Fox News

SO WHAT? ‘Wall Street Loves Donald Trump’ Says Trump-Fluffing Fox News Flunky

Posted by on February 14, 2020 at 12:58 pm. 2 Comments :

Perhaps the most frequently cited argument Donald Trump leans on to convince people he should be reelected is the performance of the stock market and the economy during his presidency. He is anxious for the America people to examine those factors when deciding who to vote for in November. And they really should. Because if they actually do he’ll be in big trouble.

Donald Trump, Stock Market Crash

Contrary to Trump’s relentless assertions that the economy is booming, there were significant weaknesses that are present and getting worse. The manufacturing sector is currently in recession. Consumer spending and industrial output are declining. The GDP grew at a measly 2.3% in 2019, far below Trump’s promised 6%. Wage growth is down, and the only upside was due to the increases in the minimum wage implemented in Democratic states, and opposed by Trump and the GOP.

So based on that record of abject failure, Fox News is getting behind Trump’s cheerleading and rooting for the bad guys on the economic playing field: Wall Street. The stock market has never been an accurate indicator of economic health. It merely represents what institutional investors think about the valuation of equities, which fluctuate independent of the broader economy. The economy, on the other hand, is comprised of many other factors such as consumption, employment, wages, trade, and inflation.

Most Americans do not own stocks, either individually or in retirement plans, such as the 401Ks, that Trump is always bragging – falsely – are making everyone rich. He did this again just this week. But on Friday’s episode of Fox & Friends on Fox News, the “Curvy Couch” potatoes invited Fox Business host Charles Payne to rail on Democrats, saying that “There’s no clear, good candidate on the Democratic side.” He then went on to malign them all for not garnering support from Wall Street, as if that’s a bad thing:

“If you listen to the policies and here on Wall Street, you don’t really want to put a lot of money into any of these candidates. They’re telling you they’re gonna attack your wealth. Wall Street loves Donald Trump.”

Indeed! Wall Street does love Trump. That’s because he panders to them in every way imaginable. His tax cuts for corporations, his termination of regulations that protect workers and the environment, and his constant complaints about the Federal Reserve not lowering interest rates (which would have an enormous benefit for him personally), are all major pluses for big business.

Why Fox News believes that touting Wall Street’s love for Trump is a positive thing for his reelection is puzzling. The majority of Americans have not been looking for Wall Street’s favorite candidate before making a voting decision. They do not value Wall Street’s endorsement. Has anyone ever heard of a candidate boasting support from Goldman Sachs? But on Fox News this was presented as something that would excite average Americans. And the glassy-eyed in-studio audience of Trump cultists obediently applauded the comment.

For the record, this has not always been the position taken by the Trumpists. During the 2016 campaign Trump tried to label Hillary Clinton as being “owned by Wall Street.” But now that Trump is in the White House and his policies are propping up the upper crusters, he is all for being Wall Street’s puppet.

However, even in this regard Trump underperforms. The stock market growth under President Obama exceeded that of Trump, but Obama didn’t have to employ short-term trickery like tax cuts or deregulation to succeed. He just managed the country’s affairs in a responsible manner that produced organic, sustainable growth. Trump, on the other hand, is presiding over a sandcastle economy that is heading for a major recession. And that’s something that Trump himself recognized prior to his political career when he said that “I’ve been around for a long time and it just seems that the economy does better under the Democrats than the Republicans.” Here he is in his own words:

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

Trump’s Dementia Drives His Need to Curse John Kelly, Hug Hope Hicks, and More

Posted by on February 13, 2020 at 12:59 pm. NO Comments :

It seems like this needs to be said nearly every day, but…Donald Trump is getting worse! The obvious mental decline that he is suffering continues to manifest itself in his daily duties. And that doesn’t mean tweeting, golfing, and watching Fox News. Trump is descending into a state of severe confusion and manic desperation.

Hope Hicks

On the heels of the Republican Senate’s reckless and partisan “absolution” of Trump’s many impeachable crimes, he has, as expected, become emboldened to breach every standard of law and ethics that a president ought to be bound by. In particular, he has embarked on a campaign of retribution and vengeance aimed at those he perceives to be enemies. And, as he recently said himself, “I View Everybody as a Threat.” That distinct symptom of paranoia is clearly what has triggered his latest tweetstorm.

