Friday night in Austin, TX, the Republican presidential nominee, Donald #Trump, fiercely criticized #TheAtlantic’s editor in chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, over a recent report about Trump’s troubling attitude toward the #military, which he believes should be loyal to him personally. As Goldberg reports, Trump said, “I need the kind of generals that #Hitler had,” which is both chilling & historically #illiterate.
#Tyranny #Autocracy #Authoritarianism #illiberalism
#democracy
theatlantic.com/politics/archi…
Trump Attacks The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg Over Hitler
The Republican nominee’s fixation on The Atlantic follows a dark pattern.David A. Graham (The Atlantic)
Nonilex
in reply to Nonilex • • •Nonilex
in reply to Nonilex • • •1st, some housekeeping: #Trump’s own former staffers have confirmed the “#SuckersAndLosers” reporting #OnTheRecord. The Atlantic is thriving both journalistically—it has won the magazine industry’s top award 3 years running—& as a business, attaining profitability this year w/ >1M subscribers. Nearly the only thing that Trump got right was Goldberg’s name. As in past instances, he emphasized the name in a way that reeked of #AntiSemitism.
#Tyranny #Autocracy #Authoritarianism
#democracy
Nonilex
in reply to Nonilex • • •#Trump likes to deny allegations of #AntiSemitism by pointing to his #Jewish family members, but he has a long history of #crude, stereotypical remarks about #Jews, & in this election he has repeatedly attacked #AmericanJews for not supporting him, saying they will be to blame if he loses.
#Tyranny #Autocracy #Authoritarianism #illiberalism
#democracy
Nonilex
in reply to Nonilex • • •#Trump is attacking the messenger here because he can’t really attack the message. He denies making the remarks, but a pile of other #evidence backs up the report. Goldberg’s recent story was closely followed by a NYT story in which #JohnKelly, a retired general who served as Trump’s chief of staff, described Trump’s obsession w/personal loyalty & desire to use the #military against domestic critics. 13 other fmr Trump-admin ofcls signed a letter backing these accounts up.
#Selfish #Fascist
Nonilex
in reply to Nonilex • • •“Trump used the terms #SuckersAndLosers to describe #soldiers who gave their lives in the defense of our country,” #JohnKelly recently told Goldberg. “There are many, many people who have heard him say these things.” Besides, #Trump has said himself that he wants to use the #military domestically, & he’s disrespected #FallenSoldiers by trying to use #ArlingtonNationalCemetery as a cheap campaign prop.
#Selfish #Fascist #Tyranny #Autocracy #Authoritarianism #illiberalism
#democracy
Nonilex
in reply to Nonilex • • •He’s also employed this kind of attempted bullying before. 4 years ago, #Trump denied Goldberg’s story about “#SuckersAndLosers,” but other reporters quickly duplicated the reporting, including Jennifer Griffin of #FoxNews. Trump quickly (though unsuccessfully) demanded that Fox fire her. Trump has also sporadically railed at Goldberg & #TheAtlantic since 2020.
#Selfish #Fascist #Tyranny #Autocracy #Authoritarianism #illiberalism
#democracy #FreePress
Nonilex
in reply to Nonilex • • •Although #Trump’s attacks on the #press are not new, they have escalated in recent weeks. Trump has said that #CBS should lose its broadcast license over a 60 Minutes interview w/VP #KamalaHarris, his Democratic opponent. He has pressured #FoxNews to stop airing ads that are critical of him. He has threatened #Google for showing negative stories about him. He has previously vowed to #jail #reporters.
#Fascist #Tyranny #Autocracy #Authoritarianism #illiberalism
#democracy #FreePress #journalism
Nonilex
in reply to Nonilex • • •The point here is not to plead for pity for the poor #press. Courageous reporting is courageous because it puts #journalists in conflict w/powerful people. Anyone who expects adulation all the time should go into a different business. (This also goes for any #media owner who might feel tempted to tone down criticism of #Trump [#Bezos].)
#Fascist #Tyranny #Autocracy #Authoritarianism #illiberalism
#democracy #FreePress #journalism
Nonilex
in reply to Nonilex • • •But voters need to understand why #Trump is attacking the #press, & where it will lead if he is reelected. The future of American #democracy is the key question of this #election. Trump has left an ample record showing that he is committed neither to the rule of #law nor to rule by the #people—after all, he tried to steal the last presidential election after he lost it.
#Fascist #Tyranny #Autocracy #Authoritarianism #illiberalism
#democracy #FreePress #journalism
Nonilex
in reply to Nonilex • • •But many Americans seem to have forgotten what #Trump’s presidency was like, or they simply don’t believe that he’ll do the things that he keeps saying, loudly & publicly, that he’ll do.
Stories like Goldberg’s are an impediment to Trump’s return to #power because they are vivid depictions of what Trump believes & how he acts. In a country w/a #FreePress, voters can hear these things. Americans should carefully listen to what Trump says & know what he has done—& they should have no illusions….
Richard Rathe
in reply to Nonilex • • •The Seth Meyers writers' "A Closer Look Back" Podcast is a great way to get reacquainted with the interval between 2016 and 2020! 👍
#SethMeyers #ACloserLookBack #Podcast #Vote #HarrisWalz2024