why didn’t they blow the whistle on the Russians? Did they try to cover it up? Are they continuing to try and cover up that knowledge? That’s the real question. Not the word “collusion,” which Trump and the White House keep trying to focus on.

Finally, Bernstein proposed what might be the motivations driving Trump and his more recent scandal mongering:

Bernstein: But the reason is these investigations are closing in on him, his family, and his aides. And if indeed there’s nothing there and it’s a hoax, then why has Donald Trump tried to undermine, demean and obstruct – not necessarily in terms of the legal obstruction of justice – these investigations for six months at every turn? He’s done everything that he can, as have those around him, to keep these investigations from succeeding.

That pretty much says it all. Trump is engaging in a fierce effort to divert attention from himself and his possible prosecution and/or impeachment. And he’s using other news events, some serious, some fabricated, to achieve that goal. Hopefully more journalists like Bernstein and Stelter will demonstrate that they cannot be tricked into serving as his propaganda merchants.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Watergate’s Carl Bernstein Says Donald Trump Is ‘More Treacherous’ Than Nixon

Posted by on February 19, 2017 at 3:04 pm. 4 Comments :

Fallout from Donald Trump’s brazenly anti-American attack on the press continues to spread. Last Friday he posted a comment on Twitter that has been universally assailed for its hostility to the Constitution and one of its most cherished principles: A free press. He tweeted:

The reaction to this nauseating tweet was immediate and profound revulsion. Needless to say, Democrats have been united in condemning these remarks. And the response from the Twitter community was a flood of disgust, along with examples of heroic journalists under the hashtag #NotTheEnemy.

Carl Bernstein

However, offense was not taken solely by Democrats and liberals. Trump’s Republican colleague, John McCain, noted that “That’s how dictators get started.” His own Secretary of Defense, James Mattis, disagreed with the “enemy” rhetoric. And in an interview with White House chief of staff Reince Priebus, Chris Wallace of Fox News said that Trump had “crossed the line.” “We don’t have a state-run media in this country,” Wallace told Priebus. “That’s what they have in dictatorships.”

In addition to these stinging rebukes, there was one that might pack an especially painful wallop. Carl Bernstein was half of the renowned pair of journalists, Woodward and Bernstein, that uncovered the Watergate scandal. Their investigative reporting culminated in the resignation of disgraced former president Richard Nixon. The whole story was as intriguing as any spy thriller. Nixon’s crimes included electoral corruption, perjury, pay offs, and cover ups. So it’s pretty significant when Bernstein appears on CNN and says this (video below):

“Trump’s attacks on the American press as ‘enemies of the America people’ is more treacherous than Nixon’s attacks on the press.”

Having been an eyewitness to one of America’s most notorious political scandals, Bernstein has credibility with this issue that is unparalleled. He is plainly disturbed by the language emanating from this president. If Nixon’s crimes warranted impeachment, than what does that say about Trump’s “more treacherous” behavior? Bernstein had more to say about it himself:

“It’s a demagogue’s statement.” […] “We’ve never seen in an American president such open authoritarian moves and rhetoric. This is a terrible time we’re living in.” […] “We are not enemies of the American people. In fact we’re the last resort of the American people to a dictatorial and authoritarian-inclined president.”

Trump’s slander of the media as an “enemy of the American people” is just the latest unhinged swipe he’s taken at the press. His previous assaults were castigated by groups like the Committee to Protect Journalists, who warned that “A Trump presidency would represent a threat to press freedom in the United States.” Yet he continues to escalate a dangerous dialog that could incite violence against reporters. After all, his rabid followers take very seriously anything that he tells them. And when he tells them that the press is the nation’s enemy, to what lengths might they go to “protect” their country?

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.