SRSLY? Corey Lewandowski Tells Fox News That the ‘Situation with Assad’ is Obama’s Fault

Posted by on April 14, 2018 at 2:01 pm. 3 Comments :

It didn’t take long for Fox News to broadcast their official response to the Syrian chemical weapons crisis – or any problem that rankles Donald Trump’s administration: Obama did it! That’s right. And the reason that Trump had to renege on his campaign promises to refrain from getting America mired in any more foreign conflicts, like the one in Syria, is the same as as his excuses for all of his other lies and blunders.

Barack Obama, Donald Trump

In a segment on Fox News, Trump shill Corey Lewandowski disseminated the pre-approved White House doctrine regarding any and all scenarios that negatively impact the administration (video below). It was a prime example of the robo-speak that is emblematic of the Trump regime. It was also the very same position that Trump himself tweeted years before. Lewandowski said that:

“The reason we’re in this situation with Assad is because Barack Obama drew a line in the sand which meant nothing. There were no teeth behind it. The chemical weapons that were supposed to be a red line in the previous administration meant nothing. And we’re here today, and people lost their lives in Syria, because the previous administration did nothing to prevent it from happening.”

For starters, Lewandowski must have forgotten that Trump already executed a military response to a prior use of chemical weapons by Assad last year. He insisted that it would send an unmistakable message to Assad that continuing such atrocities would not be tolerated. Apparently the message was not as clear as Trump thought. Especially after he announced that he would be pulling U.S. troops out of Syria shortly.

The question that no one on Fox News is asking is: How would Obama’s actions years earlier have changed any of the outcomes following Trump’s more recent actions? If Trump’s bombing raid last year didn’t deter Assad, why would Obama’s raid five years ago have done it? Are they just admitting that Obama would have done it better?

Now let’s take a look at whether Obama did anything after Assad’s use of chemical weapons during his term. The fact is that Obama forcefully denounced Assad and advocated for a military response. However, unlike Trump, he sought congressional approval (as the Constitution requires) in order to ensure that the action had the full support of a united nation. He beseeched the GOP-controlled legislature to come together in this effort saying:

“Here’s my question for every member of Congress and every member of the global community: What message will we send if a dictator can gas hundreds of children to death in plain sight and pay no price? What’s the purpose of the international system that we’ve built if a prohibition on the use of chemical weapons that has been agreed to by the governments of 98 percent of the worlds’ people and approved overwhelmingly by the Congress of the United States is not enforced?”

The response by Congress was worse than voting down an authorizing resolution. The Republicans in charge would not even permit the measure to come up for a vote. And it was clear that if they had, a majority of Republicans would have voted against it. Which is especially interesting considering what Trump was saying at the time:

So according to Trump, Obama needed congressional approval to bomb Syria (which he tried to get), but Trump can do whatever the hell he wants? That’s the mindset of a flaming hypocrite, and a wannabe dictator.

None of these facts are likely to persuade Fox News, or their glassy-eyed viewers, to change their minds about Obama being the source of everything bad in the world. He will continue to be the excuse they cling to for any of the failings by Trump and the Republican Party of (avoiding) personal responsibility. This is just the way that the right-wing has their propaganda wired. And it’s convenient that they have a “news” network that is amenable to serving as their State-run TV outlet.

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

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SAYS WHO? Michael Cohen, Trump’s Fixer, Reportedly Lied About Being in Prague -Dossier Confirmed?

Posted by on April 14, 2018 at 11:00 am. NO Comments :

Donald Trump’s repetitious and hollow declarations that there was “no collusion with Russia” and “no obstruction of justice” have never had any substance to back them up. They were always the ravings of a frightened man exposing to the world his consciousness of guilt. And along with the spin by his sycophants in politics and punditry who insist that there is “no evidence” of any wrongdoing, he continues to stubbornly deny the reality that most Americans plainly see.

Michael Cohen

One of the most frequent claims from the Trump camp is now crumbling to dust. For months they have been castigating the Christopher Steele dossier, a document provided by a respected former British spy, as “fake” news. They pretend that none of it has been verified, even though much, but not all, of it has been. And they assert that the whole investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller should be terminated and discarded because it sprung from the “phony” dossier. For the record, the dossier was a small part of the justification for FISA court authorization of surveillance of certain Trump associates.

