Ironically, they, the mainstream media will be in his sights if he ever gets the gig. Then they will not be able to highlight any negatives for fear of the repercussions that would undoubtedly flow.
I honestly don't understand the grip he and/or the maga gop have over the media.
Linda, it seems the media don't consider that if they were to print and broadcast the actual truth, Trump wouldn't be elected and they wouldn't have to worry about what Trump would do to them. The media's thinking is really skewed and is teaching us that they are not the trustworthy sources of truth they would like us to believe they are.
The media do know, however, that if trump loses, a lot of "news" gets lost with him. They don't print the truth about him today because tomorrow they want to be able to talk about the chaos he is causing in the world. This is the dangerous game they are playing.
Exactly my thoughts. It won’t matter what the issue is (size of his inaugural crowd?) he will pick a fight with them to bring them into line as soon as he is elected. A few untraceable death threats to editors should do it nicely.
Exactly! They have no idea of how to deal with him so they cater to him. They are afraid of his threats and never challenge his labeling of “fake news”.
They know better than this. They know exactly what they're doing. They love the drama he creates. AFTER they help get him elected then they will play pretend that they are pushing back and that they "care" This is precisely what they did in 2015/16.
They will not get him elected this time either, so do not put those words into the etherstream. Rather , HELP DO THE HARD WORK LEADING TO A HARRIS / WALTZ VICTORY; SO LARGE THAT EVEN SCOTUS WON'T BE ABLE TO DISPUTE, VILIFY OR GIVE IT TO THE 🍊 🤮
500 ELECTORAL VOTES CAN'T BE " HANGING CHADDED " AWAY.
Mary what would we do without you! This is what early 20th century and pioneering journalist, Walter Lippmann, called the “manufacture of consent”. Alex Carey, and more recently, Edward Herman and Noam Chomsky wrote the primer on it. Any politics journalist, worth their weight in salt, would’ve read this book. Currently, Tim Snyder describes this phenomenon of journalistic self-censorship in his work on authoritarianism. A couple year ago he even published a graphic-nonfiction version of his work for the many of us whose attention spans are overstretched.
It doesn’t make any sense because a lot of these media people will be out of a job and the ones that are holding him accountable will be rounded up by trumps national guard and military and taken to the brink! I mean you say, “ oh that could never happen!” But it can! We’ve just never experienced it! It happens all the time in other dictator led countries! So it’s possible. At best if he’s elected we’ll become fearful of speaking out, of protesting, and standing up for our rights!! People will become paranoid that maybe if they say the wrong thing, love the wrong person, seek healthcare that is deemed inappropriate that someone….the neighbor, family member, friend might squeal and then what might result? A visit from the police? Let’s not forget that our democracy is hanging on by a thread and it can be taken away! Trump and his minions in the court and the legislation have already started the wheels in motion to disqualify this election. It won’t go peacefully in many places! His supporters and many of these evangelical militia groups have been forming to try and take this country! They honestly believe that they will have to fight to “take back their country!” It’s downright scary and all I can say is I hope the people who are in power now have a plan to combat this. And I hope it doesn’t involve combat!
I have come to the conclusion that it’s a type of mass poisoning. Like that French village where the town bakery’s bread was contaminated with mold/ergot. A huge portion of the village flipped out, having eaten the equivalent of LSD. Happened in the early 1950’s.
Trump is the poisoner; the media and his followers are the victims. The poison runs deep, and has dangerously impacted practically every aspect of society.
Yet it only affects the absolutely most stupid people in the country, apparantly... you'd think that they would have at least one adult at work in places like NYT and such. It's horrible yo witness American history live at this point..
Indeed, it's official: We have now entered The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits. They control the horizontal....they control the vertical....they control the sound and the color. Reality is behind us in the universe we have now vacated.
That's a very good point that I hadn't considered. I read of FEMA staffers being pulled from their work due to armed militias, that, assuming it's accurate, is beyond stupid or abhorrent, (no word immediately comes to mind). So yes I could see that perhaps there's a real level of 'careful treading' when reporting on Mr trump's behaviours. I had presumed that since 1938 and Orson Welles' radio acting of The War of the Worlds, people weren't so gullible to works of clear fiction, i.e., Mr trump. (he deserves no capitalisations imo).
Yes, if the main stream media want to continue to report news, no matter who wins the election, they sure as heck better do it now. Freedom of speech is going to go away if twump is elected. Sure enough.
All the Founders of good repute saw this one coming long ago, as surely as did Lincoln, the Roosevelts, the Kennedys, MLK JR, and Malcolm X. Every second of their lives they were vilified by reactionaries like Donald and his crew who would commit every deadly sin to sow division among the people and to prey their base emotions for the gross personal benefit of the few. Apologies to Mary for my lay person's take on our society's grave ills. So, what about the Harris campaign spending everything they've got in the next three weeks to highlight Donald's deepening spiral into dementia and make sure it gets major airtime? Or are Musk and the other deep pockets just going to keep burying us all with a tsunami of lies until the fence sitters succumb?
Read a post today saying MSNBC delayed a documentary until after the election due to not wanting to offend him. I don't believe it. Checked Snopes- nothing. Can anyone confirm this was false? (Damn, I forget the source already.)
It wouldn't surprise me. A few years ago PBS had a documentary about the oil industry in production, it got pulled from the broadcast schedule because one of the Koch brothers was on the PBS governing board. That sort of thing is one of the reasons I think the Harris-Walz administration needs to increase the funding for PBS so that they don't have to depend on corporate sponsors any more. It's the only way we're going to have any media worthy of the First Amendment's free press protections.
PBS? Sorry but they are now infected by the bite of the right-wing Kamoda Dragon that is just watching the PBS agonizing death until time to devour it completely.
I saw it on MSNBC late last week that the documentary airing was pushed to after the election. Ticked me off.
The collective MSM- ABC, NBC, CBS, news papers are sane washing everything Trump. After the disastrous PA town hall & the Chicago Economy Club interview some of the newspapers finally started questioning his mental fitness. It's about damn time. MSNBC has been the only tv media sounding the alarm for months. The View has too.
He's already threatening the media today. I don't understand why CNN is kowtowing to him like this unless they're trying a kind of "reverse psychology" on us--making it seem like they're behind me so that WE get riled up and vote against him.
They were bought by Right Wing Extremists. The Media is a Monopoly. Congress ignored Monopolies forming in all areas of American Life and this is reinforced by a fanatical Religious Plan to take over the 7 Mountains of Civilization. The Media was one. Notice how fast they were to take out Twitter when people had a new way to communicate, share and organize. Substack is good but it doesn't have the reach yet.
The GOP and now Donald Trump have used fear as a tool to stir up his undereducated conservative base. I think it is that fear that they have created the leads to the racism and bigotry. As far as the misogyny, the GOP wants to be in control and they do NOT want women to lead. They stand for racism, misogyny and bigotry. It’s their prevailing message. Period.
On the other hand, Harris and Walz brought us optimism and hope. They've reminded Americans that together, we can do anything. There's no stopping us now!
I can't wait to celebrate Harris/Walz epic victory wearing this great "We the People means EVERYONE" shirt on November 5th 👇
We really need to stop calling them conservatives. They abandoned conservatism a long time ago. They're either Fascists or deluded lemmings in thrall to their chosen propaganda sources.