Thursday morning saw Trump lashing out in many directions at once. He tweeted a complaint about the conviction of his longtime accomplice in crime, Roger Stone, as “not looking good for the “Justice” Department.” To be clear, that’s the Justice Department that has been under his control for three years now. He also insulted Mike Bloomberg again for being short, like millions of other Americans who vote. He went after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo with an apparently illegal demand that the state drop lawsuits against him in order to prevent retaliatory actions by the federal government. And in addition to those psychotic outbursts, Trump went after his former Chief of Staff, Gen. John Kelly:

Trump’s anger at Kelly was stirred by remarks the General made during a speech at Drew University in New Jersey. Kelly candidly revealed that he disagreed with Trump on several significant issues including Trump’s vilification of key impeachment witness Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman. Kelly stated that Vindman had done precisely the right thing when heard about Trump’s attempted extortion of Ukrainian President Zelensky.

In addition, Kelly expressed his differences with Trump on immigration, specifically renouncing Trump’s comments that immigrants were murderers and rapists. Kelly also distanced himself from Trump’s dalliances with his BFF Kim Jong Un of North Korea. Kelly tried to convince Trump, to no avail, that Kim was playing him and would never give up his nuclear weapons. Kelly was no angel and was complicit in many of Trump’s most heinous policies. But he was right to criticize Trump on these matters.

Trump’s attack on Kelly is another example of how he flips 180 degrees on people he once praised effusively. But whenever someone falls out of favor with Trump, he becomes a pariah who was never worth a damn in the first place. You have to wonder why Trump – who knows all the best people – hired so many future worthless pariahs.

Throughout Kelly’s tenure in the Trump administration, Trump held him in high regard. He promoted the Marine general from Homeland Security Secretary to Chief of Staff. And a year into that job job Trump thanked him for “doing a fantastic job.” When he left the White House Trump gushed that Kelly “has served our Country with distinction.” But now Trump is maligning him and breaching a private conversation he allegedly (but unlikely) had with Kelly’s wife.

As further evidence of Trump’s advancing mental infirmities, he just announced that his nurse/security blanket, Hope Hicks, is returning to the White House as counselor to the president and senior adviser reporting to Jared Kushner. She left two years ago to become a communications executive at the parent corporation of Fox News. Now that revolving door is spinning furiously again. Hicks has been part of Trump’s inner circle longer than any non-family member. And Trump has been said to lean on her for emotional support. In addition to that hand-holding and covering up his brain glitches, Hicks admitted that she would tell “white lies” in the performance of her official duties.

The fact that Hicks was suddenly called back to duty is a significant signal that Trump’s mental condition is deteriorating and he needs her to maintain some semblance of balance. And the tweets he’s been pounding out are further proof that he’s on a downward spiral. However, it’s unlikely that any of this is going to be effective in stabilizing Trump. He is already too far gone and his Republican enablers seem to have no interest in righting this sinking ship of state. Let’s just hope we can tread water until November.

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

Trump Orders Justice Dept to Persecute His Critics and Pamper His Accomplices

Posted by on February 12, 2020 at 12:53 pm. 3 Comments :

There really is no bottom. Now Wannabe Dictator Donald Trump is bringing fascism to America. He is directing his corrupt Justice Department to investigate and prosecute (persecute) his critics. Meanwhile, he lobbies for light sentences and dangles pardons for his bootlicking sycophantic criminal accomplices. This is not normal. And it demonstrates that Republicans who thought Trump might learn from his impeachment were frighteningly mistaken and/or deluded.

Donald Trump

Trump’s Attorney Genuflect, Bill Barr, announced that he will be revising the sentencing recommendations for convicted felon Roger Stone. The prosecutors who tried the case recommended seven to nine years based on established legal guidelines. But Barr’s intervention is based on nothing more than Trump’s angry tweets. And if that’s not bad enough, Barr is assuming control of virtually everything that comes into the Justice Department that involves Trump. And Trump is obviously pleased…

The spectacle of seeing a president congratulate his toady AG for letting a convicted criminal off the hook should send shivers up the spines of the American people. Stone was found guilty of five counts of lying to Congress, and one count each of witness intimidation and obstruction. But his friend in the White House is pulling strings so that he doesn’t have to pay the price for his crimes. As a result of Barr’s interference, all four of the federal prosecutors who tried the case have quit.

What’s more, Trump’s tweet also makes a dangerously reckless and baseless accusation that former special counsel Robert Mueller “lied to Congress.” Trump doesn’t bother to cite any alleged falsehood, probably because he just made it up to slander Mueller. In a subsequent tweet Trump asserted, also without any foundation, that the career DOJ lawyers who tried Stone are “Rogue prosecutors.”

