Yesterday (Thursday 11 May 2023), Anderson Cooper tried to defend CNN for platforming D. Trump’s “town hall” in New Hampshire on Wednesday. He said:
He [Donald Trump] hasn’t changed and he is running hard. You have every right to be outraged today and angry and never watch this network again. But do you think staying in your silo and only listening to people you agree with is going to make that person go away?
[From Anderson Cooper Suggests CNN Critics Get Out Of Their ‘Silo’ by Nikki McCann Ramirez in RollingStone]
Certainly, Cooper knows what a straw man is, and the idea that we are “staying in our silo” is straw. But even his premise that this won’t make the sex offender go away is wrong.
First, cutting off CNN has the practical implication that it gives me more time to work for Democratic candidates. That is, literally, the thing that will make “that person” go away.
Second, I’m not inclined to boost the ratings of a network that helps D. Trump get elected. The friend of my enemy is my enemy. To the degree that CNN platforms this traitor I’m not interested in seeing it.
I have a remote with a skip button. My policy is to press that skip button whenever I hear D. Trump’s voice or see his sorry visage. And if a network presents too much of him, I’m inclined to just switch channels.
I agree with commentators like Nicolle Wallace, who pilloried CNN for airing Donald’s dirty laundry to the country. It’s not like this was newsworthy. He literally presented (by all reports) exactly nothing we don’t know about him. He denies reality. He doesn’t think the U.S. should defend itself from authoritarian regimes that seek to destroy our democracy.
CNN knew that he would go on the air and present a string of lies, many of them defamatory, and certainly aimed to weaken the legitimate government. That makes CNN culpable for those lies.
Not that I expect E. Jean Carroll, or others harmed by this, to file further lawsuits. It isn’t their job to defend democracy.
That’s literally the job of CNN.
And other parts of the media protected under the First Amendment. They are supposed to be on our side.
And the job of the federal government. That’s why I suggested, in The Senate’s Role in the Fox Lies, that the Senate ought to hold hearings that result in a law that would start to hold these organizations accountable for lies that materially degrade our elections and the operation of government. I want a Senate committee hearing where the ask these kinds of questions:
- Why did the Fox News operation intentionally and maliciously lie about Dominion? More broadly, why did Fox News and other media companies lie about the outcome of the 2020 presidential election?
- Why did they continue to lie to and deceive the public about the election and election operations in the United States, as a whole, when they knew they were making false claims?
- What would be an effective penalty for this kind of crime, so that organizations would be less willing to deliberately present and promote substantial falsehoods to the American people about elections in the future?
This should result in a law tailored specifically to entities that present content to the public on a nationwide basis. The federal role is for interstate and international commerce. This should apply to organizations with that level of reach.
Now that CNN has joined Fox Fake News in promoting D. Trump, the Senate should drag in Chris Licht and see if he can shine some light on his thinking. Why is he putting a traitor on the air?
Make no mistake. D. Trump is a traitor, as I pointed out here, “Donald Trump is a traitor”.
D. Trump adheres to our enemies, giving them aid and comfort. Here are some examples:
- His stating he believes Russian intelligence over U.S. intelligence.
- His systematic denial Russia is specifically to blame for meddling in the 2016 elections.
- His calls for other countries, including Russia and China, to meddle in our elections.
- His invitation to Russian officials to meet in the Oval Office, likely compromising national security.
- His revelation of intelligence sources and methods, including those of our allies (specifically Israel) to the Russians.
- His cancelling joint exercises with South Korean military forces.
- His withdrawal of special forces from northern Syria.
The Constitution defines treason this way:
Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort.
Article III, Section 3.
Cooper argued that D. Trump has “sustained influence in Republican politics”. We are not calling for CNN to refrain from covering Republican politics or Republican politicians. But D. Trump occupies a special position of evil. He’s not just a common criminal, he’s a traitor to the country.
There are plenty of Republican politicians CNN could cover. I don’t like any of their politics, because, let’s be frank, they are Republicans. The Republican Party is not a legitimate political party. They don’t have the good of the country at heart.
But, for example, CNN could cover Asa Hutchinson. As near as I can tell he isn’t a criminal and he isn’t a traitor.
Or, they could cover Nikki Haley. She’s only a borderline traitor, insisting as Ambassador to the UN that other countries fall in line behind D. Trump’s horrific foreign policies—or else. Her performance at the UN disqualifies her to ever be POTUS, but she’s fair game for CNN to show, at those times when she isn’t causing damage to the country.
There’s Vivek Ramaswamy, for another example. Just another Republican with the same ugly views as other Republican candidates, but as far as I know not a traitor to the United States.
And if the Republican Party wanted a welcome mat in the media, the least they could do is reform. By reform I mean repent and form a new Republican Party dedicated to helping the country.
According to Wikipedia, “Repentance is reviewing one's actions and feeling contrition or regret for past wrongs, which is accompanied by commitment to and actual actions that show and prove a change for the better.”
For example, the Republican Party has lied to the public about climate change for two decades or so. Repentance would mean:
- Admitting to the public that they lied all these years, and that it was wrong to do so.
- They deeply regret doing this, because it was very bad for the nation.
- They are committed to helping the nation and the world address climate change.
- And they have a concrete plan to do so, one that is honest and credible in the eyes of experts, who have looked at it and agree it would make a material impact on stopping climate change.
And then they could go on to repent of their ways on a bunch of other issues, like racism, misogyny, and bigotry. They could take some economic initiative, like raising taxes on rich individuals and companies enough to eliminate the deficit, the one they created when they cut taxes for people who didn’t need it.
If the Republican Party didn’t want the public to look at them as a criminal organization, they could get their candidates to buy into democracy. They could stop gerrymandering districts. They could eliminate voter suppression laws. They could show that they had the good of the country at heart by supporting good old American democracy and the rule of law.
And then, they could start to do something about their abysmal record on human rights.
CNN could do a world of good by dragging a few key Republicans kicking and screaming before the cameras and asking them what their party is doing to reform.
In other words, CNN could take their First Amendment responsibilities seriously.
Not that I expect them to. But that’s the standard I’m holding them to.