They are a combination of authoritarian, oligarchy, theocracy & fascism with a mob mentality. It's dangerous. Can only hope the majority of the country has not bought into Trumpism. People in Michigan (Pro Hamas) who don't like what Israel is doing are voting for green party Jill Stein. She's pro Putin, pro terrorist orgs & as bad as Trump. I hope they don't throw the election to Trump.
And if you ask them what any of these words mean they won’t have a clue, “authoritarian, oligarchy, theocracy & fascism” If you tell them this is what Donald is they will gladly agree they are.
When I read this I had the thought again, why are women in the Republican party allowing themselves to be subsumed by misogyny? What is wrong with them? There is definitely something wrong with them.
The Republicans don’t want Americans to read. They want to get rid of the Department of Education. They want all of us to be stupid and uneducated so they can control us. It’s odd how the Republican leaders mostly have Ivy League educations when so many of them sneer at higher education and call it elitist and snobbish.
Thank you Mary you very much hit the nail on the head again! Although both Joy Reid and Lawrence ODonnell covered this dementia episode well pointing out that if Biden or Harris did such a thing in a town hall they d be drummed out of running! So it’s spreading just not enough! Georgia judge s rulings on no hand counting ballots and no delays on reporting counts on time should help Harris as does massive turn out on early voting day start in Georgia. Feel hopeful first time in weeks!💕🇨🇦
Still is it curiously funny that the press isn't saying anything about the age related issues Trump is dealing with, and the fact that the REpubs decided they should once again run him. Do they fear Putin and want his sycophant in the White House? What is the game?
Don't think this is simply people not reading enough. Very educated people--in business, predominantly--choose Trump because they believe he has their back. They are not very smart. Look at his record in business. When he has no money left, which will happen because he can't run anything, he will be broke again, and drifting off poor Americans. I am so disappointed in the business class. Yes, CNBC, I'm talking to you!!
No, he was not. And I bet he’s never had a library card. Note that he seems to have zero plans for a presidential library. My guess is he can’t sift through the lies to even choose what would be there
We didn't want him to have them last time. Now he's not only much worse but he will be surrounded by sycophants who won't do anything but yes him to death if the worst happens and he wins.
If he gets bad enough, his friends and comrades like Stephen Miller, Steve Bannon, and others will step in and run the White House without us knowing. That will be a real coup indeed, the inmates running the asylum.
I wouldn't be surprised if the plan is to 25th Amendment him on Day One and put his VP in charge. That's why Vance was chosen, he's a much more competent and reliable Fascist toady.
With all these dingy attempts by Right Wing Followers on his life, their plans to sideline him might be more ominous. It would be convenient to do so and unleash a purge on Democrats. We need to keep him very safe and under investigation and exposed for all his criminal actions.
Their fear of the Trump/Project 2025 repercussions is far more at play than money at this point. Just look at how this has played out in Hungary. Or even Russia for that matter. Journalists disappear, famous ones. Rachel Maddow would have to broadcast from Canada. Or the North Pole. But of course we might never even see her show anymore. The Internet would be scrubbed, like in China.
The MSM should realize that they are goners under Trump no matter what, so why not go balls out and take the motherfucker down so that he LOSES. There comes a time to TAKE A STAND. I know. I did it in my own corner of the world and it scared me shitless.
In these moments, you have to ask...if I'm going to go down, which course of action will allow me to sleep at night once this is all over? Will I be happy I tried and lost, or will I be ashamed that I kept my mouth shut and then lost my job anyway?
I opted for the former, and guess what? I won. I didn't see it at the time that my win was inevitable, hence my terror, but that's how wins often work. And that's how it would work for the MSM IF THEY WOULD ONLY DO THEIR JOB.
It’s really alarming and WHAT drug have they given him and how?? He’s been paranoid about poison in food for years / decades! Why he loves McDonalds so much too ; harder to tamper with; & with his 3 Ivana kids who wouldn’t be worried! (Tiffany seems much like her Mom , Marla, stays out of things; Baron raised pretty much solo by Melania —not a kind person, & bought & paid for; but she loves her kid; can see him shrink inward when Dad s near him. )Pathetic human beings the lot of them , really. Only Fred jrs kids turned out sane and decent to others it seems. But to allow a dementia patient to run for the office (let alone a felon) is insane. It needs to be stopped cold and this video needs to be all over the Internet. If major media don’t carry it , then by pass to all major substacks , on all sides , so it’s where people can see for themselves —-he s just gone! Biden s normal aging and slight stutter hesitations are nothing! Yet he was driven out due to bad cold , cold medicine night of debate. Look at DonOld now compared to June! 4.5 mos; he ll be completely ga ga by January at this rate ! Then what? He has to be defeated. If not America s done as the world knows it.
I hope Barron's going to be OK. He's young enough that he could still get away from all this. I know Mary wouldn't say anything publicly one way or the other, sometimes I wonder if he's reached out to her. The idea that he could fall down the rabbit hole of codependence with his dad that his siblings did is just sad.
Beyond disturbing. Wish we knew if it’s true (but - as they say - believe the survivors). I’ve always wondered if DJT was ever inappropriate with his oldest daughter. The energy from him toward her is absolutely sickening, waaaaay beyond appropriate father/daughter stuff.
The Tragedy is that if DJT completely de-compensates, DJT will still get at least 50,000,000 Votes... I would postulate that at least 90% of his base doesn't care... They are unreachable...
Of course you are right. I read something interesting this week as to why they stay with him despite all we have already described: they want community. They yearn to be with like minded people as we all do. My thought is that TFG opened a door that allowed all of the horrid prejudices to be validated and made it ok to voice them out loud. Voilà, their community was formed! That makes perfect sense to me.
Dianne, that's the first explanation that makes any sense to me. I've not been able to figure out what bonds Donald's base to him ... but you've hit the nail on the head i think. (can you recall where you read that article? I'd like to access it.) They are finally free to share their dark prejudices and petty hatreds out loud and experience instant community. They are having FUN --- unfortunately, at our expense and as well as their own. If only we could get them to realize Trump's return to power, would make life uglier and more painful for all but the very wealthy. Which means most of his base will suffer along with the rest of us!
Now that I think about it, it wasn’t something I read, rather it was a caller into the Smerkonish radio show on the Sirius POTUS station yesterday.
It’s a human need to belong and many of the MAGAs have been marginalized by society, so when their prejudices are verbalized by TFG, bingo, there is their leader and now they are the ‘in’ group
Many of his followers are social outcasts because of radical beliefs, involved in racist groups, have untreated mental health issues, or have become angry, delusioned & pulled themselves away from functioning healthy minded society. Some are Veterans from Viet Nam & Iraq/Afghanistan wars who are very angry at the government, some looking for comradere. Some are intelligent educated ppl who own businesses. Many very easily swayed & pushed into believing untruths, conspiracy theories & etc. Some of the homesteading communities are very religious, live by their intrinterpretation of the bible, prone to believing the government is out to get them & have gone completely off grid, have fallen into complete paranoia & suspicion of everything & anything. Their friends are other homesteaders. Trump is their perceived answer to all their problems and don't realize he IS the problem. He has allowed them to be their real person, voice grievances, racism, fascism & etc within the group & in return they give him their money, buy his junk, give him admiration, loyality, cheer for him & his crazy rants that he craves. But he wouldn't stop & help 1 of them if he passed them on the street & in need of help.