Trump has frequently weighed in on the criminal prosecutions of his associates. Just the fact that he has so many associates who have been prosecuted and found guilty is horrifying. But his reaction has been to lobby for lighter sentences or to issue pardons himself. Some of this confederacy of felons include his personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, his campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, his deputy campaign manager, Rick Gates, his National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, and more.

On the other side of that legal coin, Trump has accused many of his political adversaries of crimes without any evidence whatsoever. In addition to Robert Mueller, Trump charged that House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff “is a corrupt politician and a criminal;” that “Nancy [Pelosi] is every bit as guilty;” that “Hillary Clinton lied to the FBI;” and that “The Biden family was PAID OFF.” None of these allegations have an iota of evidence for support. They are purely driven by the animosity and vengeance of a wrathful president.

It has been widely known for years (decades?) that Trump is a vile and vindictive person who relishes punishing his perceived enemies. And he perceives enemies virtually everywhere, as he himself recently confessed. But the fact that he has an administration full of glassy-eyed cult followers who will obediently serve his will makes him all the more dangerous. And the Department of Justice is at the top of that list.

What this means is that there is nothing left to separate America from the totalitarian regimes and their tyrants that Trump so admires. This was articulated well by Sen. Chuck Schumer Wednesday on the floor of the Senate. It cannot be overstated how unusual it is for a speech like this to take place. but his words should be taken seriously if this country is to restore justice and preserve democracy:

“The President is claiming that rigging the rules is perfectly legitimate. He claims an absolute right to order the Justice Department to do anything he wants. And the President has as his Attorney General an enabler. And that’s a kind word. Does anyone think it’s out of the question that Pres. Trump might order the FBI to investigate Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden or anybody else without any evidence that supports such an arbitrary violation of individual rights?

“Oh, I know. Some far-right conspiratorial writer, who has no credibility and who just makes things up, writes it, Fox News puts it on, Sean Hannity or someone talks about it, and then the president says ‘Investigate.’ That is third world behavior – not American behavior.”

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

Wannabe Dictator Trump’s Campaign to Persecute His Political Rivals is Revealed on Fox News

Posted by on February 9, 2020 at 11:21 am. 4 Comments :

It didn’t take Donald Trump long to convert his impeachment into what his diseased brain thinks is a plus for him. Deep down he knows that he’s been severely wounded and tainted for life. That’s evident by how obsessed he is with denying it. But he is now transferring his fear and desperation into a dangerous assault on American values and liberty.

Donald Trump Tyrant Dictator

Less than forty-eight hours after the Republican majority in the Senate voted to let Trump off and cover up his crimes, Trump began a purge of the witnesses who were courageous and honest enough to tell the truth about him. He fired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman and his brother, as well as the Ambassador to the E.U., Gordon Sondland. He’s in discussion now to fire the intelligence community Inspector General. But this is just the tip of the iceberg.

One of the most loyal StormTrumpers in Congress is Sen. Lindsey Graham. Never mind that he once said that Trump is “a kook, crazy, and unfit for office.” Today Graham is another glassy-eyed disciple of the Cult of Trump. And he visited with Fox News Trump-fluffer Jeanine Pirro for a mutual worship session on Saturday night where he revealed the totalitarian aspirations of Trump and where it’s headed next.

Graham: Half the people behind the Russia investigation are gonna go to jail.
Pirro: Hopefully.
Graham: Well, just hang tight.

These are the sort of threats that plague the tyrannies that Trump so admires. Places like North Korea, China, and Russia. Now Graham is admitting that he and Trump will be implementing those policies here in the U.S. And it isn’t just Graham speaking out of turn. Trump is saying the very same things, and touting his partnership with Graham and the Senate Republicans:

What’s more, Graham’s appearance on Face the Nation included his assertion that there is an existing process by which Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, is funneling dirt on Joe Biden to Trump’s Attorney Genuflect, Bill Barr:

Graham: The Department of Justice is receiving information coming out of Ukraine from Rudy … He told me that they had created a process where Rudy could give information and they would see if it’s verified.

To be perfectly clear, this is not a normal means of investigating possible criminal activity. Private attorneys do not work with federal prosecutors to collect and analyze alleged evidence. This is how totalitarian rulers engage their surrogates to suppress opposition and stoke fear into anyone that might consider being critical or even independent.

