Make America Yawn Again
Orange Jesus declares his impending resurrection...to resounding cries of "So what??"
One of my concerns during the Trump era had to do with the lengths the mainstream media was willing to go to appease Mango Mussolini. In some cases, media outlets felt they had to reign in “unflattering” coverage to maintain their access. The Trump White House was known to punish non-compliant media outlets by pulling access to press briefings or by relegating their representatives to less prominent seats. It was a shitty way to do business, but Donald Trump is nothing if not transactional.
The result was that the news about the Trump Adminstration, emanating even from such august and allegedly objective news organizations as the New York Times and Washington Post, were often suspiciously non-objective. A casual reader may not have noticed the subtle slant. But for someone used to reading the journalists from large news organizations (like myself, f’rinstance), it was clear that something was rotten in Denmark.
And the problem became worse as Donald Trump grew into his office and became more comfortable throwing his weight and influence around. A coveted interview with the President went to “friendly” news outlets, which is why you never saw Orange Jesus sitting down with an MSNBC journalist. It was a clear “scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours” arrangement- sometimes open, sometimes not so much, but Trump was never subtle about his “pay to play” expectation.
Granted, this sort of thing happens with every Presidential administration. Those charged with protecting a President from predatory journalism are much more likely to allow interviews with media outlets likely to produce “friendly” coverage. The Trump Administration took this practice to new heights- or depths, depending on one’s perspective.
So it was with some interest that I perused the home pages of websites from some of the nation’s major newspapers on Wednesday. I was attempting to gauge what sort of reaction Trump’s announcement that he was running for President in 2024 would generate amongst the mainstream media.
I was mildly surprised to discover that the general response was…a collective yawn. And much of what these outlets had to say was less about his response than his toxic effect on party and country.
From the New York Times:
The Republican reaction to Trump: A few endorsements, and a lot of crickets.
Donald Trump Is Finally Finished
Can the Republican Party Move Past Trump?
From the Washington Post:
Opinion: At long last, Trump gives his concession speech
From the Los Angeles Times:
Litman: Trump’s candidacy complicates a potential criminal case against him, but it can’t protect him
From the Boston Globe:
Leading Republicans try to ignore Trump campaign launch
From the Miami Herald:
Watch: Donald Trump announces he'll run for president again in 2024
From the Seattle Times:
Trump criminal probes will proceed — even as he’s candidate
Independents may not like Biden, but they abhor Trump
From the Denver Post:
Nothing. Zero. Zip. Nada. Bupkis.
From the Minneapolis StarTribune:
Could Trump campaign from jail? Absolutely.
From the Chicago Tribune:
Nothing. Zero. Zip. Nada. Bupkis.
From the Houston Chronicle:
Texas leaders react to Trump announcing 2024 presidential run
Trump said he won all of Texas’ border counties. He didn’t.
That’s ten major newspapers from all around the country- a pretty representative sample, I think. And taken as a whole, the response to Mango Mussolini’s announcement of his impending resurrection was…amusingly underwhelming. Two of the sites didn’t even think his announcement was newsworthy enough to post a story covering it on their home page.
None of the sites were what I’d call effusive in their coverage. “Understated” would be the most charitable description I’d use. If Trump was hoping to generate excitement and buzz, I suspect he and his team were sorely disappointed. Then again, many of his advisers did advise Orange Jesus that it would be best to wait to announce his intention to run again.
Never being one to listen to anyone’s counsel but his own, however, he plunged ahead to yawns, laughs, and a whole lot of “so what?”
Outside of his hardcore MAGA cultists, whose number probably isn’t anywhere near as large as we might have previously thought, it seems like much of America is weary of Trump’s tired act. Seriously, what must they be thinking at this point? Do we REALLY want a twice-impeached, election-denying, 30+ thousand-lie-bleating, self-dealing jackass in the White House again? Do we need four more years of that shit all over again?
My sincere hope is that the answer would be a resounding “NO!” Then again, he lost the popular vote in both previous elections he contested, so it’s not as if he can call himself a “winner.”
I was impressed (and perhaps a bit surprised) at how understated the reaction to Orange Jesus’ announcement was among the mainstream media. Though I didn’t watch the announcement or any analysis of it, I would’ve expected a bit more…excitement. That there wasn’t tells me that perhaps his schtick is finally wearing thin and the mainstream media has decided that they’re immune to his “charms,” such as they never were.
Of course, with any luck perhaps he’ll be wearing an orange prison jumpsuit in a federal lockup near you long before the 2024 election comes around.
Hey, a boy can dream, right?
“Mango Mussolini” so descriptive! An original descriptor?