Trump and the State of the Union
President Donald Trump's war on the press, what he terms 'fake news,' intensified last week when he blocked several news organizations from joining a White House press briefing. CNN, the New York Times, and Politico were all blocked, while conservative outlets like Fox News and Breitbart were allowed in. The White House defended the action, saying that they invited the press pool and so everyone was represented. Trump took it a step further and said that he would not attend the White House Correspondents' Dinner.
All Presidents have an adversarial relationship with the press, it is the duty of the news media to speak truth to power and to dig into details of an administration that may be unpleasant and unflattering. But Donald Trump is taking this to an unheard of extreme in attacking the press as an 'enemy of the American people.' A free and independent press serves as an important check in our democracy, and here the most powerful man in our system is trying to call that check fundamentally illegitimate.
The President will address a joint session of Congress tonight, and has a bevy of items on his agenda to discuss. I would hope that the President can lay out a concrete agenda tonight that the Republican congress can unite behind. A major criticism of President Barack Obama was his use of executive orders, and President Trump himself has leaned heavily on the practice. I hope that the President can articular a vision this evening and lay out a roadmap for legislation, rather than continue to relitigate the campaign.
Thinking about what challenges lie ahead.
8 年You can hope, but I would not bet money on it. He is not likely to change his nature at this time in his life. But, it may be interesting to observe the realignment of both parties as they work to be relevant and to see if any truly bipartisan leadership will arise.