**** Elections thread *****

[BananaStand]

The notion that the media could do its job w/o holding politicians accountable for their every action is absurd.

Of course they could. Politicians are people too. And people are imperfect. If their flaws are exposed as part of a fair, open, and public election process.....and they still win, then that means that the consensus accepts those flaws. To continually call them out in mostly petty and irrelevant circumstances is NOT the media's job, and has nothing to do with accountability.

Bristling at the extent of the scrutiny is OK, but embracing hate toward the scrutinizers is another thing. They are, after all, members of a free press, which is deemed necessary to a well-informed public and thus to democracy.

Free, sure. But ethical? Independent? Impartial? Aren't those things also deemed necessary for the public to be well-informed? Do you really think we have that right now?

He's not an idiot. I think your analysis is oversimplifying the man.
...
but it could have been a simple mistake, with no forethought to it, so maybe you're right that this is a simple case.

Sometimes people are just people.

The reactions sound dumb.
Why are you watching dumb people get hysterical about stuff that is nothing to bat an eye at?
Your positions are not lame, and your true opponents are not the lame ones making a fuss on TV.
The bigger question is that since this line of reasoning is obviously childish, why are you spending so much mental energy on it?

If you're asking me to leave the forum, just say so. I enjoy robust debate. You make it sound like I'm on a mission here or something.

When those 'dumb' people comprise some 80% of the mainstream media, they have influence. That makes their dumb-ness dangerous.

If the press is incessantly lacing into Trump with reactions that you've agreed are "dumb", it IS something to bat an eye at. If Putin sees that Trump can't manage to get through the day without someone in prime time calling him a retard, then that weakens America's position.

That's the media's agenda here. They are actively seeking to undermine a president and create a narrative that says the vast majority of the public sees him as a punchline, even if that narrative is false. That's great if you're planning to hold signs for Elizabeth Warren in 2020. But if your job is affected by the value of the dollar, or America's interest in a trade treaty, or anything else within the Presdent's purview over the next four years......it's really really fucking bad.

So the fact that he's been elected is no long-term endorsement of his "style." Many self-identified republicans voted for Trump while actively disliking him / his style.

There's no law requiring a President to 'behave' a certain way. So his election is most definitely a 4-year endorsement of his style.