Most of the time, it’s best to ignore outrageous statements.
After all, if you tried to respond to every outrageous statement this president makes, well, you would just be exhausted.
This weekend, though, marked a new level of outrageousness. Oh, in hindsight, it was predictable. First we, the press, were told to shut up. Everything would be all better if we just kept quiet during an onslaught of yet another avalanche of untruths, misleading statements and outright lies.
Now we are the enemy of the people. Yes, that’s what he said. Our president singled out The New York Times, NBC, ABC, CBS and CNN, but he means every media outlet in the country dedicated to real journalism, a trade that is all about truth-getting.
That’s offensive, of course, and deeply disturbing because the man is saying a cornerstone of our democracy is out to destroy the democracy.
Yet the most disgusting thing about this latest unhinged moment is that he is including in the ranks of “the enemy,” reporters who have died, been tortured, jailed and been beaten precisely because they were looking for the truth and fighting for the American people.
What we have, obviously, is a man who peddles in falsehoods, plays to our fears and strives to keep the nation divided. Blaming the press for his towering failures is part of the playbook; it diverts attention elsewhere for awhile.
These are the signs of a rudderless, desperate administration.
When the nation’s president starts calling our institutions enemies of the people, it’s time to be worried.
But no amount of this president’s fearmongering, shut your mouth threats, arrogant and despicable name-calling is ever going to keep this publication from reporting the shortcomings of this administration.
No publication of worth would do otherwise.