Just as soon as they don't make a dollar off of him, or the Vance Secret Police take them to their new concentration camp 'homes'. Whichever comes first.
I’m attaching a link from to an article in The New Republic. There is a link to both the podcast (32 min) and transcript of a journalist talking about the ‘situation’ (increasing instability, not making ANY sense, etc). It’s an interesting discussion and one of the thoughts floated is how Harris was very clever to show a clip of the orange menace’s rambling, incoherence et al at her rally bc the MSM covers her rallies and thereby WILL defacto cover the insanity she exposures. Sure hope they’re right & it’s not too little, too late.
I don't think he has near the power that many people replying here think he has. He's like the Wicked Witch of the West. Once he gets a little water thrown on him (loses the election), his 'flying monkeys' will rejoice and abandon him like they did the witch in The Wizard of Oz...and he will be powerless.
Of course they will abandon him when he loses the election! He is nothing but a useful idiot who will do what the puppeteers ask. Recent live interviews have underscored his lack of understanding of nearly everything that a normal HS graduate knows. He will be dropped like a stone and be all by himself in his FloriDuh motel.
Decompensation..... a loss of ability to maintain normal or appropriate psychological defenses, sometimes resulting in depression, anxiety, or delusions.
Magot Cultists are locked into this Hitleresque hellscape..........the SSGestapo-Heritage is really pulling the orange puppet strings......Rod Serling coult make a full length Outer Limits movie-mini series from all this.
It is beyond infuriating how blatantly hypocritical the mainstream press has been on the issue of age and mental state between Biden and Trump. They're making it clear that, despite the FTFNYT's tepid endorsement of Harris, they actually WANT Trump back in office, because he's good for clicks...and for the bank accounts of the rich a-holes who run the major news sites and papers.
Despite that fact his narcissism & their greed will most likely crash the world economy.
How DO they plan to pay for the ginormous detainment & deportation program? And eliminating SS & Medicare? What- do they expect all of us disabled people are going to fill the jobs immigrants had?
And the giant sucking sound removing all the SS & Medicare money directly out of the economy to be hoarded by money addicts? Nobody seems to be talking about how ANY of this is going to work-and heritage foundation privatizing everything from education to infrastructure? What average person right now has the money to pay for that- much less after all non-billionaires are working for slave wages.
I'm sure they expect the elderly and disabled to off themselves, in the same way many elderly people "celebrated" their retirement back before Social Security existed. :(
I'm sure Dr. Trump is well aware of the fact that most of the mainstream media biggies are owned by billionaires who have invested interest in making sure that Donald Trump continues to secure their wealth. Naturally, they're gonna spin this abominable bullshit so that it looks and smells like roses.
No wife, no daughter around. They hide and let him deconstruct because they really don’t care. He gets his sycophants to prop him up like a clown that he is. Idiots ..
I think Mary wrote in her book that the family propped up Fred Trump when he had dementia even taking him to his office so he could "work" even though he was out of it.
Yeah, but when Dumpy totally decompensates, we're going to get Justa Dick and Project 2025. I think that would actually be worse, as difficult as that is to believe.
People with untreated mental health issues coupled with self medicating are exhausting & tend to "use up" anyone around them, usually family until they simply can't take it & deal with it any more. Ask any family anywhere who has delt with it over years & they will tell you the same. I think that's where Ivanka & Melania are with him. I'm not fan of Ivanka or Melania but it wouldn't surprise me if he was verbally abusing them, Barron too & possibly attempted or did physically hurt Melania. January 6th was it for Ivanka, she was horrified her father caused & didn't try to stop the attack on the Capitol. His dementia is advancing & he was clearly sundowning at the PA town hall. A complete disaster as was the interview at Chicago Economic Club on Monday. He couldn't track, answer questions, finish a sentence & called it "The Weave". No, not the weave, its lifelong, untreated mental health issues & Alzheimers Dementia! He's unfit, the media needs to hit the gas pedal & sound the alarm!! People are already voting.
I think it's more like they want him to win. The corporate overlords who are dictating this insane policy will then just leave the country and go back where they came from - ironic isn't it?
They turned up the music to drown out the stinking farts and to sounds of vonshitzenpants Depends filling with jetsreams of fastfood brownish goo and slop!!!
They actually looked embarrassed, even trying to end the whole thing at one point. No one around him will ever take control. Its like parents who are unable to control a child.
She is by far the worst psychopath I've read about recently—certainly the most brazen. If she really wanted to get rid of her (innocent) dog, an ad in the local paper would have been sufficient.
Another Trumpian lie...the heat was not a factor......People passed out from the toxic stinik of hair spray, diye....,KFC breath.. soiled underwaear...an overllowing dripping depends,. crusty soaks......all radiating from the bloated body of Donable Lector.
I just checked to see if the temps were high, and they were according to Newsweek. Temps around 91ºF with high humidity and not much if any shade available. I'm sure the stench was enough to get some people, but there were temperature problems.
His sidekick,Kristi Noem certainly kept her distance...........she probably went home and killed another animal after that........looks so much like Kimberly Guilfoyle....weird.
No Ms. Anderson "The media" are not "scared of a demented 78 y/o diaper wearing, orange covered narcissist!" The mass media in America essentially agree with the power brokers in the GOP who want Fascism. The first, the fundamental, essential component to understand about Fascism is that it combines the two structures of power in modern society into one body. There are two sources of power in society:1) the economy 2) the government.
1) The business community holds power over the 99% of us who sell our labor for a wage. The threatened withdrawal, or actual withdrawal of wages is the source of their power over us. Power is the ability to force people to do certain things and refrain from other things. It is the ability to control the behavior of others, even against their own will. This is the power of the business community, and it is massive, monopolistic, concentrated mostly in the hands of a small percentage of people.
2)The government is the other source of power. Its ability to control us comes from physical force. Mao Tse Tung said it best: "Power comes through the barrel of a gun." Who would have known better than he? So far in world history he was the most powerful human being on the planet. And he had no fear or hesitation in using power.
A Fascist system is one that combines the business community with the government. The two sources of power combine into one centralized social structure. Once this combination is achieved, the bureaucrats in control of the system can literally do as they please to the rest of us.
Now let's be honest about what has been going on in America since Eisenhower warned us during his 1961 farewell speech: "In the counsels of government we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex."
The fact is: we have been on the road toward Fascism since Harry Truman made war on Korea without Congress declaring war, as is required by our constitution. Trump has not begun this drift. Truman started it. He called the war in Korea a "police action." Our government has been repeating Truman's behavior often, and getting away with it since then. Congress has done nothing to stop the White House and military, and this has made the armaments industry wealthy and powerful. This is exactly what Eisenhower was worried about. Look what Biden
and the Military have been doing with our tax dollars in Gaza and Ukraine.
The Mass Media are part of this military industrial complex. The mass media companies are huge business organizations. We now have what more accurately might be called the Military-Industrial-Entertainment-Complex.
I expect nothing different when Kamala Harris becomes President. She is admittedly the lesser of two evils; as she is not demented and filled with hatred as Trump is.
The Trump Humper's 2025 program is only an accelerated version of the path we have already been on since 1950.