This is obviously Trump’s intention. It’s what he has been doing all along. It’s why he partners with the likes of Giuliani, Parnas, Fruman, etc. It’s why he attempted to extort the president of Ukraine. It’s what led to the ousters of everyone from Jeff Sessions to Gen. John Kelly to John Bolton, and so many more. It’s a mob style presidency that believes it can only survive via intimidation and punishment. And it’s why it is still so urgent that Trump be removed from office before he causes even more harm.

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

Trump’s Jealousy of Bloomberg Kicks Off Hannity’s Super Bowl Suck-Up on Fox News

Posted by on February 2, 2020 at 11:47 am. 3 Comments :

It’s Super Bowl Sunday and Fox News has decided to turn the traditional presidential interview into a Trump-fluffing pageant of propaganda. While Fox likes to pretend that it’s a credible news organization, they can’t help taking every opportunity to prove that that’s a lie. So rather than assign the interview of Donald Trump to one of their alleged “journalists” (Chris Wallace, Bret Baier), they hand it to the Pope of the Cult of Trump, Sean Hannity.

Donald Trump Sean Hannity

Hannity long ago abandoned any pretense of impartiality. He has appeared on stage with Trump at his rallies. He has turned his program into the media campaign headquarters for Trump’s reelection. And he has launched untold smear campaigns against anyone who dared to criticize Trump or tell the truth about him. Hannity’s show is a fountainhead of conspiracy theories and lies in the service of Dear Leader.

So as a teaser to the Super Bowl Sunday Trump interview on Fox News, Hannity released a brief clip to entice potential viewers. Generally the goal of these promos is to offer up something compelling that would make people anxious to tune in. And here is what Fox News and Hannity decided was just the sort of soundbite that would drag in a big audience. Hannity asked Trump what he thought of Mike Bloomberg. And Trump replied…

“I just think of ‘little.’ Now he wants a box for the debates to stand on. Okay, it’s okay, there’s nothing wrong. You could be short. Why should he get a box to stand on, OK? He wants a box for the debates. Why should he be entitled to that? Really? Does that mean everyone else gets a box?”

WOW! Now that’s powerful television. The president of the United States of America blasts one of his potential electoral rivals as being “short.” And that’s the only thing that Trump thinks of when asked about Bloomberg. Naturally, Trump doesn’t think about the fact that Bloomberg, unlike Trump, is an actual billionaire with an estimated net worth of $54 billion. And Trump isn’t thinking about Bloomberg’s promise to spend a billion of that to defeat Trump – even if he isn’t the Democratic nominee. The only thought that flitters around in his empty skull is how he can attach infantile nicknames to a man he is painfully jealous of. As for Bloomberg, he responded with a stinging tweet that refuted Trump’s box blather, for which there is no evidence whatsoever:

So if you’re keeping score:

Trump: Mini Mike is short.
Bloomberg: Trump is a pathological liar who lies about everything: his fake hair, his obesity, and his spray-on tan.

Trump spent the night before this interview road-testing his childishness. He posted a tweet that whined “Mini Mike is part of the Fake News. They are all working together.” This reflects Trump’s crippling paranoia of an all-encompassing cabal that is determined to destroy him. Another tweet asserted that Bloomberg “is getting the DNC to rig the election against Crazy Bernie.” Here Trump manages to fire preadolescent taunts at two rivals at once. All the while pretending to care about the fairness of the Democratic primaries. And Trump’s final midnight tweet raged about the fake box controversy and the imaginary battle “to have the right to stand on boxes.”

If the clip above is what Fox News considers to be the most riveting segment from the Trump/Hannity drool-fest, it’s safe to say that there won’t be anything remotely newsworthy coming out of it. Well, other than further evidence that Hannity is a devoted StormTrumper and Fox News doesn’t give a damn about having any journalistic integrity. But we already knew that. So there really isn’t any reason at all to watch this puerile charade. And low ratings for his Super Bowl butt-kissing with his harlot Hannity would be like needles stabbed into his eyes. So feel free to change the channel, America. Or you could spend that eight minutes whipping another bowl of guacamole.

UPDATE: The interview was even worse than expected. Hannity was a flaming suck-up. And Trump led off with whining about impeachment. Then he just rattled off his petty hatred for Democrats:

  • Biden: He’s Sleepy Joe
  • Sanders: I think he’s a communist.
  • Warren: I call her Fairy Tale.
  • Clinton: I think of emails.
  • Pelosi: I think she’s a very confused, very nervous woman.