One of the claims in the dossier that had been vehemently denied was that Trump’s personal lawyer, and mob fixer, Michael Cohen, had traveled to Prague to meet with Russian operatives. Cohen was adamant that he was never there and tweeted a picture of the front of his passport to prove it. Although how the cover of a passport proves anything has yet to be revealed.

However, a new report by the McClatchy Washington, D.C. bureau undermines Cohen’s denials and asserts that contrary evidence is already in the hands of Mueller’s team. The article quotes sources who confirm his visit to Prague and his meetings with suspicious foreign characters. They include Konstantin Kosachev, an ally of Vladimir Putin who has since been sanctioned for meddling in the 2016 presidential election. Also present were hackers under the supervision of the Kremlin with access to the stolen emails of Hillary Clinton and John Podesta. If this article is true, Cohen has a lot of explaining to do. And not the least of his problems will be that he also made his denials in testimony to Congress which, if false, is a federal crime. The McClatchy story notes that:

It would also be one of the most significant developments thus far in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of whether the Trump campaign and the Kremlin worked together to help Trump win the White House. Undercutting Trump’s repeated pronouncements that “there is no evidence of collusion,” it also could ratchet up the stakes if the president tries, as he has intimated he might for months, to order Mueller’s firing.

That looks pretty bad bad for Cohen, Trump, et al. And the article goes into significantly more detail about the meeting and the alleged conspirators. Cohen has responded to the story in a tweet that calls it “bad reporting” and claims that it was “proven” that he wasn’t in Prague. Of course, none of that is true and he offers no further proof. But if you were to press him him about the allegations that he actually was in Prague, he might just respond by asking his now famous question: “Says who?”

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


Untruthful Slime Ball: New Poll Shows Americans Say Trump is Less Believable Than Comey

Posted by on April 13, 2018 at 11:57 am. 5 Comments :

The new book by former FBI Director James Comey is about to be released and details are being discussed in the press. The book, “A Higher Loyalty,” is sure to create a stir as excerpts reveal Donald Trump to be, as Comey says, “unethical, and untethered to truth.” While anyone paying attention the last of couple years already knows this, saying so publicly about a sitting president is unprecedented, especially coming from such a high government official.

Donald Trump, James Comey

It was a foregone conclusion that Trump would be unable to refrain from reacting to Comey’s book. Furthermore, it was easy to predict that his reaction would be hostile, childish, and devoid of any factual basis. And Trump did not disappoint. On Friday morning he commenced his presidential duties by logging in to Twitter and posting some typically asinine attacks on Comey:

Being called a liar by Trump is like being called ignorant by – well, that’d be Trump too. The pissed off president is accusing Comey of serious crimes, which is not only false, but improper for an alleged commander-in-chief. He is prejudicing any potential jury pool with his blatantly biased opinion and personal animus.

However, what really sticks out like a sore, infected, and gangrenous thumb is Trump’s colorful assertion that Comey is an “untruthful slime ball.” He is clearly projecting a character flaw that he sees in himself. And he isn’t the only one who sees that. A new poll by ABC News/Washington Post asked “Who are you more likely to believe, Comey or Trump?” The results may cause Trump’s Diet Pepsi infused blood to go flat. According to the poll:

“Americans by a 16-point margin, 48-32 percent, find Comey more believable than Trump.”

These numbers are similar to previous polls that asked the same question. Last June an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll found that by a 2-to-1 margin (45% to 22%), Americans said they are more likely to believe Comey than Trump. And just in case Trump dismisses these polls as being “fake” news, other polls show that voters also trust the media far more than they trust Trump.

Those saying that they believe Trump more represent his hard-core base that worship him as their cult leader. They don’t care if he’s lying, if he cheats on his spouse(s), if he breaks the law, or if he shoots someone on Fifth Avenue. Their messiah can do no wrong. Fortunately, the rest of America doesn’t agree. The ABC/WaPo poll asked about other matters related to investigations of Trump’s unsavory activities. By “yuge” majorities the public supports those inquiries and the work that special counsel Robert Mueller is doing:

“The public by a broad 69-25 percent supports Mueller’s initial thrust, to investigate possible collusion between Trump campaign officials and Russian government attempts to influence the 2016 election. Support extends to half of conservatives and more than four in 10 Republicans.

“Backing for Mueller’s work goes further: Americans by 2-1, 64-32 percent, also support his investigating Trump’s business activities. And by 58-35 percent, a 23-point margin, they support investigators’ latest apparent direction, looking at allegations that Trump’s associates paid hush money to women who say they had affairs with him.”