I think what is probably behind all this is the potential that he could, maybe, possibly win the election and what was once the GOP will be able to implement Project 2025 by hanging with him until he is inaugurated and then using the 25th Amendment to install JD Vance. Vance has made it abundantly clear that he will say and do ANYTHING to gain power. 🤬
I seriously doubt he's going to make it to Inauguration Day. MAGA is just hoping he makes it through Election Day so they can install Vance when he croaks.
I don’t think he’ll croak that soon. He’ll just get more and more demented. They will put him in a secret memory care facility once they Amendment 25 him.
I think Melania is done being anywhere near him. Her body language when with him in public when he was potus was highly telling. As his dementia & mental health issues worstens he is likely becoming more verbally & physically abusive to her & likely Barron too. Ivanka keeps her distance after Jan 6th, I think she took a lot of it for years & decided she was done too.
I don’t think anyone at heritage or in the 1% has really thought thru what P2025 is going to do to the world economy. It feels like a “be careful what you wish for” kind of thing coming to me.
No Mr. Monsees, the 5th estate has not been doing dishonest journalism. It has been doing the most effective journalism one could imagine. It is advocacy journalism. Which is nothing new in America. Please see my response to Ms. Anderson above.
They're overcorrecting for the way they treated Biden, IMO that's at least part of it. There's a huge difference between a dementing Fascist wanna-be dictator and an elderly public servant with a cold, though. Something needs to be done to rescue our free press from the hands of the authoritarians running it into the ground.
I feel they are a) more afraid of Trump b) they actually agree with republicans more than Dems when it comes down to donor money. The media never hold republicans accountable they way they should be. Unfortunately. 😒
It's the billionaire owners of the stations & news papers who are controlling what is reported. Most of them are Trump supporters who want his huge tax breaks. If they are nice to him maybe he won't shut them down like Putin did in Russia 2 years ago & left only state run media.
The media went nuts about Biden when he was sick & still did that debate. They wanted him gone & successfully succeeded. Trump is glaringly not mentally or physically fit to hold any office but most media has been ignoring it. After Monday at PA town hall & Chicago Economic Club interview disasters the print media finally printed articles about his declining mentation & obvious dementia & sundowning. It's far past time they did, I hope it's not too late. The billionaire media company owners want the huge tax breaks & if elected Trump will give them & by not reporting the truth about his mental decline, fascist plans & P-2025 would keep them in business. They saw what Putin did to independent media & know Trump would do it to them too. We better hope VP Harris is elected because the alternative turns the USA into a authoritarian, oligarchy, theocracy combined to form a fascist hellscape & economic disaster ran by ppl with no conscious & dont care about anyone but themselves. No one including his ignorant followers should ever want. If people don't think the Constitution would be burned to the ground had better think again. Now Trumps calling himself "The father of IVF. Good grief, what's he going to proclaimed next? He's spiraling deeper down the rabbit hole by the day & ppl better pay attention.
Yesterday, your uncle was in a very Weird Space,even for him. That was a good day for him, because today, he's worse.His interview today on his Economic Policy,was a Total Disaster. He almost got Confrontational?! Tomorrow will be even more worse, and on, and on. We can only look on in Horror as we're looking for Someone from his team to get him help or ?! What the hell are we All supposed to do here? All I know, Mary, is Thank Goodness we've got You, keeping us Sane. Blessings to you and will reStack ASAP 💯👍🇺🇸💙🌊🌊🌊
Yea.......watiting for the artists to start suing the MagotMess for using their music at the Vonshitzenpantz DiaperDance party. Best dancer wins a years supply of Depends.
They want him, for whatever reason, they want him. Money? Power? Fear of something? Who knows? But it is crystal clear that this is deliberate and meant to support a second Trump presidency.
This “town hall” was truly pathetic. The interview he did Tuesday with John Micklethwait of Bloomberg was worse. Based on the summary in Rolling Stone, the depth of his stupidity, and the complete inability to focus enough to give a coherent answer to questions, should lead every newscast in every outlet in America. Micklethwait has provided the template for journalists everywhere. I hope it’s not too late.
When will the MSM make a big deal about this moron as he slides into ridiculousness? Is this someone we want with the nuclear codes?
Ironically, they, the mainstream media will be in his sights if he ever gets the gig. Then they will not be able to highlight any negatives for fear of the repercussions that would undoubtedly flow.
I honestly don't understand the grip he and/or the maga gop have over the media.
The media fear him and sanewash him, lest he win and throw them in prison for the "crime" of criticizing him.
Linda, it seems the media don't consider that if they were to print and broadcast the actual truth, Trump wouldn't be elected and they wouldn't have to worry about what Trump would do to them. The media's thinking is really skewed and is teaching us that they are not the trustworthy sources of truth they would like us to believe they are.
The media do know, however, that if trump loses, a lot of "news" gets lost with him. They don't print the truth about him today because tomorrow they want to be able to talk about the chaos he is causing in the world. This is the dangerous game they are playing.
Plus let's not forget about "profits". The Horse Race Industrial Complex loves its oats.
And oats are cheaper after they've been through a horse.
I’m betting he’ll throw them in prison anyway. His personal Revenge Tour 2025, ya know.
Exactly my thoughts. It won’t matter what the issue is (size of his inaugural crowd?) he will pick a fight with them to bring them into line as soon as he is elected. A few untraceable death threats to editors should do it nicely.
I think they, the "media" are like deer staring at the headlights, completely comatose
Exactly! They have no idea of how to deal with him so they cater to him. They are afraid of his threats and never challenge his labeling of “fake news”.
They know better than this. They know exactly what they're doing. They love the drama he creates. AFTER they help get him elected then they will play pretend that they are pushing back and that they "care" This is precisely what they did in 2015/16.
They will not get him elected this time either, so do not put those words into the etherstream. Rather , HELP DO THE HARD WORK LEADING TO A HARRIS / WALTZ VICTORY; SO LARGE THAT EVEN SCOTUS WON'T BE ABLE TO DISPUTE, VILIFY OR GIVE IT TO THE 🍊 🤮
500 ELECTORAL VOTES CAN'T BE " HANGING CHADDED " AWAY.
# NOTGOINGBACK
RuthF, it's like the whole country is involved in some horrible reality show and I absolutely hate reality shows!
That's the key: the drama Trump presents for them to get OMG ratings by.
he'll shut them down anyway, one way or another....
gumming up the supply chain, siccing the IRS on their businesses,
preventing cooperatives or mergers to stay afloat, etc....
Mary what would we do without you! This is what early 20th century and pioneering journalist, Walter Lippmann, called the “manufacture of consent”. Alex Carey, and more recently, Edward Herman and Noam Chomsky wrote the primer on it. Any politics journalist, worth their weight in salt, would’ve read this book. Currently, Tim Snyder describes this phenomenon of journalistic self-censorship in his work on authoritarianism. A couple year ago he even published a graphic-nonfiction version of his work for the many of us whose attention spans are overstretched.
This is sick.
It doesn’t make any sense because a lot of these media people will be out of a job and the ones that are holding him accountable will be rounded up by trumps national guard and military and taken to the brink! I mean you say, “ oh that could never happen!” But it can! We’ve just never experienced it! It happens all the time in other dictator led countries! So it’s possible. At best if he’s elected we’ll become fearful of speaking out, of protesting, and standing up for our rights!! People will become paranoid that maybe if they say the wrong thing, love the wrong person, seek healthcare that is deemed inappropriate that someone….the neighbor, family member, friend might squeal and then what might result? A visit from the police? Let’s not forget that our democracy is hanging on by a thread and it can be taken away! Trump and his minions in the court and the legislation have already started the wheels in motion to disqualify this election. It won’t go peacefully in many places! His supporters and many of these evangelical militia groups have been forming to try and take this country! They honestly believe that they will have to fight to “take back their country!” It’s downright scary and all I can say is I hope the people who are in power now have a plan to combat this. And I hope it doesn’t involve combat!