This is just further proof that Trump is a low functioning dotard who can’t form a coherent thought or substantive opinion on anything. He just blurts out lame slogans and talking points that might have been written by a temperamental child. And Hannity succeeded in producing a total waste of time, fumbling whatever opportunity he had to be relevant.

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

Trump’s Dementia Shifts to High Gear as Impeachment Trial Winds Down

Posted by on February 1, 2020 at 2:18 pm. 6 Comments :

On Friday afternoon the cowardly and compromised Republicans in the Senate voted to allow Donald Trump to become America’s first de facto emperor. They endowed him with blatantly unconstitutional powers that would permit him to openly violate laws, suppress dissent, and engage in overt acts of tyranny so long as he deems it in the public interest. That is not what the Founders and Framers intended.

Donald Trump

This congressional betrayal was justified by the flimsiest of arguments. The Senate GOP has taken the position that Trump’s crimes were merely “inappropriate,” as opposed to criminal, and therefore not subject to reprimand. Emboldened by these events, Trump has withdrawn into his Mar-A-Lago bunker to wallow in this ascension to monarchism and virtually unchallangeable reign. In the morning hours of Saturday he celebrated with tweets that exalted himself as “America’s Greatest President” who is putting on “The Greatest Show On Earth.”

Setting aside Trump’s slobbering, narcissistic adoration of himself, everything else in those tweets was either grossly misrepresented or utterly false. Lou Dobbs of the Fox News business channel is one of the Fox family’s most ardent Trump-fluffers. But his show is hardly a national success. It has no business programming competition because CNBC is airing reruns of shows like Shark Tank at the same time. And Dobbs’ audience is about a quarter of the size of his time period competition on MSNBC. As for Dobbs covering Trump “fairly & objectively,” that’s so hysterically ludicrous it hardly warrants a response.

Trump’s claim that his “poll numbers are the highest since election,” is a pitiful statistic to brag about. His approval rating is sitting on an abysmal 44 percent, and has never hit 50 at any time during his presidency. That’s an achievement no other president can claim. Even the Fox News poll shows Trump is broadly unpopular. His disapproval, however, remains well above a majority of the American people, as it has for the last three years. There is even a majority favoring his impeachment and removal from office.

Trump’s ego is now reliant on being fed by his evermore frequent cult rallies. He believes that the glassy-eyed disciples who show up for the free, Trump-vangelical, revival meetings represent the mainstream of America. But what’s even more indicative of his mental infirmity is that he thinks he puts on a “great” show. That’s only true if you really like the tedious repetition of moldy lies and fetid talking points.

Trump also posted a picture of himself “exercising” on the golf course. That’s his way of pretending that he isn’t bothered by having been impeached, which regardless of how the Senate votes next week, will permanently stain his legacy that is already bursting with failures and embarrassments. For instance, he is conspicuously ignoring the news that 2019 was a dismal year for the U.S. economy. It achieved a paltry 2.3% growth rate. 2018 and 2017 weren’t any better (2.9% and 2.4% respectively). And that’s after Trump had promised that his tax scam and other economic policies would produce growth of up to six percent:

TRUMP (Dec 16, 2017): The economy now is at 3%. Nobody thought it would be anywhere close. I think it could go to 4, 5, and maybe even 6%, ultimately.

Trump also ignored the 600+ point drop on the Dow Jones on Friday. That brings the decline of the last two weeks to 1,100 points. Trump is always quick to tweet about stock market gains, but then clams up when it goes the other way. That’s how his psychotic obsession with exalting himself as all-knowing and infallible drives his obsessive behavior. But as time wears on him, his mental state is showing signs of deterioration. And that is evident in his public appearances more than anywhere else. As seen here:

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

Turncoat Trump: ‘John Bolton is a Patriot’ … Who I Fired, Barely Knew, and Never Liked Anyway

Posted by on January 29, 2020 at 1:40 pm. 3 Comments :

One of the most predictable symptoms of Donald Trump’s prominent psychoses has revealed itself again. When responding to former associates who have the audacity to tell the truth about him, Trump invariably lashes out with a fury generally reserved for sworn enemies and villains. The latest victim of this turncoat tantrum throwing exercise is Trump’s cast-off National Security Advisor, John Bolton.

