Why is Trump always held to a lower standard?

[All Along The Watchtower]

A complementary thread to Beet's, I guess.

Seriously, this man has been running for President for a full year now, yet it's only relatively recently that a significant portion of the mainstream media has "woken up" to how full of s**t he really is, and how utterly disastrous a Trump Presidency would be.  And all along, he has received the open and enthusiastic support of truly vile and dangerous elements of American society. These are people who never endorse major party candidates - unless they see a candidate like Trump, who "says the things that we've been saying all along" and "is making it mainstream to be a white nationalist." Could any other candidate get away with having the aforementioned crowd as being a significant and consistent part of their base?

Someone like this should never have made it this far. What the hell, America?!

[LLR]

Because

-The media loves his outrageousness

-He's famous

-He's developed this brand or persona so it's now what's to be expected

-It got people to vote for him, and whatever works works

[Fuzzy Bear]

Because

-The media loves his outrageousness

-He's famous

-He's developed this brand or persona so it's now what's to be expected

-It got people to vote for him, and whatever works works

He's not held to a lower standard, to the point where the media and public figures call him on what he says and proposes.

Trump wouldn't win the election if it were held today, and that's something he's brought on himself.  For some reason, he can't master expressing his positions without injecting shock value.  But his victories to date are because he filled a massive void in our politics; the void of no candidate advocating an America First agenda of (A) skepticism on free trade, (B) a reassessment of our entangling alliances and commitments, and (C) a willingness to enforce immigration laws already on the books.

The last point cries out for recognition.  Trump's immigration policy is NOT one of reform or changing the laws; it's about enforcing the laws we already have.  We become more like Mexico not by allowing more Mexicans to emigrate to the US, but by not enforcing laws on our books for political purposes.  The viability of the rule of law is a major difference between the US and Mexico, and one of the reasons we are a significantly more prosperous nation.

[SillyAmerican]

Because

-The media loves his outrageousness

-He's famous

-He's developed this brand or persona so it's now what's to be expected

-It got people to vote for him, and whatever works works

He's not held to a lower standard, to the point where the media and public figures call him on what he says and proposes.

Trump wouldn't win the election if it were held today, and that's something he's brought on himself.  For some reason, he can't master expressing his positions without injecting shock value.  But his victories to date are because he filled a massive void in our politics; the void of no candidate advocating an America First agenda of (A) skepticism on free trade, (B) a reassessment of our entangling alliances and commitments, and (C) a willingness to enforce immigration laws already on the books.

The last point cries out for recognition.  Trump's immigration policy is NOT one of reform or changing the laws; it's about enforcing the laws we already have.  We become more like Mexico not by allowing more Mexicans to emigrate to the US, but by not enforcing laws on our books for political purposes.  The viability of the rule of law is a major difference between the US and Mexico, and one of the reasons we are a significantly more prosperous nation.

Yes. Well stated. And as you indicate, a large portion of the Trump message does in fact resonate with a large portion of the American electorate. It's a shame that the messenger can't be trusted to make his case for these positions without slipping into what I describe as "reality tv mode". Then again, people like to blame the media for Trump's ability to dominate the news cycles, but that is simply another consequence of Trump being Trump. So a double edged sword, I suppose...

[Fuzzy Bear]

Because

-The media loves his outrageousness

-He's famous

-He's developed this brand or persona so it's now what's to be expected

-It got people to vote for him, and whatever works works

He's not held to a lower standard, to the point where the media and public figures call him on what he says and proposes.

Trump wouldn't win the election if it were held today, and that's something he's brought on himself.  For some reason, he can't master expressing his positions without injecting shock value.  But his victories to date are because he filled a massive void in our politics; the void of no candidate advocating an America First agenda of (A) skepticism on free trade, (B) a reassessment of our entangling alliances and commitments, and (C) a willingness to enforce immigration laws already on the books.

The last point cries out for recognition.  Trump's immigration policy is NOT one of reform or changing the laws; it's about enforcing the laws we already have.  We become more like Mexico not by allowing more Mexicans to emigrate to the US, but by not enforcing laws on our books for political purposes.  The viability of the rule of law is a major difference between the US and Mexico, and one of the reasons we are a significantly more prosperous nation.

Yes. Well stated. And as you indicate, a large portion of the Trump message does in fact resonate with a large portion of the American electorate. It's a shame that the messenger can't be trusted to make his case for these positions without slipping into what I describe as "reality tv mode". Then again, people like to blame the media for Trump's ability to dominate the news cycles, but that is simply another consequence of Trump being Trump. So a double edged sword, I suppose...

I would be less than honest if I didn't admit that the highlighted portion concerns me.

I would be actively working on Trump's campaign if he were a more "normal" person.  The "temperament" issue has gained legitimacy, and that's on Trump.

[Hermit For Peace]

The problem with Trump is that he will say anything about anything or anyone, but you can't believe anything he says.

Sure he suckered in that certain faction that seems to love him, but they are true suckers if they think that Trump intends to deliver on anything he says.

That's the sad part. They are believing in hype. So while Trump may have struck a chord with some disenchanted alienated citizens in America, it's just a show with him. Isn't it obvious by now? He's backtracked on just about everything he's said, or watered it down to appease the GOP powers that be.

He's a joke in the political arena. But he's a master of the media and of hype, I'll give him that.


And why is he held to a lower standard? Because he can get away with it, that's why.

[RaphaelDLG]

Great question.  I believe the answer is relatively simple:

1) Trump is ratings gold.  Cable news outlets desperately want him to come on their programs because they know that ratings will spike.  Therefore, in order to get access, they suck up to him and give him softball coverage.  It's a race to the bottom as each network tries to respond as un-outraged as possible to the outrageous things he says.

2) Back in the 90s, the conservatives aggressively promoted this myth of the "liberal media" to tremendous success.  Perhaps it used to be true that (journalists generally being urban liberals) the media was a little dismissive of cultural conservatives, but it was always soft on the powerful corporations that owned it (ESPECIALLY cable news).  Regardless, conservatives aggressively promoted this "liberal media liberal media" propaganda, which cowed journos, seeking the appearance of neutrality and the eyeballs of conservatives, to be permanently terrified to say anything remotely critical of conservatives, even in situations when they are clearly the objectively wrong side.  For instance:  After the Downing Street Memo, the truth of the Bush administration's either blatant lie or breathtaking incompetence in going to war with Iraq became "Democrats say this, Republican say that.  Who is right?  Tune in next week on Crossfire."

[ProudModerate2]

trump is gutter-trash.
And that is considered "lower," than the usual sidewalk we all travel.

[136or142]

Great question.  I believe the answer is relatively simple:



2) Back in the 90s, the conservatives aggressively promoted this myth of the "liberal media" to tremendous success.  Perhaps it used to be true that (journalists generally being urban liberals) the media was a little dismissive of cultural conservatives, but it was always soft on the powerful corporations that owned it (ESPECIALLY cable news).  Regardless, conservatives aggressively promoted this "liberal media liberal media" propaganda, which cowed journos, seeking the appearance of neutrality and the eyeballs of conservatives, to be permanently terrified to say anything remotely critical of conservatives, even in situations when they are clearly the objectively wrong side.  For instance:  After the Downing Street Memo, the truth of the Bush administration's either blatant lie or breathtaking incompetence in going to war with Iraq became "Democrats say this, Republican say that.  Who is right?  Tune in next week on Crossfire."

Absolutely correct.  The shorthand term for this is 'false equivalency.'