Donald just tanked his campaign in every swing state, but the media is virtually CELEBRATING him; Rachel Maddow shows us how we fight back against softball Donald coverage. Read to the end to see a shocking video religious extremists don’t want you to see.👇
By now, you probably know this about me: as I scan the headlines, I’m often disappointed in the media’s coverage of Donald. I will never forget the damage they did by normalizing him in 2016 and 2020.
But after the events of the last couple of days and the alarming implications for women’s reproductive freedom, I am not just disappointed — I’m furious — and I’m sure many of you feel the same way.
Today I’m going to focus my rage and call out the corporate media for this latest example of journalistic malpractice. By the end, you’ll see how together we can save democracy.
To the media: You continue to fail us on Donald and abortion
Just two days ago, Donald put out a statement pretending he had a newfound clarity on the abortion issue. After looking at polls that showed the unpopularity of the extreme anti-abortion measures in the swing states, Donald miraculously discovered that he no longer supports a national ban on abortion. (Just a month ago, however, Donald privately supported a 16-week national ban.)
Now he says the issue should be left to the states. Of course, the move backfired, spectacularly.
The bottom line? Punting the decision to the states is an invitation for more draconian abortion bans, and the media is largely ignoring it.
After Donald’s statement on abortion, we saw the most pathetic media coverage I have ever witnessed
Donald never deserves being given the benefit of the doubt. Instead of focusing on the fact that Donald has flip-flopped his position on abortion no fewer than 13 times, pundits and journalists failed to hold Donald’s feet to the fire.
Rachel Maddow agreed. On her show, she skewered the press:
“These headlines are exactly what Donald Trump wanted after delivering his remarks on abortion.”
Maddow explained exactly what the media got wrong
She explained that by punting the abortion issue to the states, Donald was really endorsing the anti-abortion measures that were likely to follow.
She then honed in on Donald’s lies about Democrats, something the rest of the media largely failed to do:
“Trump… falsely accused Democrats of executing children… Which has a nice QAnon flavor to it, in addition to being completely, completely false.”
Maddow then proposed her own headlines, based on the truth:
“Perhaps a more accurate headline about Trump’s remarks today might have been… ‘Donald Trump falsely accuses Democrats of executing children.’ Or, ‘Trump abandons previous criticism of strictest state abortion bans.’”
That’s not how it got covered today, which I’m sure Trump is delighted with,” she concluded.
Of course, the media also largely ignored how Arizona undermined Donald’s swing state hopes
Since the media is just too inept to get to the core truth of the issue (or perhaps they simply don’t want to), I’ll do it for them:
By deciding to resurrect an outdated 160-year-old law that bans almost all abortions except when the mother’s life is in danger, the court exposed how dangerous Donald’s position actually is — now draconian religous extremist courts are free to ban abortion when they come in power.
This tragic situation has handed an important and winnable issue to Democrats. Abortion rights groups are now scrambling to get a pro-choice measure on the 2024 ballot in Arizona, which will only serve to galvanize passionate Democrats.
And it gets worse for Republicans:
It’s starting to seem as if Donald can’t stop helping Democrats. Today he tried to stop the bleeding by claiming Arizona’s decision went too far. Unfortunately for Donald, he can’t run away from the fact that he appointed anti-abortion religious zealots to the Supreme Court on down. And the Arizona decision proves why it’s a bad decision to leave women’s reproductive freedom to the whims of retrograde state courts.
But will the media call Donald out for both saying the states should decide and then criticizing the state’s decision in the same breath? They will if we keep pressing them to.
Last but not least, the media is largely missing the worst of it all
1. A day before the Arizona Supreme Court instituted a near total abortion ban, anti-abortion extremists were seen praying in tongues on the state Senate floor.
Despite the fact that 61% of Americans say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, these are the people making our health-care decisions:
2. Donald says states should be able to punish doctors for providing abortion care. It’s not hyperbole. When asked during a campaign stop if doctors should face punishment for performing abortions, he deferred to state’s rights once again.
Here’s the thing: There is so much more than an election at stake. People will die –people are dying. The victims of rape and incest – including children – are being forced to give birth. If the media continues to get this wrong, we will lose everything we love and care about, including the democracy.
Pressuring the media to do the right thing is not only vital, it’s working
After Donald announced his flip-flop on abortion, one of the most outlandish headlines appeared in USA Today:
“‘The will of the people’: Trump opposes national abortion ban; says states should decide.”
The headline received wide-spread condemnation, including from the Biden campaign. Deputy Communications Director Brooke Goren reportedly slammed the paper on a press call and called the headline “particularly, egregiously false.”
Guess what happened after the pressure? USA Today changed the headline.
It now reads, “Donald Trump says states should decide abortion policy, avoids talk of a national ban.”
When the media gets it wrong, we must speak out.
Do you agree the media must stop hurting democracy?
From now until the election, I’m dedicated to pressuring the mainstream media to change the way it covers the most important election of our lifetimes – and the two candidates.
I’m committed to bringing you the stories the media misses, digging deep, and shining a light on the truth.
By upgrading your subscription, you are helping me get this critical information to a wider audience, including those who may not have the means to afford it.
I currently have 204,720 free subscribers. If just 5% became supporting subscribers for the price of a small coffee, I could reach even more voters with stories pivotal for the election but that would otherwise slip through the cracks. With YOUR help, we can fight to save democracy together. Will you join me?👇
Thank you to everybody who becomes a supporting subscriber. I can only do this because of YOUR help. – Mary
I can't finish the article. Stupid, stupid people think they can control a woman's body when they have no right to do so and it's wrong. It's her body to do with it as she so wishes just, like as man does with his when he decides to rape a woman. And the law does nothing. He then should have his penis removed but it isn't. Is it? He's just a bad boy and told to go on his way. I know I'm blathering on and on, but it's his body to do as he wishes to do with as he pleases so it should work the same with a woman as well and leave politics out of it all together, period! Work on getting guns off the streets first. That's what killing innocent people.
The media continues to choose profit over its mandate to inform. This leaves the public swinging in the breeze. Trumps allies know this and they are familiar with the pay window.