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Dems Attending Trump's Trial Pose No Threat, Feverish Flag Furor Continues, and Trump Is Hitler...Again

Brad Slager
Brad Slager  |  May 28, 2024
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Townhall.com.

Artisanally-Crafted Narratives – NEW REPUBLIC

It used to be an old chestnut on social media; in the course of a political discussion, at some point, someone would inevitably invoke Republicans are Nazis, and then mockery would ensue, and that person would become cast out from the discussion. It was such a knee-jerk idiocy that the charge never had any teeth, and soon the insistence of this was diminishing. Now, in the wake of January 6, but especially as desperation is setting in for this election, the eroding fortunes of Joe Biden and the growing likelihood of a Trump return has the media in desperation mode.

Already we see daily insistences that Trump will kill off our democracy, end elections, shred the Constitution, and every other nightmare scenario being promised. Now, trots in The New Republic, which has Trump as Hitler on its cover, and a collection of supposed notable thinkers delivering their fantasies of what a new Trump term will deliver. Michael Tomasky, Watergate obsessive Ruth Ben-Ghiat and, of course, Brian Stelter each weigh in along with half a dozen others to offer up their dystopian promises of what the Orange-Man-Fascist is assured to bring upon this nation.

Legalized Press-titution – VARIOUS OUTLETS

  • A week ago this was an inherent threat to our legal system. Today…meh.

When House Speaker Mike Johnson spoke outside the Manhattan courthouse, and when GOP members of Congress were seated in the gallery inside the courtroom, the press was rather enraged at these appearances. It was deemed an attempt to influence a trial and even declared as a means to not only disrupt a federal case but one that could upend the entire standards of jurisprudence. Now, a week later, that has all changed.

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The Biden campaign showed up at the Manhattan trial – with actor Robert De Niro in tow, for no known reason – and funny enough, there is no moral hectoring over this display. One would think if there is a risk of undue influence it would be from the president whose party is bringing up these kangaroo court trials against Trump.

Prose & Contradiction – NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO

For at least a month, we have heard NPR voices insisting their outlet provides balanced and neutral coverage of the news events.

Also this morning, NPR covered the Trump Manhattan trial and invited on former New York Assistant State Attorney General and anti-Trump author of the book "Taking Down Trump," Tristan Snell, to deliver insights into the trial. Pro-Trump authors – or anyone for that matter – were not included in this unbiased non-partisan completely neutral news segment.

Anti-Social Media – THE HILL

Taking the neutral approach as well was The Hill, where in the opinion section, it delivered a rather imbalanced approach to the closing arguments. In this case, where the worst charge is normally a misdemeanor, we see that the jury could be deadlocked or Trump will swing in the gallows.

Of course, New York does not have the death penalty, but small matter when the worst man ever alive is on trial!

Both Kinds of Standards – PROPUBLICA

  • So, it is not the flag itself, it's the message, but who has the flag that makes it so vile?

The idiocy continues to be sold to a public that is growing more apathetic toward the pleas – the press keeps insisting the "Appeal To Heaven" flag seen at Justice Samuel Alito's cottage last year is a dire problem today. The latest to attempt selling this myth is ProPublica, which has found another conservative figure to castigate for flying the banner that has existed for two and a half centuries.

Tellingly, we do not see any breathless reports about the implications of this flag being flown at the state capitals of Massachusetts, Mississippi, or city hall in San Francisco.

Legalized Press-titution – CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK

  • Notable how upset they get over neutral reporting of the facts.

We learn just how vacant this flag controversy truly is when you realize that not only is it years old without controversy until this month, but the revelation that the Washington Post looked at the Alito distress flag episode and dismissed it as a non-story has certain types bothered. Looking into that decision was Ben Smith of Semafor, who spoke with editors at WaPo who told him the move to drop the non-troversy was a consensus decision. This rankled journalism school professor Jeffrey Jarvis is mad at WaPo – for not taking the activist route – as well as Smith for not grilling the editors with accusatory commentary and holding them accountable for not impacting a court decision with hyperbolic reporting in 2021. 

This is a mind who is guiding future reporters that they should engage in activist journalism when entering the profession.