Trump’s Heinous Attack on Tom Steyer, a Jewish Democrat and Target of the MAGABomber

Already? It didn’t take long for Donald Trump to back off of his obviously disingenuous calls for unity and peace following the shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. In fact, it took less than twenty-fours. On Sunday morning Trump could no longer contain his regnant impulses, so he let loose on Twitter in a display of rancid anti-Semitism and a heinous disregard for human life.

Donald Trump

The latest target of Trump’s hostility is billionaire Tom Steyer, a prominent Democratic donor and vocal critic of the President. Trump’s tweet was both hostile and dishonest. In other words, business as usual for our loathsome, Pathological-Liar-in-Chief. The offensive tweet ignored every moral principle that a conscientious leader would ordinarily have. It said:

Let’s break that down. First of all. Trump is admitting that he lied when he said that he doesn’t watch CNN. He often quotes from segments on CNN and criticizes their coverage of him. But in this tweet he plainly admitted that he watched the whole interview. Trump also lied about not having seen Steyer before. Almost a year ago to the day, Trump tweeted about the “Wacky & totally unhinged Tom Steyer, who has been fighting me.” Indeed, Steyer is the founder of Need To Impeach, which has already accumulated more than 6.1 million signatures of Americans seeking to remove Trump from office due to his well documented treasonous behavior and repeated violations of law.

Trump’s infantile compulsion to insult people was evident again with an absurd characterization of Steyer as “wacky,” “crazed,” and “lunatic.” Whatever you think of Steyer’s opinions, his demeanor is always composed and dignified. Trump is just projecting a description of himself onto someone for whom it is plainly unfitting. What’s more, Trump is revealing his jealousy of Steyer, who is a true self-made billionaire (unlike Trump, who got, millions from his father), with a peculiar and unsupported reference to him “running out of money.” And then, of course, Trump alludes to Steyer as being a potential rival in 2020, which Steyer has never affirmed.

In the interview with Jake Tapper on CNN’s State of the Union (video below), Steyer made a strong case refuting the false equivalency that conservatives allege with regard to violence against political leaders. He argued that there may have been perpetrators on both sides, but only one side has been flagrantly advocating the sort of hostilities that result in real, physical harm. And Trump is at the helm of that advocacy with his calls to assault protesters, his support for “body slamming” journalists, and his labeling political opponents, and the media, as enemies.

However, the worst part of Trump’s tweet is that he posted it just days after it was revealed that Steyer was a recipient of a mail bomb from the now infamous “MAGABomber.” Trump has not expressed any sympathies directly to any of the targets of that virulently pro-Trump domestic terrorist, including two former presidents. But now he is overtly attacking one of those targets. Additionally, Steyer is half-Jewish, which makes Trump’s tweet even more reprehensible considering the mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue the day before.

It seems that every day Donald Trump exposes more of the noxious hatred and ignorance that is the core of his character, or lack thereof. And with this one tweet he has reaffirmed his relentless dishonesty, his insensitivity toward people who have suffered tragedies, and his brazen bigotry. You have to admit that he has a unique talent for being the worst human being to ever occupy a place of power in the United States. And that’s an accomplishment that surely fills him with pride.

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

The GOP News Network (aka Fox News) Is SHOCKED that Billionaires Donate to Democratic Campaigns

It’s just about three weeks until the midterm elections that are forecasting a massive Blue Wave. Most campaign analysts agree that Democrats will secure a majority in the House of Representatives, and some believe the Senate is in play as well. Consequently, Fox News is pulling out all the stops to obstruct that outcome by loading up their schedule with Republican politicians and pundits sermonizing on the urgency of saving the Trump regime’s grip on unchallenged power.

Fox News, Maria Bartiromo

Republicans have abdicated their constitutional role as a check and balance on the other branches of government, particularly the executive branch. Instead, they have been brazenly shielding Trump and company from any legal accountability for their many crimes. And Fox News is aiding and abetting that betrayal of American values. Fox host Maria Bartiromo secured her status as the chief Sunday morning Trump-fluffer with an “interview” of Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy. The segment was pretty much a monologue by the GOP hack intended to boost Republican voter turnout and malign Democrats.

However, one subject dominated the discussion more than the typical gaslighting we’re accustomed to by Republicans. McCarthy raised his “real concern” about former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s donations to Democratic candidates (video below):

“There is a real concern that I have though, because Michael Bloomberg, if you watched who recently registered a Democrat, he is trying to buy the Democrat nomination to run against President Trump. So he has put in $80 million to try and win the House.”

Bartiromo, naturally, agreed with McCarthy. She went on to misstate the truth about which party is getting the most donations from average Americans, and she complained about “a handful of big, deep pocketed donors like a Michael Bloomberg, like a Tom Steyer.” McCarthy took that handoff and ran with it saying that:

“Just think the three individuals who are funding the Democratic Party. George Soros. You’ve got Michael Bloomberg, is not just $80 million into the House, he put another $20 million to try to win the senate. Then Tom Steyer. More than $120 million trying to win. But his main goal is trying to impeach President Trump. He brags that his impeachment list is bigger than the NRA list. Those three individuals are trying to buy our government in this process. It’s very disturbing.”