Donald Trump, John Bolton

When Bolton joined Team Trump as the fourth NSC chief in only two years, he was hailed as a brilliant, devoted diplomat and conservative ally by Trump. And no one was happier than than Fox News and the right-wing media machine that propped up the Trump regime. Bolton was a hero of Republicans for decades, and his role as a Fox News contributor bolstered his reputation and brought him to the attention of Trump. Just two months ago Trump was praising Bolton as a “patriot” who would support his version of events regarding Ukraine:

Well, that’s kind of true. Bolton does have knowledge of Trump withholding funds from Ukraine. Except that the reason was to coerce them into helping Trump smear Joe Biden. That’s something that Trump himself confessed on national TV. It’s also notable that Trump was saying then that he “would actually like people to testify.” Either that was a blatant lie, or he has since discovered that such testimony is only going to further incriminate him. Or more likely, a little of both.

Now Trump is exhibiting considerably greater fear for the consequences he faces. On Wednesday morning he unloaded on his once admired White House staffer in a manner that could not have been more vicious and spiteful:

The remarkable thing about this tweet is that Trump is making the case that he chose to hire an incompetent loser who no one else would consider for employment. Was it a sympathy hire? Was Trump moved by Bolton’s alleged “begging” (which seems out of character for Bolton)? Yet Trump took him in despite warnings from unnamed “many” others not to do so? Wouldn’t that have been irresponsible and reckless?

Trump goes on to criticize Bolton’s judgment, which he asserts would have led the nation into four more world wars in the year and a half that Bolton served. That’s a pretty ambitious schedule of war mongering. And finally, Trump accuses Bolton of producing a book (“The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir,”) that is “All Classified National Security.” Really? All of it?

On the last point, the White House has now delivered an official notice that Bolton’s book contains material that is not just classified, but “Top Secret.” In an obvious attempt to censor Bolton, they assert that “The manuscript may not be published or otherwise disclosed without the deletion of this classified information.” That’s a specious claim considering that it comes over a month after the White House got the manuscript for review, and only after news reports that it contained material that is politically damaging to Trump. What’s more, Bolton’s attorneys don’t even regard the prepublication review by the White House as necessary, which they stated in a letter to the White House a month ago:

“Ambassador Bolton has carefully sought to avoid any discussion in the manuscript of sensitive compartmented information (“SCI”) other classified information, and we accordingly do not believe that prepublication review is required. We are nonetheless submitting this manuscript out of an abundance of caution.”

Trump’s hostility toward Bolton is typical of his thuggish behavior toward anyone he deems less than totally worshipful. Trump’s narcissism demands complete loyalty, and any wavering is grounds for the unleashing of a barrage of animus and defamation. But this behavior only reinforces the urgency to remove the already disgraced and impeached Trump from office. He is demonstrating that he will continue to abuse the power of the presidency to harm critics and truth-tellers, and to save his own unscrupulous neck.

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

Crybaby Trump Wants to Know: ‘What the Hell Has Happened to Fox News?’

Posted by on January 28, 2020 at 1:58 pm. 3 Comments :

Every now and then, Donald Trump becomes despondent over the fact that he is not blindly worshiped by everyone in the known universe. His typically vicious response to that is to lash out at whoever he regards as being insufficiently adoring. Occasionally that happens to be his State TV Ministry of Propaganda, Fox News.

Donald Trump, Fox News, Strange

Trump is currently exhibiting signs of the enormous burden that weighs on him as the Senate hears the case for removing him from office. He is tweeting more frequently and more furiously, with rage-filled outbursts aimed at his perceived enemies. Among them is his former National Security Advisor, John Bolton, whose new book, “The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir,” affirms that Trump extorted Ukraine to get dirt on Joe Biden. That’s actually something that Trump himself admitted.

However, on Tuesday morning Trump took a wild swing at the TV “news” network that has been his staunchest defender throughout his presidency. This is not the first time that Trump has gone after Fox News, but it’s a significant slap in the face to those who are working hardest at disseminating his disinformation during the Senate impeachment trial. He tweeted that it’s…

So Trump begins this tantrum by whining that Fox News interviewed the Senator from Maryland, Chris Van Hollen, who Trump alleges has no name after citing it in his tweet. Van Hollen had an appropriately stinging reply:

Don’t hold your breath. Apparently Trump believes that Fox should ban all Democrats from their network and only interview Trump-fluffing Republicans and other Fox Newsers. And in an immediate contradiction, he seems to think that Fox should have hosted a Democratic primary debate.

