Three reasons to post this video: (1) Because I was critical -- justifiably, I think -- of elements of the president's conduct in the wake of the recent spate of mail bombs and the Pittsburgh hate crime, I want to showcase some of his laudable leadership, as well. (2) It's just a fact that much of the media absolutely despises the president, so you're unlikely to see this clip shared far and wide the way that you would if it featured Trump's predecessor. (3) This interaction serves as a lovely reminder that the angry political echo chambers that many partisans inhabit, on both ends of the spectrum, isn't reflective of how a great many Americans live their lives.
When the president and first lady visited Pittsburgh to comfort the afflicted after last weekend's horrific anti-Semitic massacre, the trip was deemed 'controversial' in some circles. The press tried to bait the synagogue's rabbi into blaming or rejecting Trump (he declined), critics attempted to lay blame for both the attempted bombings and the shooting spree at the president's feet (a majority of Americans disagree, and the synagogue killer savaged Trump as a Jew-loving globalist), and some on the Left organized protests to signal that Trump was unwelcome in the grieving city. Apparently, a group of hospital employees didn't get that divisive memo. Note the excitement in their voices, then watch the heartwarming exchange play out:
All the media reporting is about how Trump is not wanted in Pittsburg but when he visits the hospital treating victims of synagogue shooting this is the response from the staff. pic.twitter.com/S9NVrXWZF2
— Rita Panahi (@RitaPanahi) October 31, 2018
Writes David French: "We live in polarized times, but it's still quite an experience to see the president, and most folks aren't consumed by politics. It was good of Trump to stop and greet them." Exactly right. I can be quite negative about some of the president's comportment and impulses, but it's important to recognize that there's another side to him -- especially when it comes to his penchant to go out of his way to greet and be generous toward everyday, hardworking Americans. When manifestations of that Trump cross my radar, I do my best to amplify and share them. Incidentally, when I wrote above that many voices in the mainstream media "absolutely despise" Trump, that wasn't hyperbole. Take a look at these lowlights of some of the rhetoric being tossed about by preening, self-unaware scolds who simultaneously attack the other "side's" hyper-charged or hateful rhetoric as the cause of violence. "The president of the United States is evil:"
Media to conservatives: Hey Nazi terrorists, isn't it time to start dialing down the rhetoric? [Montage] pic.twitter.com/sC9XBju7Fi
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) October 31, 2018
The 'stars' of that montage should take a long, hard look at this statistic:
?? Politico poll --> More Americans blame mainstream media for dividing America than Trump. This is not to say he isn't divisive; most say he is. But the MSM (which often demands 'soul searching' from others) is viewed as the MORE divisive force. Imagine that: pic.twitter.com/3wo7VeMiC0
— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) November 1, 2018
On the issue of rhetoric and violence, about which I've written quite a bit, I'll leave you by echoing the sentiments of my co-author:
One more time w feeling! Rhetoric didn’t perpetrate a shooting in Tucson or on Congressional baseball field or police executions in Dallas or NYC in wake of Black Lives Matter & blaming free political speech one doesn’t like for violence of individuals is bad for speech & freedom https://t.co/mpY9D8eqdS
— Mary Katharine Ham (@mkhammer) November 1, 2018