Well it's not the reporters it's the people who own the media, they will fire them.
I have come to the conclusion that it’s a type of mass poisoning. Like that French village where the town bakery’s bread was contaminated with mold/ergot. A huge portion of the village flipped out, having eaten the equivalent of LSD. Happened in the early 1950’s.
Trump is the poisoner; the media and his followers are the victims. The poison runs deep, and has dangerously impacted practically every aspect of society.
Staggering.
I've often thought that this is evidence that the Invasion of the Body Snatchers was not sci-fi, but that has happened right now in our times.
Have never forgotten this movie since first seeing it in the 50's as a child.
Seemed to be a greater message about society as a whole and the potential
of the pod people among us. Have had an original B/W poster on my wall for many years - truer now than ever?
I worry about bodies flying out of windows if he gets elected.
St Vitus Dance is alive & well
very good!
Yet it only affects the absolutely most stupid people in the country, apparantly... you'd think that they would have at least one adult at work in places like NYT and such. It's horrible yo witness American history live at this point..
Indeed, it's official: We have now entered The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits. They control the horizontal....they control the vertical....they control the sound and the color. Reality is behind us in the universe we have now vacated.
The media's fear of repercussions is alive and well right now, not a future possibility.
That's a very good point that I hadn't considered. I read of FEMA staffers being pulled from their work due to armed militias, that, assuming it's accurate, is beyond stupid or abhorrent, (no word immediately comes to mind). So yes I could see that perhaps there's a real level of 'careful treading' when reporting on Mr trump's behaviours. I had presumed that since 1938 and Orson Welles' radio acting of The War of the Worlds, people weren't so gullible to works of clear fiction, i.e., Mr trump. (he deserves no capitalisations imo).
It s corporate CEO greed they want trillions more in tax cuts. They know exactly what they re doing!
hmmmm.... the media wants tax cuts?
$$$$$. Control over the media.
Yes. Reporters should tell Trump he is lying to his face, when he is lying.
Yes, if the main stream media want to continue to report news, no matter who wins the election, they sure as heck better do it now. Freedom of speech is going to go away if twump is elected. Sure enough.
And that is what is really scaring me!
All the Founders of good repute saw this one coming long ago, as surely as did Lincoln, the Roosevelts, the Kennedys, MLK JR, and Malcolm X. Every second of their lives they were vilified by reactionaries like Donald and his crew who would commit every deadly sin to sow division among the people and to prey their base emotions for the gross personal benefit of the few. Apologies to Mary for my lay person's take on our society's grave ills. So, what about the Harris campaign spending everything they've got in the next three weeks to highlight Donald's deepening spiral into dementia and make sure it gets major airtime? Or are Musk and the other deep pockets just going to keep burying us all with a tsunami of lies until the fence sitters succumb?
Read a post today saying MSNBC delayed a documentary until after the election due to not wanting to offend him. I don't believe it. Checked Snopes- nothing. Can anyone confirm this was false? (Damn, I forget the source already.)
It wouldn't surprise me. A few years ago PBS had a documentary about the oil industry in production, it got pulled from the broadcast schedule because one of the Koch brothers was on the PBS governing board. That sort of thing is one of the reasons I think the Harris-Walz administration needs to increase the funding for PBS so that they don't have to depend on corporate sponsors any more. It's the only way we're going to have any media worthy of the First Amendment's free press protections.
PBS? Sorry but they are now infected by the bite of the right-wing Kamoda Dragon that is just watching the PBS agonizing death until time to devour it completely.
I saw it on MSNBC late last week that the documentary airing was pushed to after the election. Ticked me off.
The collective MSM- ABC, NBC, CBS, news papers are sane washing everything Trump. After the disastrous PA town hall & the Chicago Economy Club interview some of the newspapers finally started questioning his mental fitness. It's about damn time. MSNBC has been the only tv media sounding the alarm for months. The View has too.
He's already threatening the media today. I don't understand why CNN is kowtowing to him like this unless they're trying a kind of "reverse psychology" on us--making it seem like they're behind me so that WE get riled up and vote against him.
They were bought by Right Wing Extremists. The Media is a Monopoly. Congress ignored Monopolies forming in all areas of American Life and this is reinforced by a fanatical Religious Plan to take over the 7 Mountains of Civilization. The Media was one. Notice how fast they were to take out Twitter when people had a new way to communicate, share and organize. Substack is good but it doesn't have the reach yet.
I don’t either!! WTAF are we doing??)
The GOP and now Donald Trump have used fear as a tool to stir up his undereducated conservative base. I think it is that fear that they have created the leads to the racism and bigotry. As far as the misogyny, the GOP wants to be in control and they do NOT want women to lead. They stand for racism, misogyny and bigotry. It’s their prevailing message. Period.
On the other hand, Harris and Walz brought us optimism and hope. They've reminded Americans that together, we can do anything. There's no stopping us now!
I can't wait to celebrate Harris/Walz epic victory wearing this great "We the People means EVERYONE" shirt on November 5th 👇
https://libtees-2.creator-spring.com/listing/wtpmelb
I'll be celebrating in the streets like everyone else.
It's gonna be a glorious day!
We really need to stop calling them conservatives. They abandoned conservatism a long time ago. They're either Fascists or deluded lemmings in thrall to their chosen propaganda sources.
Bingo. There is nothing conservative about them.
Feral libertarians?
Great description
Exactly! They have been radical reactionaries for quite a while. Now they are clearly fascists. There is nothing conservative about them.
They are a combination of authoritarian, oligarchy, theocracy & fascism with a mob mentality. It's dangerous. Can only hope the majority of the country has not bought into Trumpism. People in Michigan (Pro Hamas) who don't like what Israel is doing are voting for green party Jill Stein. She's pro Putin, pro terrorist orgs & as bad as Trump. I hope they don't throw the election to Trump.
And if you ask them what any of these words mean they won’t have a clue, “authoritarian, oligarchy, theocracy & fascism” If you tell them this is what Donald is they will gladly agree they are.
Absolutely agree 👍
Would you please quit with the selling stuff?!
You don’t want a $100,000.00 Trump watch and some nice gold painted sneakers?
🙏
When I read this I had the thought again, why are women in the Republican party allowing themselves to be subsumed by misogyny? What is wrong with them? There is definitely something wrong with them.
I agree 100% 👍 VOTE BLUE ALL THE WAY 💙💦💙👍😉
a soothing color.. like the deep blue sea..
RED represents blood and agitation.
Was he competent enough to trust with anything more than a library card his first go round Dianne?
Library card?! Like he can read anything or has ever been intellectually curious about anything?
We all know he’s semi-illiterate…
What? You would trust him with library card? He’d go into a library and start burning books.
No. He was not competent enough. But he sold himself to the cult who believed his lies.
Half of our population just do not read enough.
