More Trumpety-Trump!

As I indicated above, I was amazed to be so impressed by Trump's SOTU speech to Congress.  However, please note that I inadvertently listened to it at 2.00am in the morning when what passes for my brain is not at its very best.  Even so, the speech lasted 1.5 hours which was long enough to have initial re-actions either confirmed or dismissed.  The tone of the delivery was excellent, about as far from 'Trump normal' (or perhaps that should be 'Trump abnormal'!) as I have ever heard.  The speech-writer used his intelligence to keep re-emphasising the President's wish for compromise and unity.  Yes, it might be Grade I BS but that is what most presidential speeches are!  And in any case, this was clever BS because with 'yuuuuuge' numbers of American listening and watching, it puts the pressure on the Dems to "straighten up and fly right". 

More important, was Trump's insistence, based on actions already taken, that in his world view American interests come first in everything.  Chinese, Russians, Iranians have already felt the hard shoulder of an America no longer wishing to be 'Mr. Nice Guy', as his totally wet and useless predecessor tried to be.  Yes, 'The Donald' will have to compromise on this or that because that is how politics work in the real world but at least now we can all see the essence of the new American stand.  In my view, after eight years of soppy, feeble leadership from Obama which no-one in the world took seriously, it is excellent that now we have an American president who can cut through the (so-called) subtleties of international politics and drive for real American strength and leadership.

 

 

Comments

[Bob]

As another discerning fan of 1st grade BS, I also give the speech top marks.

[Glesga]

It is strange that foreigners the BBC and some of his fellow Americans complain about Trump putting the USA first. He is not the President of France.

[Whitewall]

France is in dire need of an actual French president. Lacking same, the population is fed up and taking to the streets. It's normal.

[Michael F Adams]

I'm reminded of Putin, who is no friend of America, nor Britain, either, but who loved Russia, a fact that Conservatives could appreciate, when we had a President who did not love America. I strongly suspect that President Trump gi9ves thanks every night that he is NOT president of France. Yes, I sympathize, even while I recognize that the French are in a hole of their own digging. But and however, they are so eat up with the dumbass, (AKA Rousseavianism) that they are unable to govern themselves.I

'm not the only American who has observed that it is very difficult to hold pride and envy in one soul. "Damn! I wish I had a woman, house, motorcycle like his!" Then why not get one? "Uh, I can't" End pf pride. Triumph of envy.

[Glesga]

Michael F Adams, Putin is probably more of a friend than those who pretend to be. Putin is a Patriot and the USA seems to be lacking on this in certain sectors. The USA is obsessed with nookie which is surprising since KFK had group sex in the White House pool.

[JK]

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2019/02/understanding-trump-voters-shouldnt-be-too-tough.php

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/ct-trump-media-crybabies-20170717-story.html

I lead with the links David for a couple [or more] reasons one of which has to do with, I suspect with the way Typepad's OS has been treating my comments recently (Diplomad's noted problems recently too except in his case it's not the readers affected rather the author - perhaps, as he suggests "Its something to do with the Gods of Silicon Valley.")

I lead with the link primarily in order to *explain* how I came to the second - on the first the author points to an article appearing in the WaPo; and while on that site down on the bottom WaPo helpfully provided me, "Suggested For Related Reading" links by which time I'd read, I ran out of 'allotted articles' ... but fortunately remembering the title, did a search and came up with the same thing except courtesy of the Chicago Tribune - Take that you money-grubbers of Washington DC! Now where was I?

Oh yes. As a long enduring observer David of "our doings" in these here former colonies of 'yourins' you'll appreciate (now whether Bob does ...) that Trump wasn't directing his messages to any of the swamp denizens, generally speaking but, rather to his, also long enduring professional DC bullshit detecting "tribe" [as described by the party of the first in explaining the WaPo's Miss Abramson's use of the term].

And that's why we love him.

[David Duff]

Alas, JK, the ChicagoTribune is not available to us poor serfs 'over here' but I will read you first link tomorrow.

[JK]

Fully recognizing David, I've taken to bad habits reading yourself, a "jumble sale" direct from the Chicago Tribune:

The [US] Media's Martyr Complex is Embarrassing ... June 2017

"Just like our larger media counterparts, smaller news entities such as our paper in southwestern Ohio sometimes get criticized for being unfair or biased.

