Roger
on 10 hours ago
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The Federalist Papers
Yes, this cartoon is parody. Nobody on cable news is calling the men storming Omaha Beach "right wing extremists."
Not yet, anyway.
But the reason it lands is that it feels about one headline away from real. And this week proved it.
On Monday night in Grand Island, Nebraska, President Trump talked about the war with Iran and the gas prices that came with it. His point was simple. Higher prices at the pump are temporary. A nuclear Iran is not.
He told the crowd a temporary spike in gas was "a small price to pay" for keeping the country safe, because a nuclear Iran could take out an American city. Then he named Los Angeles and San Diego as examples.
Then the media went to work.
The Los Angeles Times ran a headline claiming Trump suggested letting Iran "take out" both cities. Clips spread with the gas price setup cut away, leaving only the line about LA and San Diego. Gavin Newsom piled on within hours, calling the President "deranged and dangerous."
Think about what that takes. Someone had to watch the full remarks, understand the point, and then decide to trim it so it said the opposite.
That isn't a mistake. That is a choice.
Was the delivery clumsy? Sure. Trump riffs, and riffs can come out sideways. But a clumsy sentence is a reason to quote the whole thing, not a license to cut it in half.
That is exactly what this cartoon nails. Strip away the context, swap the labels, and liberators become extremists. A warning about a nuclear threat becomes an invitation to one.
It's disgusting. And millions of Americans have figured out the game.
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Roger
A few things the headlines skipped. By Tuesday morning, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung was calling the coverage a "media freakout" with no basis in reality. The official Rapid Response account went straight at the LA Times headline. On Thursday, Trump spelled it out himself. A t... View More
10 hours ago