The Republicans don’t want Americans to read. They want to get rid of the Department of Education. They want all of us to be stupid and uneducated so they can control us. It’s odd how the Republican leaders mostly have Ivy League educations when so many of them sneer at higher education and call it elitist and snobbish.
A country of serfs? Is that what they are banking on?
I think that originated with Poppy Bush, Yale grad.
Even if they did... Would they understand it?
Thank you Mary you very much hit the nail on the head again! Although both Joy Reid and Lawrence ODonnell covered this dementia episode well pointing out that if Biden or Harris did such a thing in a town hall they d be drummed out of running! So it’s spreading just not enough! Georgia judge s rulings on no hand counting ballots and no delays on reporting counts on time should help Harris as does massive turn out on early voting day start in Georgia. Feel hopeful first time in weeks!💕🇨🇦
Still is it curiously funny that the press isn't saying anything about the age related issues Trump is dealing with, and the fact that the REpubs decided they should once again run him. Do they fear Putin and want his sycophant in the White House? What is the game?
Don't think this is simply people not reading enough. Very educated people--in business, predominantly--choose Trump because they believe he has their back. They are not very smart. Look at his record in business. When he has no money left, which will happen because he can't run anything, he will be broke again, and drifting off poor Americans. I am so disappointed in the business class. Yes, CNBC, I'm talking to you!!
No, he was not. And I bet he’s never had a library card. Note that he seems to have zero plans for a presidential library. My guess is he can’t sift through the lies to even choose what would be there
My fantasy:
President Trump Library and Federal Prison at Gitmo.
Pushing a book cart in his orange prison overalls!
We didn't want him to have them last time. Now he's not only much worse but he will be surrounded by sycophants who won't do anything but yes him to death if the worst happens and he wins.
If he gets bad enough, his friends and comrades like Stephen Miller, Steve Bannon, and others will step in and run the White House without us knowing. That will be a real coup indeed, the inmates running the asylum.
I wouldn't be surprised if the plan is to 25th Amendment him on Day One and put his VP in charge. That's why Vance was chosen, he's a much more competent and reliable Fascist toady.
With all these dingy attempts by Right Wing Followers on his life, their plans to sideline him might be more ominous. It would be convenient to do so and unleash a purge on Democrats. We need to keep him very safe and under investigation and exposed for all his criminal actions.
I garauntee thats the plan...
I think they ran it once already.
Their fear of the Trump/Project 2025 repercussions is far more at play than money at this point. Just look at how this has played out in Hungary. Or even Russia for that matter. Journalists disappear, famous ones. Rachel Maddow would have to broadcast from Canada. Or the North Pole. But of course we might never even see her show anymore. The Internet would be scrubbed, like in China.
The MSM should realize that they are goners under Trump no matter what, so why not go balls out and take the motherfucker down so that he LOSES. There comes a time to TAKE A STAND. I know. I did it in my own corner of the world and it scared me shitless.
In these moments, you have to ask...if I'm going to go down, which course of action will allow me to sleep at night once this is all over? Will I be happy I tried and lost, or will I be ashamed that I kept my mouth shut and then lost my job anyway?
I opted for the former, and guess what? I won. I didn't see it at the time that my win was inevitable, hence my terror, but that's how wins often work. And that's how it would work for the MSM IF THEY WOULD ONLY DO THEIR JOB.
The time has come MSM... Take your stand. NOW.
I don't even want Sir coming anywhere near the Value Menu.
It’s really alarming and WHAT drug have they given him and how?? He’s been paranoid about poison in food for years / decades! Why he loves McDonalds so much too ; harder to tamper with; & with his 3 Ivana kids who wouldn’t be worried! (Tiffany seems much like her Mom , Marla, stays out of things; Baron raised pretty much solo by Melania —not a kind person, & bought & paid for; but she loves her kid; can see him shrink inward when Dad s near him. )Pathetic human beings the lot of them , really. Only Fred jrs kids turned out sane and decent to others it seems. But to allow a dementia patient to run for the office (let alone a felon) is insane. It needs to be stopped cold and this video needs to be all over the Internet. If major media don’t carry it , then by pass to all major substacks , on all sides , so it’s where people can see for themselves —-he s just gone! Biden s normal aging and slight stutter hesitations are nothing! Yet he was driven out due to bad cold , cold medicine night of debate. Look at DonOld now compared to June! 4.5 mos; he ll be completely ga ga by January at this rate ! Then what? He has to be defeated. If not America s done as the world knows it.
I hope Barron's going to be OK. He's young enough that he could still get away from all this. I know Mary wouldn't say anything publicly one way or the other, sometimes I wonder if he's reached out to her. The idea that he could fall down the rabbit hole of codependence with his dad that his siblings did is just sad.
Another scary thought for you....https://perezhilton.com/donald-trump-accusation-raped-13-year-old-girl-jeffrey-epstein-lawsuit-katie-johnson
Beyond disturbing. Wish we knew if it’s true (but - as they say - believe the survivors). I’ve always wondered if DJT was ever inappropriate with his oldest daughter. The energy from him toward her is absolutely sickening, waaaaay beyond appropriate father/daughter stuff.
Donald Chernobyl is near the complete meltdown, given nonperformances in recent town hall meetings, finally.
The Tragedy is that if DJT completely de-compensates, DJT will still get at least 50,000,000 Votes... I would postulate that at least 90% of his base doesn't care... They are unreachable...
Of course you are right. I read something interesting this week as to why they stay with him despite all we have already described: they want community. They yearn to be with like minded people as we all do. My thought is that TFG opened a door that allowed all of the horrid prejudices to be validated and made it ok to voice them out loud. Voilà, their community was formed! That makes perfect sense to me.
Dianne, that's the first explanation that makes any sense to me. I've not been able to figure out what bonds Donald's base to him ... but you've hit the nail on the head i think. (can you recall where you read that article? I'd like to access it.) They are finally free to share their dark prejudices and petty hatreds out loud and experience instant community. They are having FUN --- unfortunately, at our expense and as well as their own. If only we could get them to realize Trump's return to power, would make life uglier and more painful for all but the very wealthy. Which means most of his base will suffer along with the rest of us!
Now that I think about it, it wasn’t something I read, rather it was a caller into the Smerkonish radio show on the Sirius POTUS station yesterday.
It’s a human need to belong and many of the MAGAs have been marginalized by society, so when their prejudices are verbalized by TFG, bingo, there is their leader and now they are the ‘in’ group
Hello Dianne... Good Explanation... Same as the Membership of the Big Evangelical Churches... People are Social Animals... We Crave Community...
Exactly!!!
Many of his followers are social outcasts because of radical beliefs, involved in racist groups, have untreated mental health issues, or have become angry, delusioned & pulled themselves away from functioning healthy minded society. Some are Veterans from Viet Nam & Iraq/Afghanistan wars who are very angry at the government, some looking for comradere. Some are intelligent educated ppl who own businesses. Many very easily swayed & pushed into believing untruths, conspiracy theories & etc. Some of the homesteading communities are very religious, live by their intrinterpretation of the bible, prone to believing the government is out to get them & have gone completely off grid, have fallen into complete paranoia & suspicion of everything & anything. Their friends are other homesteaders. Trump is their perceived answer to all their problems and don't realize he IS the problem. He has allowed them to be their real person, voice grievances, racism, fascism & etc within the group & in return they give him their money, buy his junk, give him admiration, loyality, cheer for him & his crazy rants that he craves. But he wouldn't stop & help 1 of them if he passed them on the street & in need of help.