Trump ought to be more careful when calling other people slime balls. The mud he is throwing invariably splashes back on him. And he ends up dirtier than those he seeks to tarnish. It’s a familiar pattern that we can expect to see repeated as Trump’s problems exacerbate. He will predictably lash out with greater ferocity the closer Mueller gets to releasing his findings. Let’s hope that he can be constrained before he does anything even more stupid and destructive to our nation than what he’s done so far.

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


Trump-Fluffing Nut Job and Fox News Shill Says Root of Mueller Probe is ‘Penis Envy’

Posted by on April 12, 2018 at 12:43 pm. 8 Comments :

It had to come to this. The wingnut miscreants who suck up to Donald Trump have descended to the basest and most delusional fantasies their diseased imaginations can manufacture. It’s not enough anymore to merely smear American patriots as corrupt and dishonest. No, they are now envisioning perverse scenarios that are, in all likelihood, projections of their own psychotic defects.

Wayne Allyn Root Fox News

Wayne Allyn Root is a radio talk show host who resides on the outer fringe of the right-wing universe. He is also a frequent guest on Fox News and a contributor to their website’s editorials. And apparently he is also a sex-obsessed pervert with ludicrous ideas about the motivations of special counsel Robert Mueller. In a completely bonkers rant on Wednesday, Root attacked Mueller in the most disgustingly personal way imaginable. The tirade was triggered by news that the recent raid on the home and offices of Michael Cohen (Trump’s attorney) collected information regarding the now infamous Access Hollywood recordings of Trump bragging about committing sexual assaults.

This is just one part of the wide-ranging investigation into Trump’s improper and unlawful activities that include collusion with Russia, obstruction of justice, and financial corruption. But in Root’s mind it now comprises the whole of the inquiry. And unable to construct any rational arguments to defend Trump or support his demented theories, Root leaped head first into a totally made up story intended to malign Mueller. Here are a couple of excerpts from Root’s dementia courtesy of Right Wing Watch:

“Robert Mueller has probably never had sex in his life,” Root said. “I know he has never had sex with a beautiful woman. Did you ever see the angry look on Robert Mueller’s face? Robert Mueller needs sex badly and he is so jealous that Donald Trump was a billionaire playboy and obviously had sex with the most beautiful women in the world.” […]

“Mueller is vicious, Mueller is disgusting, Mueller is a pervert. Can you imagine what he does at home at night? Who knows what he does, watching his computer images of Donald Trump and beautiful women. I can just guess what Mueller is doing in the dark, with the light of the screen glaring on him inside is office at 12 midnight..” […]

“It’s penis envy,” Root declared triumphantly. “Mueller’s is smaller than Trump’s.”

Root must have had assistants standing by to wipe the drool from his chin. He made a big deal about how women were drawn magnetically to Trump because he was so handsome and rich. Mueller, he said, was just a nerdy, penniless virgin. And it was that contrast that made Mueller so determined to get Trump.

It goes without saying that this is ridiculous in the extreme. It hardly deserves a response. But in the interests of correcting the record, here is the truth about Robert Mueller:

Mueller was born into a life of privilege, much the same as Trump. His father was an executive with DuPont. In school he was popular and admired. He was the captain of the soccer, hockey, and lacrosse teams. He married his childhood sweetheart and remained happily married for fifty-two years (and counting). He enlisted in the Marines and served in Vietnam where he was the recipient of the Bronze Star, two Navy Commendation Medals, the Purple Heart, and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry. And professionally he compiled a resume of achievement that included a law degree from the University of Virginia, being a U.S. Attorney, and the longest serving Director of the FBI.

Comparing that to Trump’s life of failure is way too easy. Trump inherited his wealth and did virtually nothing to increase it. To the contrary, he claimed bankruptcy half a dozen times. He never had a happy marriage (including the current one) and cheated publicly on all three of his wives. He dodged service in Vietnam with four academic deferments and a bogus claim of bone spurs. And unlike Mueller’s life of public service, Trump was in service only to his own greed, lust, and ego.

