Trump’s Head Fake
Here are some of the breathless headlines that splashed onto the home pages of the very news organizations on which we’re counting to hold the U.S. government accountable:
CNN Trump’s Gaza ‘Riviera’ plan is the most outlandish idea in the history of US Middle East peacemaking
The Guardian: Trump’s declaration US will ‘take over’ Gaza Strip sparks global condemnation”
The New York Times: With Gaza Takeover Plan, an Unbound Trump Pushes an Improbable Idea
Washington Post: U.S. allies reject Trump proposal to ‘take over’ Gaza, displace Palestinians
NPR: Trump says the U.S. will ‘take over’ Gaza and relocate its people. What does it mean?
NBC News Trump fuels fury and fear in the Middle East after vowing to ‘take over’ the Gaza Strip
Using the Presidential bully pulpit to shape the narrative, Mr. Trump once again succeeded in hoodwinking the news media into usurping the actual, more incriminating news spewing out of his Administration. This time, it was with an outlandish (and stupid) suggestion that the U.S. take over Gaza. This is not a serious idea, but it is one that successfully serves Miller, Bannon, and Musk’s purpose: to distract from the scary reality they’re perpetrating on the American people.
If nothing else, Trump and Musk have mastered the art of making headlines with inane, hyperbolic pronouncements and choreographed spectacles. Even when a sniper allegedly spilled some blood on Trump, the then-flailing candidate recognized a photo op by defiantly thrusting his fist in the air with an American flag in the background while Secret Service agents tried to restrain him.
America is grappling with the dismantling of the democratic institutions (and soft power) that have made our nation the envy of the world. Yet, legacy news organizations still choose to act as stenographers when this child-like sociopath acts out. After all these years and mounting criticism, they have yet to learn how to deal with Trump’s M.O., honed in New York by Page Six.
Sadly, it is us, their readers and viewers, who are getting shortchanged by the news media’s failure to keep their eye on the ball, e.g.
— Give a very rich, private citizen illegal access to the U.S. Treasury database
— Dismantle the U.S. Board of Education, USAID, EPA, CIA, others
— End Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security
— Deport foreign-born U.S. citizens (from countries they don’t like)
— Fracture relationships with long-time allied nations
— Anoint unqualified and dangerous sycophants to lead our nation’s vital institutions, e.g., DOJ, FBI, DOD, HHS, EPA, UST…
The list goes on.
Given Republican hegemony over all three branches of government right now, we are reliant on an increasingly neutered Fourth Estate to hold wrong-doers and law-breakers into account. Unfortunately, they have failed in their journalistic mission outside a few outlets like Wired, Pro Publica, Judd Legum’s Popular Information, and Rachel, Chris, and Lawrence (whose viewership has been resurgent since the post-election downturn).
Wake up, journalists and content creators! Project 2025 is here. We’re counting on you to put this cancerous assault on democracy into remission.