At this point, I just think: "GOOD!" I hate it that I feel this way, but there it is.
Many of them can barely read or understand what they are reading.
Mary thank you for continuing to tell the truth no one else does!
Just as soon as they don't make a dollar off of him, or the Vance Secret Police take them to their new concentration camp 'homes'. Whichever comes first.
I’m attaching a link from to an article in The New Republic. There is a link to both the podcast (32 min) and transcript of a journalist talking about the ‘situation’ (increasing instability, not making ANY sense, etc). It’s an interesting discussion and one of the thoughts floated is how Harris was very clever to show a clip of the orange menace’s rambling, incoherence et al at her rally bc the MSM covers her rallies and thereby WILL defacto cover the insanity she exposures. Sure hope they’re right & it’s not too little, too late.
https://apple.news/ATwDY-s0oTsOLb5Y3XjY9zQ
I don't think he has near the power that many people replying here think he has. He's like the Wicked Witch of the West. Once he gets a little water thrown on him (loses the election), his 'flying monkeys' will rejoice and abandon him like they did the witch in The Wizard of Oz...and he will be powerless.
Of course they will abandon him when he loses the election! He is nothing but a useful idiot who will do what the puppeteers ask. Recent live interviews have underscored his lack of understanding of nearly everything that a normal HS graduate knows. He will be dropped like a stone and be all by himself in his FloriDuh motel.
of course NOT!
not to mention decomposing …
I guess that's why he's been slathering on the bronzer even more thickly lately. Trying to cover up the visible rot.
rotting from the head, as they say
Some things not even an excellent Bondo job can conceal Alison!
Wonderful!! My laugh for the day, Patrick Daniels!
Death Becomes Her
i noticed that too! I thought it might be too much golf and a sunburn gone bad.
😃😃😃
I actually read the heading as DECOMPOSING Before Our Eyes!!!!!
Decompensation..... a loss of ability to maintain normal or appropriate psychological defenses, sometimes resulting in depression, anxiety, or delusions.
Magot Cultists are locked into this Hitleresque hellscape..........the SSGestapo-Heritage is really pulling the orange puppet strings......Rod Serling coult make a full length Outer Limits movie-mini series from all this.
Rod Sterling was the host of the Twilight Zone
Wow
he’s an actual zombie.
Actually, he's a vampire--he obviously can't see himself in the mirror, and he just REFUSES to die....
More accurate
It is beyond infuriating how blatantly hypocritical the mainstream press has been on the issue of age and mental state between Biden and Trump. They're making it clear that, despite the FTFNYT's tepid endorsement of Harris, they actually WANT Trump back in office, because he's good for clicks...and for the bank accounts of the rich a-holes who run the major news sites and papers.
Despite that fact his narcissism & their greed will most likely crash the world economy.
How DO they plan to pay for the ginormous detainment & deportation program? And eliminating SS & Medicare? What- do they expect all of us disabled people are going to fill the jobs immigrants had?
And the giant sucking sound removing all the SS & Medicare money directly out of the economy to be hoarded by money addicts? Nobody seems to be talking about how ANY of this is going to work-and heritage foundation privatizing everything from education to infrastructure? What average person right now has the money to pay for that- much less after all non-billionaires are working for slave wages.
Has anyone thought this through????
I'm sure they expect the elderly and disabled to off themselves, in the same way many elderly people "celebrated" their retirement back before Social Security existed. :(
Mexico will pay.
I'm sure Dr. Trump is well aware of the fact that most of the mainstream media biggies are owned by billionaires who have invested interest in making sure that Donald Trump continues to secure their wealth. Naturally, they're gonna spin this abominable bullshit so that it looks and smells like roses.
Exactly Linda!!
Thank God none of the roses I used to grow ever looked or smelled like trump…
No wife, no daughter around. They hide and let him deconstruct because they really don’t care. He gets his sycophants to prop him up like a clown that he is. Idiots ..
I think Mary wrote in her book that the family propped up Fred Trump when he had dementia even taking him to his office so he could "work" even though he was out of it.
Yeah, but when Dumpy totally decompensates, we're going to get Justa Dick and Project 2025. I think that would actually be worse, as difficult as that is to believe.
I'm sure that both of those women just hold their noses and make shopping their mission in life.
People with untreated mental health issues coupled with self medicating are exhausting & tend to "use up" anyone around them, usually family until they simply can't take it & deal with it any more. Ask any family anywhere who has delt with it over years & they will tell you the same. I think that's where Ivanka & Melania are with him. I'm not fan of Ivanka or Melania but it wouldn't surprise me if he was verbally abusing them, Barron too & possibly attempted or did physically hurt Melania. January 6th was it for Ivanka, she was horrified her father caused & didn't try to stop the attack on the Capitol. His dementia is advancing & he was clearly sundowning at the PA town hall. A complete disaster as was the interview at Chicago Economic Club on Monday. He couldn't track, answer questions, finish a sentence & called it "The Weave". No, not the weave, its lifelong, untreated mental health issues & Alzheimers Dementia! He's unfit, the media needs to hit the gas pedal & sound the alarm!! People are already voting.
The media is scared of a demented 78 y/o diaper wearing , orange 🍊 covered narcissist!!!
I think it's more like they want him to win. The corporate overlords who are dictating this insane policy will then just leave the country and go back where they came from - ironic isn't it?
I don’t think that’ll help. The slimy tentacles of Trump & heritage foundation will impact the entire world economy.
That’s probably why tons of people are on YouTube now begging Americans to vote Blue.
Just a thought…
They turned up the music to drown out the stinking farts and to sounds of vonshitzenpants Depends filling with jetsreams of fastfood brownish goo and slop!!!
Strange that the people around him on stage were smiling. Maybe Kristi Noem stayed around to smell her dog rotting?
They actually looked embarrassed, even trying to end the whole thing at one point. No one around him will ever take control. Its like parents who are unable to control a child.
Bingo! That's exactly what he is.
She is by far the worst psychopath I've read about recently—certainly the most brazen. If she really wanted to get rid of her (innocent) dog, an ad in the local paper would have been sufficient.
For normal people…
Another Trumpian lie...the heat was not a factor......People passed out from the toxic stinik of hair spray, diye....,KFC breath.. soiled underwaear...an overllowing dripping depends,. crusty soaks......all radiating from the bloated body of Donable Lector.
I just checked to see if the temps were high, and they were according to Newsweek. Temps around 91ºF with high humidity and not much if any shade available. I'm sure the stench was enough to get some people, but there were temperature problems.
His sidekick,Kristi Noem certainly kept her distance...........she probably went home and killed another animal after that........looks so much like Kimberly Guilfoyle....weird.
No Ms. Anderson "The media" are not "scared of a demented 78 y/o diaper wearing, orange covered narcissist!" The mass media in America essentially agree with the power brokers in the GOP who want Fascism. The first, the fundamental, essential component to understand about Fascism is that it combines the two structures of power in modern society into one body. There are two sources of power in society:1) the economy 2) the government.
1) The business community holds power over the 99% of us who sell our labor for a wage. The threatened withdrawal, or actual withdrawal of wages is the source of their power over us. Power is the ability to force people to do certain things and refrain from other things. It is the ability to control the behavior of others, even against their own will. This is the power of the business community, and it is massive, monopolistic, concentrated mostly in the hands of a small percentage of people.
