http://bit.ly/2JpM7bR
In a recent press conference, Trump exhorted the media and the American population as a whole to focus on the positives of his administration in light of recent unpleasant news, arguing that everyone is "just focusing on the negative here". This was prompted by recent revelations about the impeachment inquiry, including that a judge had ordered records from the Mueller report unsealed in light of their potential relevance to the inquiry. Some have criticized Trump's recent remarks as "deflection," saying that his focus on the past as "a real hoot" is inappropriate given the circumstances. Trump has had a history of making untimely remarks, especially recently with his simultaneous denial of a "quid pro quo" with Ukraine while also implying he did the same with China. Whether this is a premonition of the end, characterized by his increasing disarray, or a sign of great confidence has yet to be determined.
Questions:
1. Are Trump's recent appeals to focus on "the good times" a sign of desperation? Are they appropriate right now?
2. Based on this recent press conference, where Trump reminisced about infamous incidents like his "covfefe" remark, do you think Trump is not taking the impeachment inquiry seriously enough?
3. Following from the above, is it appropriate that Trump considers the "covfefe" incident, as well as the taco bowl post and other events widely mocked in the mainstream media, highlights of his presidential career over topics more pertinent to foreign policy?
I don't think Trump's recent appeals are a sign of desperation for he's made remarks about being unfairly attacked all throughout his Presidency. And even if he truly was desperate, the last thing he would want to do is show it to the public. I personally suspect he's following Nixon tactics of staying silent, deflecting and lying until the last possible moment, which is obviously not appropriate, but then again Trump has never cared about being appropriate or politically correct. That also explains his focus on such incidents like the "covfefe" tweet rather than foreign policy: they may be distractions to bring attention away from more serious issues as his faithful following would never fault him on these "trivial" incidents.
ReplyDeleteTrump has in the past done well with disarray. In fact, that's one of his main appeals to his voter base. This "deflection" tactic isn't a premonition of the end because it isn't new. He's been doing this since he announced his candidacy.
ReplyDeleteHis focus on the "covfefe" incident, while obviously inappropriate and an indicator that he is, in fact, not taking the impeachment inquiry seriously, seems to also be an effective tactic. Many American voters who are tired of the secrecy and formality an "PCness" of government want a friendly reparte with an elected official, and Trump is giving them just that. He has picked the most endearing of his antics and used it as a shield to deflect criticism related to actual political issues.
Throughout Trump's presidency, he has been in a constant state of covering things up by promoting other topics. Trump's goal is to have the media and the nation at large talking about things that benefit him in some way. Major negative events and headlines are what he seeks to avoid, so now it is no surprise that he is attempting to do this again. It is inappropriate of Trump to ask people to disregard his questionable actions, no matter how many (or how few) good things he may have accomplished. The nation should not ignore Trump's flaws, but should also be paying attention to the bigger picture. Social scandals and PR incidents are only a small fraction of the issues with the Trump administration, and, as Andrew says, largely distracts from the point. We cannot allow Trump to continue distracting the nation successfully like this.
ReplyDeleteThis article acts as a scathing criticism of the Trump administration. Almost hyperbolically, Trump seems to suggest that some of his most embarrassing moments as president are "the good times." This is truly a sign of desperation. Only a joke of a president could honestly suggest that moments such as having a fast food banquet were a positive of his administration. It is astonishing to me that this is not a piece of satire, and instead a truly accurate analysis of Trump's blight upon the office of the president. The “classic Trump” he refers to is not in fact a quality president, and I do not understand how the American public could react positively to his absurd claims. I thank these reporters for reporting truthfully on his words and not allowing these horrific claims to go unreported.
ReplyDeleteThroughout Trump's campaign he has been trying to convince people he can turn back the clocks, stealing Reagan's slogan "Make America Great Again", appealing to people's nostalgia. There is never a lack of content in the Trump Administration. He is always saying or doing something stupid the media always talks about, and while I do agree he should be held accountable, it becomes ridiculous when everything on cable news has to do with him. Perhaps he is missing the earlier stages of his presidency because he had fewer scandals. There is enough evidence for him to be impeached, I believe we should stop reporting on stupid things he is saying and more forward with the impeachment inquiry.
ReplyDeleteTrump’s entire presidency has been marked by chaos and controversy, so what’s been occurring recently isn’t anything new. While it wouldn’t hurt to encourage people to focus on the positives of his presidency during a time of deep division and hostile partisan relationships in government, it seems like Trump did say those things out of concern about the investigation on his actions. Although Trump doesn’t seem to fear being impeached or having his presidency tainted from the Ukraine scandal, he isn’t exactly embracing the controversy that he’s involved in either. Hoping to keep the controversy within the federal government and avoid sparking public outrage, Trump repeatedly denies accusations and requests the media to ease up on the negative press, reflecting his strategy to distract Americans from the seriousness and severity of the investigation.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think Trump’s focus on “the good times” is a sign of desperation, necessarily. I think, more than anything, he’s trying to show that his administration has still accomplished many of the things they planned on. Whether that legislation has had a positive impact or not is debatable, but his argument is that they’ve accomplished a lot in the they’ve been in office. I think the media likes to focus attention on all the negatives of an administration, and especially what it is lacking. For Trump, his campaign was centered around gaining as much publicity and attention as possible, as highlighted by the film we watched in class. For this reason, his extremely bold comments were cause for people to attack him. I think the media is trying to find reasons to attack him, and this is just another example of the negative attention they are centering in on.
ReplyDeleteThroughout President Trump's term, many acts of disarray and instability have prefaced in the eyes of government officials and society as a whole. Although I am not surprised by his remark that people need to stop focusing on the negative things occurring today, it is nevertheless the job of people to critic the wrongdoings of the government because of the fear that it may lead to corruption. However, Trump’s remark is effectively valueless because it is inevitable that people within society will continue to hold differing believes that may be represented through the policies passed and issues addressed within the government. It is crucial that Trump omits the use of narrow-minded language because he is essentially trying to convince people to not look at the negative side of things when one cannot stop people from focusing on things they believe are faults within the actions of the federal government.
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