You have to hand it to Trump and his goons. They have done a pretty good job of bullying various media outlets into tempering their criticism of the president. And of course it’s not the on-air talent so much as the corporate honchos and their lawyers tasked with figuring out what sorts of ugly power the federal government could bring to bear, particularly the FCC.
We have seen the $15 million George Stephanopoulos payout, the $16 million Paramount Global/60 Minutes shakedown, and of course the cancelling of Stephen Colbert, with other actions being threatened almost daily.
Sometimes there is a clear logic to these capitulations, as was true in the 60 Minutes case, or it might just be a general sense of dread by otherwise uber-powerful corporate entities that don’t want to find out how nasty the federal government can be when they put their minds to it: pay up and do what you’re told and maybe sleep a bit better at night.
This is getting to be old news and pretty tiresome. What is perhaps somewhat new is the suggestion that Republicans better be careful with this kind of nonsense lest Democrats embrace the precedent and go on a lawsuit/cancellation spree the next time they are in power, which is part of the argument Noah Rothman makes in a recent article in the National Review.
Rothman cites a comment made by Alicia Acuna, a Fox News Channel senior analyst, to buttress his case. She said on air that “a tool that can be used by this administration can very well be used by the next.” But is that actually true? Would or should Democrats do things that are reprehensible when it’s their turn to govern simply because a corrupt precedent has been set? Or, for example, should states in which there is a Democratic legislative majority engage in unethical redistricting just because Republicans do it? Should Democrats appoint grossly unqualified and obnoxiously partisan senior staff because the Republicans did it? Should Democrats decide to lie about everything the way Trump does whenever he opens his mouth.
Many rank and file Democrats are of course frustrated with the party’s response to Trump. We all get that. We would like to see them do more, but nobody seems quite sure what more amounts to. It is interesting that the two media outlets worrying about potential Democratic retribution cited above are conservative. They seem to think both parties would do the same given the chance. I think they’re wrong and hope so because otherwise what’s the point? But it is tempting.
Retired political staffer/civil servant. Dual U.S./Canadian citizen writing about politics and the arts on both sides of the border.