2)The government is the other source of power. Its ability to control us comes from physical force. Mao Tse Tung said it best: "Power comes through the barrel of a gun." Who would have known better than he? So far in world history he was the most powerful human being on the planet. And he had no fear or hesitation in using power.
A Fascist system is one that combines the business community with the government. The two sources of power combine into one centralized social structure. Once this combination is achieved, the bureaucrats in control of the system can literally do as they please to the rest of us.
Now let's be honest about what has been going on in America since Eisenhower warned us during his 1961 farewell speech: "In the counsels of government we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex."
The fact is: we have been on the road toward Fascism since Harry Truman made war on Korea without Congress declaring war, as is required by our constitution. Trump has not begun this drift. Truman started it. He called the war in Korea a "police action." Our government has been repeating Truman's behavior often, and getting away with it since then. Congress has done nothing to stop the White House and military, and this has made the armaments industry wealthy and powerful. This is exactly what Eisenhower was worried about. Look what Biden
and the Military have been doing with our tax dollars in Gaza and Ukraine.
The Mass Media are part of this military industrial complex. The mass media companies are huge business organizations. We now have what more accurately might be called the Military-Industrial-Entertainment-Complex.
I expect nothing different when Kamala Harris becomes President. She is admittedly the lesser of two evils; as she is not demented and filled with hatred as Trump is.
The Trump Humper's 2025 program is only an accelerated version of the path we have already been on since 1950.
Pathetic!
I think what is probably behind all this is the potential that he could, maybe, possibly win the election and what was once the GOP will be able to implement Project 2025 by hanging with him until he is inaugurated and then using the 25th Amendment to install JD Vance. Vance has made it abundantly clear that he will say and do ANYTHING to gain power. 🤬
This is what I think! Trump is the front man. Vance would be the puppet controlled by a cabal of billionaires.
And let’s not forget Putin being one of the puppeteers.
Not only Putin!
Yes! Vance and the cabinet members will let him play President for a token amount of time and then it’s Amendment 25 time.
I seriously doubt he's going to make it to Inauguration Day. MAGA is just hoping he makes it through Election Day so they can install Vance when he croaks.
I don’t think he’ll croak that soon. He’ll just get more and more demented. They will put him in a secret memory care facility once they Amendment 25 him.
He’ll have his private memory care at Mar-a-Lago. His caring wife will tend to his every disgusting need. 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
I think Melania is done being anywhere near him. Her body language when with him in public when he was potus was highly telling. As his dementia & mental health issues worstens he is likely becoming more verbally & physically abusive to her & likely Barron too. Ivanka keeps her distance after Jan 6th, I think she took a lot of it for years & decided she was done too.
I don’t think anyone at heritage or in the 1% has really thought thru what P2025 is going to do to the world economy. It feels like a “be careful what you wish for” kind of thing coming to me.
😨 scary!
This is exactly what they have in mind I think. Use Trump to win and then use the 25th amendment to install Vance.
It has to be said: our 5th estate is failing the public by doing dishonest journalism!
No Mr. Monsees, the 5th estate has not been doing dishonest journalism. It has been doing the most effective journalism one could imagine. It is advocacy journalism. Which is nothing new in America. Please see my response to Ms. Anderson above.
Wow
That is inexcusable.
How could the media have the nerve to call that a detour?
That’s a disgrace 😤
Yes. Serious cognitive disorder happening.
I’m beyond pissed the media isn’t dealing with this the way they should, as they did with Biden.
They're overcorrecting for the way they treated Biden, IMO that's at least part of it. There's a huge difference between a dementing Fascist wanna-be dictator and an elderly public servant with a cold, though. Something needs to be done to rescue our free press from the hands of the authoritarians running it into the ground.
Yeah maybe
I feel they are a) more afraid of Trump b) they actually agree with republicans more than Dems when it comes down to donor money. The media never hold republicans accountable they way they should be. Unfortunately. 😒
It's the billionaire owners of the stations & news papers who are controlling what is reported. Most of them are Trump supporters who want his huge tax breaks. If they are nice to him maybe he won't shut them down like Putin did in Russia 2 years ago & left only state run media.
Yep
The media went nuts about Biden when he was sick & still did that debate. They wanted him gone & successfully succeeded. Trump is glaringly not mentally or physically fit to hold any office but most media has been ignoring it. After Monday at PA town hall & Chicago Economic Club interview disasters the print media finally printed articles about his declining mentation & obvious dementia & sundowning. It's far past time they did, I hope it's not too late. The billionaire media company owners want the huge tax breaks & if elected Trump will give them & by not reporting the truth about his mental decline, fascist plans & P-2025 would keep them in business. They saw what Putin did to independent media & know Trump would do it to them too. We better hope VP Harris is elected because the alternative turns the USA into a authoritarian, oligarchy, theocracy combined to form a fascist hellscape & economic disaster ran by ppl with no conscious & dont care about anyone but themselves. No one including his ignorant followers should ever want. If people don't think the Constitution would be burned to the ground had better think again. Now Trumps calling himself "The father of IVF. Good grief, what's he going to proclaimed next? He's spiraling deeper down the rabbit hole by the day & ppl better pay attention.
Totally agree
Yesterday, your uncle was in a very Weird Space,even for him. That was a good day for him, because today, he's worse.His interview today on his Economic Policy,was a Total Disaster. He almost got Confrontational?! Tomorrow will be even more worse, and on, and on. We can only look on in Horror as we're looking for Someone from his team to get him help or ?! What the hell are we All supposed to do here? All I know, Mary, is Thank Goodness we've got You, keeping us Sane. Blessings to you and will reStack ASAP 💯👍🇺🇸💙🌊🌊🌊
Did you get your Car?! Love you much ✌️🥰
The whole thing is so pathetic. Mitch McConnell should be forced to watch this on a fucking loop, 24/7.
If Mitch had to watch he would probably have one of blank starring moments
I’ve thought Mitch’s freeze moments were him finally seeing what he wrought- sort of Christmas Carol ghosts style.
His staff has enough sense to pull him off the podium.
In hell.
Yea.......watiting for the artists to start suing the MagotMess for using their music at the Vonshitzenpantz DiaperDance party. Best dancer wins a years supply of Depends.
The legacy media is doing a hurricane on a daily basis of “sane washing” with Trump. That storm isn’t named Helene or Milton— it’s “DonOLD”
They want him, for whatever reason, they want him. Money? Power? Fear of something? Who knows? But it is crystal clear that this is deliberate and meant to support a second Trump presidency.
I think that once they have chosen him, they can't un-choose him because that would show that they had been wrong in the first place.
It's such a strongly perverted form of loyalty.
I am guessing people now working for the NYT did not expect to be embarrassed when telling people where they work.
This “town hall” was truly pathetic. The interview he did Tuesday with John Micklethwait of Bloomberg was worse. Based on the summary in Rolling Stone, the depth of his stupidity, and the complete inability to focus enough to give a coherent answer to questions, should lead every newscast in every outlet in America. Micklethwait has provided the template for journalists everywhere. I hope it’s not too late.
Andy Borowitz made it clear today that Sean Hannity has been the editor in chief of the NYT for four years. Explains why they have become such morons.
Absolutely true 👍
Isn’t Borowitz a satirist?