Why McCarthy correctly noted that there are more people supporting Trump’s impeachment than there are members of the NRA is puzzling, but appreciated. But more to the point, he itemized the contributions of some wealthy Democratic donors and noted how disturbed he was by it. And was it just a coincidence that all three of the rich Dems are Jewish?

What McCarthy didn’t bother to mention is that just one single wealthy donor to the Republicans, Charles Koch, is spending $400 million, more than the total McCarthy said was being donated by all of the Democratic supporters combined. And that isn’t even counting all the other GOP big money donors like the Adelsons and Uihleins. For some reason McCarthy and Bartiromo don’t find that disturbing.

Bartiromo goes on to praise a GOP campaign slogan saying “Build the wall, enforce the law. Yeah.” Then she gives McCarthy an open ended question about where Republicans are running close races with Democrats. And McCarthy took that baton and launched a two minute sprint of races that he wanted to promote on national television to an audience of obedient cult worshipers. It could not have been a more obvious contribution of valuable TV airtime to a political party than if it were branded with a big GOP elephant in place of the Fox News logo.

And this political assist to the Republican Party comes at just the right time. With the midterms approaching, Trump’s frequent cult rallies were boring the Fox News audience so much that Fox cut back on airing them live. The network was also losing a ton of ad revenue because Trump’s speeches could not be interrupted for commercial breaks. So to compensate for the loss of that TV exposure, Fox News is increasing their donations of airtime to GOP shills who will proselytize the right-wing doctrine in a more profitable, TV-friendly format. All in a desperate effort to stave off an electoral bloodbath next month that they probably can’t avoid. Well, as long as Democrats stay focused and turn out at the polls.

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

Frightened Fox News Pulls ‘Impeach Trump’ Ad After Trump and Viewers Complain

The cable news network that once promised to be “fair and balanced” has demonstrated again that it was never either. Which may be why they ditched that slogan earlier this year. Friday it was revealed that Fox News breached a contract with billionaire activist Tom Steyer to air a commercial advocating the “Need to Impeach” Donald Trump. Steyer had bought airtime on Fox News and the ad did air at least once on Fox and Friends.

Donald Trump Impeach

However, since then Fox News decided to yank the ad despite the fact that the time had already been paid for. They didn’t give Steyer any reason for breaching their contract. They didn’t even tell him they had done so. When Fox News was asked to explain why they pulled they ads they gave a surprisingly inappropriate response:

Jack Abernethy, Fox News co-president: Due to the strong negative reaction to their ad by our viewers, we could not in good conscience take their money.

If that’s true, it is an extraordinary development. It may be the first time that a television network made a programming decision for advertisements based on viewer response. Maybe the TV audience could speak up and get those disgusting cartoon bears that are obsessed with which toilet paper they wipe their cartoon butts with off the air.

More likely, Fox News axed these ads because the content was contrary to their political biases. The propaganda ministry at the network just could not abide an advertisement that made a strong case for removing Trump from office. Add to that the fact that Trump himself had registered his own complaint via Twitter saying:

Steyer appeared on MSNBC’s All In with Chris Hayes on Friday when the subject of the ad came up (video below). He told Hayes about Fox’s action and explicitly called out the network for kowtowing to Trump. Steyer also had his attorneys contact Fox News to seek answers as to why they would unilaterally terminate the contract. The letter they wrote said in part that:

“Fox News abruptly pulled the advertisement without explanation (the ‘Cancellation’). We write to protest this baseless and unethical decision. The Cancellation is not only a breach of your agreement with Mr. Steyer – it is also a profound failure of journalistic integrity, a suppression of constitutionally protected speech, and likely a consequence of inexcusable political pressure.”

There are some good reasons for networks to decline to air certain ads. For instance, if the content is provably false, or if it is deliberately harmful or libelous. Political disagreement is not among the legitimate reasons. That would be censorship. Particularly if the President had a role in the decision.

However, the reasons that Fox News would have are easier to predict. They surely would not want to expose their viewers to this sort of information. And they wouldn’t want to piss off their prime benefactor in the White House. But the excuse that they felt guilty about taking Steyer’s money is patently absurd. That sort of argument would lead to rejecting any ads from Democratic candidates. Their predominantly Republican audience wouldn’t like those either. But maybe that’s precisely the ultra-partisan, spin doctoring that Fox News is aiming for.

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

A Million Plus Sign Petition to Impeach Donald Trump as His Polling Hits Record Lows

The presidency of Donald Trump has been a disaster from day one. He has never had a majority of the people supporting him since his inauguration. Even before that, he lost the popular vote by about three million voters who preferred Hillary Clinton. His policies on healthcare, immigration, taxes, trade, climate change, and more, are all underwater. But it’s one thing to be unpopular and another to have most people favor impeachment.

Donald Trump

With the indictments of his campaign associates, Trump’s approval rating is bound to fall even more. The most recent surveys do not reflect this breaking news. It’s fair to say that choosing staffers who get arrested for “conspiring against the United States,” and lying to the FBI, will not boost one’s standing in the polls. Currently he has marked new lows on polls by Fox News (38%), NBC/Wall Street Journal (38%), and Gallup (33%).