As an example, years ago I was editor at another small newspaper when the local congressman became upset with our columns and editorials. He called for a meeting with our publisher and me, bringing with him some important local advertisers. The message was clear.

Fortunately, our publisher held firm, and we continued to exercise our right to call it as we saw it. And we didn't use our news pages to portray ourselves as martyrs for the First Amendment. Publicly, we ignored the incident.

I can already hear some saying, "But that's not the same as being attacked almost daily by the president of the United States." In a way, it can be worse. The fishbowl in which most small papers operate can make attacks by powerful local people pretty intimidating.

Unfortunately, when President Donald Trump accuses the mainstream media of being "fake news," too often the journalists being targeted don't ignore it or merely address it internally. Instead, they react with public outrage, their popping veins nearly bursting through their thin skins.

Since the media, along with Congress, has approval numbers lower than the president's, it's hard to persuade most Americans to feel our pain. That there is relatively little organic reaction to the president's criticisms outside of offended newsrooms is the best proof of the merits of Trump's complaints.

Trump doesn't deserve favorable coverage. All he deserves is fair and honest coverage. But even liberals can't argue with a straight face that he's wrong about mainstream media bias.

Coverage of the president's overseas trip and participation in the Group of 20 summit offered numerous examples, with major media outlets focused more on minutiae — Ivanka sat in the president's chair! — than on substance, giving comparatively short shrift to his powerful remarks in Poland and the important Syrian cease-fire agreement brokered between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

And later, the wall-to-wall coverage regarding Donald Trump Jr.'s meeting with a private Russian attorney was the definition of overkill, considering no one has brought forward any evidence to contradict the accounts of the participants that no substantive information was exchanged and there was no follow-up by anyone. But it was another opportunity to repeat "Russia, Russia, Russia," the media's magic words for conjuring, Beetlejuice-fashion, the genie they hope will vanquish their bogeyman.

During his visit to Poland, Trump dared to answer a question about the media with the same reply he has always given, "fake news," but his remarks were reported with gloomy disapproval. "How dare he criticize the media while overseas?" reporters cried.

When the mainstream media explodes with Shakespearean sound and fury over Trump's broadsides, conservatives scratch their heads. Their preferred information funnel, Fox News, has been the target of derision for years, including from presidents, with little objection from other outlets. Fox News usually answers the criticisms in a lighthearted way, when not ignoring them outright.

Not CNN. Trump's tweeting of an old wrestling skit with the CNN logo superimposed on Vince McMahon's head was brash, but harmless. CNN reacted as though Trump had set fire to its Atlanta headquarters. Americans were subjected to solemn sermonizing from CNN and other outlets over what were characterized as the president's attacks on the First Amendment itself and an incitement to violence. Nonsense.

News outlets, whether in big cities or small towns, are not synonymous with the First Amendment. We are organizations that depend on the First Amendment to do our jobs, but that hardly makes criticism of us — even aggressive attacks from the president of the United States — out of bounds.

On this point, Big Media could learn a lesson from Small Media. When I have responded to accusations of bias over the years, my answer was not to whine about the criticism, but to point to examples of coverage that I believed proved them wrong. I don't see too many media organizations doing that in response to the president's complaints.

If the day comes when members of the mainstream media can prove Trump wrong through the evidence of their work, the president's attacks will lose their steam. That day is not [even unto two+ years] here [yet]."

***

You probably needn't David, spend/waste your valuable time looking to Miss Abernathy's .. um .. "wisdom" .... its everywhere except for where Bob is.

[Bob]

Yeah, JK, I live in a wondrous land where there's no such thing as fake news and all reporters walk around with big, silly grins because they're never used as foils and no one ever lies. It's always sunny with a temperature of 72 F too.

[backofanenvelope]

Bob. Sounds like Fake News!

[JK]

Well Bob, fellow who authored that article says he's a resident of Ohio whereof,last geography class I attended was nearer Indiana than Arkansas.

All I know Bob is you'll always be true to whatever it is you're being true to.

[Bob]

backofanenvelope and JK,

None of SoD's Zog nonsense. Truth is Krypton, justice, and the American way:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2l4bz1FT8U