Continuing on this tirade against his sycophantic Fox friends, Trump posited a rather peculiar question: “What the hell has happened to Fox News?” And he replies to his own query with an even more peculiar answer: “Only I know!” He doesn’t bother to elaborate on what he allegedly “knows” about Fox. So he will continue to be the only one who knows. But he does single some of those on the network that he is most upset with, including Chris Wallace and the now departed Shepard Smith. Trump’s concern for Shep’s well being is touching. If he’s really interest, he should know that Shep is waiting for his non-compete clause to expire, whereupon he will surely sign a lucrative deal with another network.

Finally, Trump predicts a dire future for the network that employs his most fervent StormTrumpers. People like Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, Tucker Carlson, Steve Doocy, Lou Dobbs, Jeanine Pirro, and so many more. He predicts that this is “the beginning of the end for Fox.” That would strike many Americans as a positive development. But it’s difficult to imagine where Trump’s army of media shills would land if their Fox bunker were to collapse.

Not to worry. Like everything else Trump says, none of this is true, particularly the part about the networks that are “dying in the ratings.” Actually, all of the cable news networks are enjoying a banner year with high viewership and revenue. But Trump never lets facts get in the way of his raging animus or massive ego. Consequently, he has aimed his anger at Fox many times when he felt that they weren’t sucking up hard enough (here are some examples of his frothing hostilities).

As the Senate impeachment trial proceeds, it’s likely that Trump will get even more disturbed. There is also a likelihood of additional incriminating evidence coming out. And the case for the Senate calling witnesses became much stronger following the Bolton revelations. So look for Trump to escalate his whining and cries of victimhood, something that he takes enormous pride in. And prepare for more griping about Fox and the rest of media, which he still says he doesn’t understand.

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

UH-OH: Trump’s Favorite Fox News Shills Admit He Extorted Ukraine to Smear Joe Biden

Posted by on January 27, 2020 at 2:21 pm. 8 Comments :

The impeachment trial of Donald Trump is entering its second week with his Fox News Legal Team continuing to present a defense that is wholly composed of deflections and lies. And they are sticking with that game plan despite the bombshell revelations from former National Security Advisor, John Bolton, that Trump did indeed threaten to withhold critical military aid from Ukraine in order to coerce them into helping Trump smear Joe Biden.

Donald Trump, Fox News

Bolton’s account of events is soon to be published in his book “The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir.” These incriminating disclosures are now frustrating efforts by Senate Republicans to dispense of the impeachment trial quickly. It is becoming much more likely that a sufficient number of Republicans will seek further testimony from witnesses, including Bolton. That could open the floodgates to additional witnesses and document production.

Furthermore, the media is appropriately curious as to what Bolton might have to contribute to the pool of evidence against Trump. And that’s not just what Trump refers to as the “fake news.” Even Trump’s favorite morning show, Fox and Friends, is struggling to deal with these new reports. On Monday morning co-host Steve Doocy addressed the revelations in Bolton’s book (video below) noting that…

“Apparently it says Bolton was told ‘Trump wanted to continue freezing money to Ukraine until they helped with probes of the Bidens.’ But we heard him say in the transcripts he wanted President Zelensky to look into the Bidens and what happened in 2016. So is this a big, big, big story?”

That’s actually a good point, coming from someone who’s not known for making them. We did hear Trump say that he wanted Zelensky to look into the Bidens. Not only in the so-called “transcripts” that Trump keeps imploring people to read, but also in his own words during an episode of “Chopper Talk” wherein he was asked directly what he wanted from Ukraine and replied that…

“I would think that if they’re honest about it they’d start a major investigation into the Bidens. It’s a very simple answer. They should investigate the Bidens.”

It appears that Trump’s staunchest media bootlickers are now conceding that he cannot be defended with blanket denials that he did anything wrong. They can no longer say that it was “a perfect phone call.” They must accept the fact that Trump engaged in overt extortion, but then try to argue that it wasn’t illegal or impeachable.

That’s the argument that Trump-fluffer and Fox contributor Dan Bongino made for most of this segment. Co-host Brian Kilmeade interjected that Trump’s legal team needs to include in their scenario that Trump “was wanting an investigation into what happened with the Bidens in 2016” But in order to do that, Trump would have to repudiate everything he has asserted thus far in his defense. Kilmeade also closed the segment with a bizarre new bit of advice:

“I will say this. I will say the President should take from this, between the Lev [Parnas] and Igor [Fruman] tapes that are now out, and then people writing books about him, he’s got to do better a job vetting his staff to find out if they actually want to work for him or not. Or if they actually want to leak out information about him. So he’s got to do a better job hiring people.”