That assumption was borne out by the response to a recent campaign by billionaire financier and activist, Tom Steyer. He recently launched a website and petition drive based on the “Need to Impeach” Trump for violations of the Constitution’s Emoluments Clause, obstruction of justice, and other high crimes and misdemeanors. And in less than ten days the petition has been signed by more than a million concerned and patriotic Americans. That’s an astonishing response to the failure of a president who hasn’t completed his first year in office.

This isn’t the first indication of Trump’s weakness as president. On the White House’s own petition site there is one that seeks Trump’s resignation. It has over 137,000 signatures to date. The website promises that all petitions getting over 100,000 signatures would receive a response from the President. It’s been more than seven months since this petition hit that goal, but there’s still no presidential reply. On a separate matter, a petition calling for Trump to release his tax returns has more signatures than any other petition on the site (1,104,746). Trump has ignored this one as well.

In addition to Steyer’s impeachment petition, a poll was just released by Public Policy Polling that asked whether Trump should be impeached. Forty-nine percent said that they support his impeachment. According to the pollsters:

“PPP’s newest national poll finds a record level of support for impeaching Donald Trump. 49% of voters support impeaching him, to 41% who are opposed to doing so. This marks the 6th month in a row we’ve found a plurality of voters in favor of impeaching Trump, and it’s the closest we’ve found to a majority.”

Perhaps even more painful for Trump are the results of questions addressing who people trusted more: Trump or the media. For all six news operations included in the poll, Trump lost by wide margins.

Media Trump
ABC 54 36
CBS 54 36
NBC 54 36
NY Times 54 37
CNN 52 37
Wash Post 52 37

Trump’s tedious and dangerous attacks on the press and the First Amendment have had little effect on the public. Although he has managed to divide his Deplorables from the rest of the American family. And now, as special counsel Robert Mueller continues his investigation, Trump and his cult followers are likely to drift further into the lunatic abyss. There are reports that he is becoming unglued as legal walls close in around him. All of that could make him even more dangerous than ever. And that, of course, makes impeachment all the more justified and necessary before it’s too late.

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

Crybaby Trump Takes the Bait – Replies to “Impeach Trump” Ad that Ran on Fox News

The current regrettable President of the United States has repeatedly shown that he spends more time watching Fox News than presidenting. Coming in second is golf. Third is tweeting about Hillary Clinton and the election a year ago. In fact, being president probably isn’t in the top ten. It has been proven that Donald Trump is faithfully glued to his TV, especially in the morning, and reacts in real time with idiotic tweets.

Donald Trump Impeach

That pattern was in evidence Friday morning after an unusual advertisement aired during Trump’s favorite TV show, Fox and Friends. Tom Steyer is a billionaire who has been active in the environmental movement and liberal politics in general. He recently started a campaign to get Congress on the record with regard to Trump’s mental unfitness to serve. He launched the “Need To Impeach” website to inform and gather support. It includes a video that describes Trump as “a clear and present danger who’s mentally unstable and armed with nuclear weapons.” The video begins with a chilling list of particulars:

“He’s brought us to the brink of nuclear war, obstructed justice at the FBI, and in direct violation of the Constitution, has taken money from foreign governments and threatened to shut down news organizations that report the truth. If that isn’t a case for impeaching and removing a dangerous president, then what has out government become?”

Steyer’s campaign began a week ago with a $10 million budget. It has gotten attention from a variety of media, with the unsurprising exception of Fox News. Trump himself has completely ignored this, despite it being precisely the sort of thing that stirs his giblets. Any attack is usually met with a juvenile retort on Twitter. But the bully-in-chief has been uncharacteristically mum on this assault from an elite lefty. Until now.

Friday morning Steyer’s video ran as an ad during Fox and Friends. Steyer was likely not under the impression that this ad would change the so-called minds of many Fox viewers. But there was one viewer whose attention it would surely grab. The President, of course, was up watching the show and saw the ad. We know that he doesn’t watch much of anything else, and his handlers keep him in the dark as much as possible. Consequently, this is likely the first he heard of it. And it didn’t please him. Shortly after the ad aired, Trump was tweeting about it:

You’ll notice that Trump’s response consisted of two primary points. First of all, he had to unleash a typically childish insult on “whacky” Tom Steyer. Secondly, he focused on horse-race politics rather than anything of substance. What Trump did not include in his response was any refutation of the facts that Steyer laid out.

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

However, what’s most notable about this is that Steyer has demonstrated the best way to get under Trump’s thin and wrinkled skin. The President is notoriously sheltered in his wannabe dictator bubble and has little access to unfiltered criticism. His caretakers meticulously strip any bad news from the briefings they permit him to receive. But if it’s run on Fox and Friends he’s gonna see it and react. Therefore, that should become the preferred method of reaching Trump for critics, Democrats in Congress, and the media. So the next time Rachel Maddow has a question for Trump, she should just put it on video and buy a spot on Fox News.