Root’s unhinged diatribe is emblematic of the Trump cult mentality so many of the President’s supporters suffer from. Sean Hannity is every bit as deranged and dishonest as Root. But it’s no wonder that these bootlickers have won Trump’s favor. Trump even thanked Root for his slobbering sycophancy on Twitter. They are clearly made for each other. And Root’s latest blathering is sure to give Trump some solace in these trying times preceding his imminent downfall. For a taste of Root’s madness, here is a video of part of Wednesday’s show – if you have the stomach for it:

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


New York Times Shatters Trump’s Denial that He Took 150G From a Ukrainian Oligarch

Posted by on April 11, 2018 at 3:36 pm. 4 Comments :

Poor Donald Trump. He continues to be a victim of of his own ignorance and acutely deficient comprehension skills. As a result he misunderstands even the simplest subjects and then lashes out in mindless tantrums that only make him look even more foolish. It’s a downward spiral of psychotic collapse that repeats itself on a nearly daily basis. And despite all the evidence to the contrary, Trump still thinks he’s a “stable genius.”

Donald Trump

On Wednesday Trump was typically miffed at the “fake” news he perceived being published by the “failing” New York Times. Michael Schmidt and Maggie Haberman of the Times posted a well researched article about Trump receiving $150,000 from a Ukrainian oligarch as payment for a twenty minute video address in September of 2015. The money was “donated” to Trump’s foundation which has a notably poor record of doing any charitable work. In fact, it has been found to have unlawfully funneled money to Trump via phony transactions. In one case the foundation bought a portrait of Trump that it hung at his golf resort. On another occasion foundation funds were used to pay a legal settlement that was owed by Trump personally.

Per usual, Trump expressed his outrage at the Times via Twitter:

Trump’s tweet doesn’t in any way refute the reporting by the Times. In fact, he validates it. And Trump’s failure to grasp what’s obvious was noted by the article’s authors on Twitter here and here. In the article the authors explicitly note that:

“The special counsel is investigating a payment made to President Trump’s foundation by a Ukrainian steel magnate for a talk during the campaign, according to three people briefed on the matter, as part of a broader examination of streams of foreign money to Mr. Trump and his associates in the years leading up to the election.”

And that:

“The event, his first foray into global politics during the campaign, was set up by Doug Schoen, a veteran political consultant and pollster who works with Mr. Pinchuk, according to a person familiar with how the speech was arranged. Mr. Schoen, a frequent Fox News guest, has known Mr. Trump for years and contacted him personally to set it up at the end of August 2015, according to the person.”

So Trump is correct. It was Schoen who set up the speech. But the speech wasn’t for Schoen, nor did Schoen pay for it. How could he? He’s just a Fox News shill who pretends he’s a Democrat so he can get booked on Fox and bash Democrats. It was the Ukrainian billionaire Victor Pinchuk who was Trump’s benefactor. Schoen was a go-between. Pinchuk is a steel magnate who has been accused of dumping Ukrainian steel into U.S. markets. He engaged Schoen, who knew Trump, to facilitate the appearance.

Even more suspicious is the fact that it was Trump’s lawyer, Michael Cohen, who solicited the donation. That’s the same Michael Cohen whose home and offices were just raided by the FBI. According to the Times, Schoen “had gotten to know Mr. Cohen by running into him in the green room at Fox News.” Well, as the Church Lady would say, “isn’t that convenient?”

Once again, Trump’s wild-eyed indignation has no basis in reality. He’s simply disgorging illogical outbursts that fail to advance any coherent objective, other than whining about the media. And in this case of Trump’s unhinging, as in most all of the others, the media was just doing its job responsibly, accurately, and honestly. Trump thinks that if he hollers and stamps his feet enough, everyone will agree with him. But he’s only pointing out how pathetic he is at comprehending a simple news story. SAD!

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


Trolling Trump? ‘Rule of Law’ Republicans Run Ad Defending Mueller During Fox And Friends

Posted by on April 11, 2018 at 12:52 pm. 1 Comments :

The Republican Party has demonstrated that they have little to no courage when it comes to mitigating the harm that Donald Trump causes to their party, the nation, and the world. At every turn they’ve had his back, whether it was regarding breaches of the Constitution, sexual harassment and assault, infantile tantrums on Twitter, and especially colluding with Russia to subvert democracy and obstructing justice.

Donald Trump Robert Mueller

Efforts by Congress to reign in Trump’s worst instincts have been suppressed by congressional leaders like Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell. Bipartisan bills have been drafted to insure that Trump does not move to fire special counsel Robert Mueller or Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in a vain attempt shield himself from the consequences of his illegal activities. But those bills have been bottled up and, although there are sufficient votes for them to pass, the GOP leaders won’t allow them to come to the floor. Not only that, but Americans don’t want Mueller fired 69 percent to 13 percent. And that includes a majority (55%) of Republicans. Even a Twitter poll by Fox’s Lou Dobbs opposed firing Mueller (70% to 25%).