Really? So the lesson that Kilmeade is conveying to Trump is not that he should take care to comply with the law and refrain from engaging in treasonous acts. It’s that he should be more careful to associate only with those whose blind loyalty can be relied upon to become willing accomplices to his crimes. Good to know that Fox News has Trump’s interests at heart, even when they are contrary to those of the nation.

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

Trump’s Inner Mob Boss Emerges with Alarming New Threats to Politicians and the Press

Posted by on January 26, 2020 at 3:01 pm. 1 Comments :

One of the most prominent and disturbing elements of Donald Trump’s character (or lack thereof) is his tendency to embrace the language and behavior of mafia dons. He regards himself as an infallible and unchallengeable force who demands total obedience and blind loyalty. This weekend Trump displayed that mob boss fixation on several occasions.

Donald Trump

The recording of him telling Lev Parnas to “take out” U.S. Ambassador Marie Yovanovich was chilling to hear. Trump gave orders to Parnas, a shady figure with ties to Rudy Giuliani and Ukrainian politicos, to “Get rid of her! Get her out tomorrow. I don’t care. Get her out tomorrow. Take her out. OK? Do it.”

Trump’s apologists in Congress and on Fox News dismiss this as being within the President’s power to fire an ambassador. That’s true, but then either he fires her or he instructs his Secretary of State to do so. Parnas has no government role or authority to terminate the employment of an American diplomat. So what did Trump mean and why would he assign this mission to such a fringe player who is currently under felony indictment?

Similarly, Trump threatened the whistleblower who reported Trump’s extortion of Ukrainian President Zelensky, as well as the whistleblower’s White House source[s]. Trump alleged that they could be considered spies and warned “You know what we used to do in the old days when we were smart? Right? The spies and treason, we used to handle it a little differently than we do now.” That’s an overt death threat aimed at someone who legally protected from such retaliation.

On Sunday morning Trump also aimed a threat at House Intelligence Committee Chairman, Adam Schiff, saying that he “is a CORRUPT POLITICIAN, and probably a very sick man. He has not paid the price, yet…” Here Trump is baselessly alleging that Schiff is both “corrupt” and “sick,” two traits that are more recognizable in Trump himself. And what “price” does Trump have in mind that he’s implying Schiff will soon be paying?

This is typical behavior from Trump. And it manifested again in another Sunday tweet wherein he implied his interest in sabotaging National Public Radio (NPR) by eliminating their federal funding. This attack was triggered by an NPR reporter’s interview with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Mary Louise Kelly asked Pompeo a couple of perfectly fair questions about Ukraine that he wanted to avoid. He became angry and erupted in a profanity laced outburst which she reported.

This led to Fox News host Mark Levin tweeting his disapproval of Kelly and asking “Why does NPR still exist,” and “Why are we paying for this big-government, Democrat Party propaganda operation?” Trump replied that it was “A very good question,” setting the stage for potential budget cuts to the public radio broadcaster.

First of all, NPR is not a “big-government, Democrat Party propaganda operation.” In fact, it receives very little federal funding. According to its latest financial report, just one percent of its annual operating budget consists of public monies. By far, most of its funding comes from corporate sponsorships, dues paid by member stations, and listener donations. The greater harm would come to radio stations that air NPR programming, most of which serve rural communities in what Trump would call his base.

What’s more, it’s simply ignorant to accuse NPR of being politically slanted to the left. If anything the opposite is true. After all, the board of its governing agency, the U.S. Global Media Agency (USGMA), is headed by Kenneth Weinstein, a Trump appointee. Also on the board … Mike Pompeo. That’s right. The Secretary of State is an ex officio member of the board of directors of the USGMA. And this is what Trump and Levin believe is a “Democrat Party propaganda operation.” It must be another department within the “Deep State” that is staffed by Trump loyalists.

Trump’s foul and menacing behavior is notable not only for its similarity to that of a mob boss. It represents an imminent danger to innocent people in politics and the press. Past episodes of this rhetoric has resulted in actual bomb threats and other attempted violence. And the scary part is that that is precisely what Trump wants. He is a bully who believes that he can get his way through threats and intimidation. It actually fits the legal definition of terrorism.

If he isn’t stopped he will only get worse. That’s why his impeachment is so urgent. Even if he were to be defeated at the ballot box in November, that would give him 77 days to exact revenge on those he deemed to have betrayed him. That’s a risk that American can’t afford.

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