In terms of American voters, virtually nobody knows, or cares, who Howard Schultz is. He's never worked in politics, and he's done nothing in recent years to create any kind of base of awareness. Instead, he's a very rich man who has hired political aides and consultants, who have in turn booked him on television so he could talk about maybe wanting to be president someday.
For comparison, I have more Twitter followers than Schultz, and I have just as much public policy experience as he does. (Hint: none).
Schultz is clearly benefiting from our Davos-style political culture, where billionaires are automatically held up as symbols of what is right and just. And if a billionaire raises his hand and says he wants become president without facing any primary-season opponents, the media parts like the Red Sea and prepares a seat for him in front of an eager television host.
Schultz is also singing out of the same “both sides” hymnbook that the Washington press loves so much. He constantly stresses the idea that both Trump and Democrats have become dangerously out of step with mainstream America—that Democrats are just as radical as Trump, and that the two parties always represent mirror opposites of each other on the political spectrum. “Not only the fact that this president is not qualified to be the president, but the fact that both parties are consistently not doing what’s necessary on behalf of the American people and are engaged every single day in revenge politics," Schultz told 60 Minutes.
This is pure nonsense. Trump has ripped families apart at the border and housed children in cages, and Democrats have tried to stop him from doing that. Democrats are trying to contain a mad man in the Oval Office—period. End of discussion. There are no “both sides” nuances in play these days.
Schultz is simply advancing a fraudulent narrative, and the press is mostly letting him get away with it. Over and over, Schultz denounces today's "far left" Democratic Party, portraying it as a suddenly fringe operation that's no longer part of mainstream American politics. In truth, of course, Democrats just had their most successful midterm election cycle since Watergate, picking up 40 seats in the House. One could argue Democrats have rarely been more in sync with the voting public than they are today.
What's worse about the media's courteous free ride for Schultz this week is that the campaign press just did this during the 2016 campaign, when it concocted special media rules for a Republican supposed billionaire running for the White House. The media gorged on all things Trump during 2015 and 2016, with one news channel famously cutting away from candidate Hillary Clinton speaking during a debate in order to show Trump's empty podium.
Let's not do this again. This time around, let's make billionaires earn their media coverage.
Eric Boehlert is a veteran progressive writer and media analyst, formerly with Media Matters and Salon. He is the author of Lapdogs: How the Press Rolled Over for Bush and Bloggers on the Bus. You can follow him on Twitter @EricBoehlert.
This post was written and reported through our Daily Kos freelance program.
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