However, there now seems to be a growing assortment of GOP politicians and pundits whose disgust with the President can no longer be contained. They have launched an initiative seeking to protect Mueller from the vengeful Wrath of Trump. The “Rule of Law Republicans“ include some of the most prominent party members, office holders and media. Their website features quotes from many of them that strongly support the work of the special counsel, including Sen. Mike Lee, Sen. Ben Sasse, Rep. Trey Gowdy, Sen. John McCain, former Gov. Chris Christie, and National Review editor Rich Lowry, to name a few. In addition to the website, the group purchased ad time to run commercials like this one:

In a particularly inspired bit of programming, they bought airtime during Donald Trump’s favorite Fox News show, Fox and Friends, in the Washington, D.C. market. They know that Trump watches the show every morning, often live-tweeting what he sees. So it’s safe to say that Trump saw the ad. And since he relies more on Fox News than the combined resources of his White House staff, cabinet and intelligence agencies, they hope that this will be a way to influence his future behavior. That may be somewhat optimistic, but it’s as good a strategy as any other.

The urgency to protect Mueller escalated significantly after the U.S. Attorney’s office raided the home and offices of Trump’s personal lawyer, Michael Cohen. He immediately tweeted that “Attorney–client privilege is dead!” and called the probe “A TOTAL WITCH HUNT!!!” On Wednesday morning’s regularly scheduled tweetstorm, Trump lashed out saying that:

Of course the inhabitants of the Real World know that all of the top managers of the inquiry (Mueller, Rosenstein, A.G. Jeff Sessions, FBI Director Chris Wray) are life long Republicans. What’s more, they were all appointed by Trump. So his accusation that Mueller is the “most conflicted of all” is not only delusional, it should be seen as a bright, high-flying red flag declaring his desire and intention to terminate Mueller.

Democrats have been concerned about Mueller’s status for months. Only now are a significant number of Republicans joining those who worry that Trump will pull the trigger. What’s funny is that there is also new outcry among conservatives that Democrats are trying to goad Trump into firing Mueller. Apparently they think that demanding that Trump leave Mueller alone is a sophisticated reverse psychology scheme by crafty leftists to get him to do the opposite. How insidious those Democrats are. But Media Matters has compiled evidence of who is actually trying to force Trump to act against Mueller. And it’s mostly people on Fox News:

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

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With Mueller Looming, Trump Auditions Alan Dershowitz to Be His Newest Fox News Spawned Lawyer

Posted by on April 10, 2018 at 7:40 pm. 1 Comments :

The legal swamp that Donald Trump finds himself in continues to get deeper and muddier. The news that his personal attorney, Michael Cohen had his home and office raided can only be regarded as a bad omen. And while Trump is flailing in a legal morass, his legal representation is falling apart. Along with Cohen’s troubles, Trump lost his lead attorney, John Dowd, last week. And Dowd’s replacement, Joseph DiGenova, was hired and fired within the space of a couple of days.

Robert Mueller Trump

This leaves a legal team that consists of Ty Cobb and Jay Sekulow, neither of whom have any expertise in the sort of political intrigue that is engulfing Trump. Consequently, he needs to expand his legal roster with someone who has the appropriate skills and competence. Unfortunately, Trump doesn’t know anyone with those qualities. Plus, many of those people have already turned the President’s offer of employment down. The only people Trump knows are the ones he sees on television. That’s why he is now meeting with Alan Dershowitz, O.J. Simpson’s attorney and frequent Fox News guest.

Dershowitz has been spending a lot of time lately on Fox defending Trump and criticizing anyone who has an opinion that doesn’t advance Trump’s interests. Dershowitz insists that the special counsel, Robert Mueller, is running an illegal shop that should never have opened up in the first place. He believes that obstruction of justice cannot be alleged absent an underlying crime. Regarding pardons, he takes the absurd position that “engaging in a constitutionally authorized act cannot be the basis of a criminal charge.” Were that true, a president could solicit a hit man to murder an opponent with the promise that he’ll get pardoned.

Dershowitz has been actively arguing Trump’s case before the court of public opinion. And coincidentally, every opinion he expresses is one that’s pro-Trump. His prominence and obvious biases as aired on Fox News is certainly what brought him to Trump’s attention. So now he’s dining at the White House as the legal clouds surrounding Trump get more Stormy. That’s curious considering that just yesterday he told Sean Hannity that “I don’t give advice to the president except on television. If he wants to listen, he can listen.”

Well, now that may all be changing and Dershowitz will become Trump’s advisor. If not, there are still a bunch of wingnut, Trump-fluffing, Fox News “lawyers” up for grabs. “Judge” Jeanine Pirro, Gregg Jarrett, and Kimberly Guilfoyle are all prospects that Trump might consider. Although none of them would actually serve the purpose of advancing his legal interests, they sure could get booked on Fox News to spread his lies and propaganda.

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


Sinclair State-TV Chairman to Trump: ‘We Are Here to Deliver Your Message’

Posted by on April 10, 2018 at 2:04 pm. 1 Comments :

As the walls close in on Donald Trump and his crime syndicate associates, the conservative propaganda networks are furiously trying to twist the facts into an unrecognizable perversion of reality. Fox News is at the top of the list of Trump-fluffing sycophants with hosts and contributors who relentlessly defend the President and smear his critics.

Donald Trump

However, Fox News is not alone on that battlefront. Sinclair Broadcasting is moving at breakneck speed to offer an alternative to Fox that is even more extreme and irresponsibly dishonest. With their “must run” segments featuring former Trump shill Boris Epshteyn, and their mandatory corporate written screeds against “fake” news, Sinclair poses a serious risk to journalism and democracy.

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Sinclair’s chairman, David Smith, made a deal with Trump to provide him positive coverage if he granted them greater access. They were blatantly selling their integrity to get closer to Trump. Now the Guardian is reporting that Smith was even more servile when he secretly met with Trump at the White House. The Guardian discloses that:

“The chairman of Sinclair Broadcast Group met Donald Trump at the White House during a visit to pitch a potentially lucrative new product to administration officials, the Guardian has learned.

“David D Smith, whose company has been criticised for making its anchors read a script echoing Trump’s attacks on the media, said he briefed officials last year on a system that would enable authorities to broadcast direct to any American’s phone.

“‘I just wanted them to be aware of the technology,” Smith said in an interview. He also recalled an earlier meeting with Trump during the 2016 election campaign, where he told the future president: ‘We are here to deliver your message.'”

Oh really? Promising to be there to deliver a president’s message is not the mission of a legitimate news enterprise. To the contrary, it’s the mission of journalistic lackeys with a political agenda who are brazenly and unabashedly biased. And everything that Sinclair does affirms that it is serving as a mouthpiece for Trump and the Republican Party.

The Guardian also asked Smith about the rightward leanings of his operation, which he forthrightly denied. He called assertions that the scripts he forced his anchors to read were biased in favor of Trump “the most absurd thing I’ve ever seen in my life.” That’s like Hannibal Lecter feigning offense that anyone might suggest he eats people. But his justification for that denial just made matters even worse. He said that:

“If people believe you more than they believe somebody else, they’re more likely to watch you,” he said. “And you know what that means? We might get a higher rating. And you know what that means? We will therefore make our spots worth more. And you know what that means? That means I will make more money, which means I can pay you more money.”

In summary, he’s saying that it’s his policy to convince viewers that all other sources of news are false. And the purpose of that slander is to discredit the press at large in order to get more viewers for Sinclair. That’s different than competing news organizations touting their skills and experience to appeal to their audience. It is a cult-like scheme to convince gullible people that only one truth exists and that Sinclair owns it. And it dovetails perfectly with Trump’s cultist tendencies that aim to achieve the same blind loyalty.

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

Sinclair is currently trying to expand their reach by buying their largest competitor, Tribune Media. Trump’s Federal Communications Commission is likely to approve the acquisition, despite its breach of existing regulations. The American people need to join together to preserve the integrity of our free press. And one way to do that is to visit Stop Sinclair and lobby Congress to intervene to oppose this dangerous, anti-consumer merger.


‘WITCH HUNT’: Donald Trump Responds to the FBI Raid of His Attorney Michael Cohen (Video)

Posted by on April 9, 2018 at 4:04 pm. 4 Comments :

It’s Mueller Monday and the breaking news about special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Donald Trump’s crime family has just broken new ground. The New York Times reported earlier that the FBI raided the home, office, and hotel room of Trump’s attorney, Michael Cohen. This can only be viewed as a serious escalation of the legal jeopardy that Trump faces. So naturally, he is lashing out with wild accusations against the law enforcement agencies that are performing their duties to protect the public welfare.

Donald Trump

In his response, Trump made some familiar criticisms that have been the core of his past whining about being the subject of this investigation. In a brief press availability during a national security meeting, Trump said:

  • “It’s a disgraceful situation.”
  • “I have this witch hunt constantly going on for over twelve months now.”
  • “It’s an attack on our country…what we all stand for.”
  • The special counsel office is “the most conflicted group of people I have ever seen.”
  • No one “is looking at the other side (i.e. Hillary Clinton).”
  • “A whole new level of unfairness.”
  • “Why don’t I just fire Mueller? Well, I think it’s a disgrace, and we’ll see what happens.”

These lame and tedious complaints do nothing to counter the devastating news of this raid. Nor do they advance any argument that it was improper or help him to establish innocence. We have heard it all before and majorities of the American people don’t believe him.

Of note is his assertion that this is an attack on our country. Um…No it isn’t. This is all about Trump’s sleazy and likely illegal behavior and that of his associates. Calling the special counsel’s office “conflicted” has always been ludicrous. Mueller is a life-long Republican, as is is boss at the Department of Justice, Rod Rosenstein (who Trump appointed). And no one should be surprised by Trump’s interjection of “whataboutism” with his left field swipe at Hillary Clinton, who has been investigated ad infinitum with no hint of wrongdoing being discovered.

Perhaps the most ominous part of Trump’s remarks refers to the possible firing of Mueller. Trump has said in the past that he is not even considering such a thing. Now he says that “we’ll see what happens.” That’s a sharp u-turn in the direction of terminating the special counsel or Rosenstein. And if that happens, rest assured that the rest of his house of cards will quickly tumble down.

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


In Defense of Fox News (?): Trust in Media Graphic Was Early, Not Censored

Posted by on April 9, 2018 at 11:44 am. NO Comments :

There is no question that Fox News is the most brazenly biased right-wing distorter of reality that has even been broadcast. It’s executives, hosts, and contributors are almost entirely devoted to disseminating conservative propaganda, much of it dictated by Donald Trump’s White House. Even worse, Trump’s positions are often dictated by Fox News.

Fox News Lies

That said, there has been a story circulating around the InterTubes that is just plain wrong. It asserts that Howard Kurtz, host of Fox’s MediaBuzz, was surprised by a graphic that showed Fox News as being the least trusted cable news network, and that he called for it to taken down in order to suppress that anti-Fox information. There is a lot wrong with that assertion.

First of all, there was a graphic that appeared during Kurtz’s program that was out of place. Kurtz did ask that it be taken down. But that’s only because it was out of sequence. When that part of the discussion came up a couple of minutes later, he showed that graphic again at the proper time. There was no attempt to censor it. (See video below).

Also, the argument that this graphic was taken down because it showed Fox News as trusted less than MSNBC and CNN is not accurate. The Monmouth University survey that was the basis for the graphic’s data did not compare the networks’ trustworthiness. It compared whether respondents trusted Trump or the media more. That’s actually worse from Trump’s perspective. Although that misreading is largely the fault of Fox News. The graphic needs to be read left to right, not top down. By highlighting the column instead of the rows Fox invited the misinterpretations. As News Corpse previously wrote about this poll:

“Like other polls before it, Monmouth found that Americans trust the media more than they do Donald Trump. That’s gotta sting the President who has been striving furiously to turn the nation against the press. The detail shows that 48 percent of Americans trust CNN more than Trump (35% trust Trump more). Forty-five percent trust MSNBC more than Trump (32% for Trump). Even 30 percent trust Fox News more than Trump (20% for Trump). Although the Fox numbers also show that a plurality of 37 percent trust both equally. This affirms that Trump’s base is still immovably stuck in the low thirties.”

The original story asserting that Fox News was embarrassed by an errant graphic and deep-sixed it appears to have been published by the Associated Press. They have since corrected their story. But it’s important that the record be correct in the progressive media so as to preserve our moral claim to being reality-based. There are more than enough legitimate examples of Fox News lying. And the findings in the poll are bad enough for Trump that they don’t need to be muddied up with misunderstandings.

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