A "Trumped-Up" End Game

By now, Americans are numb to political bombshells. On a daily basis, there will be a new scandal, unsubstantiated accusation, protest, or controversial executive order filling up the news cycle. These stories are usually short lived, as media outlets struggle to keep up with "breaking news" from Washington. It seems Trump is using Twitter as a weapon of distraction, causing us to shift attention from story to story without giving any of us the time to actually consider any.

It actually seemed to be working pretty well until something unusual happened ... Trump gave a good speech. For the first time as President, he had the opportunity to bask in the love. But, the distraction machine couldn't be slowed, and an unexpected controversy came up. During his congressional hearing Attorney General Jeff Sessions, unprovoked, made the claim that he was a known surrogate for Trump and "did not have communications with the Russians" during the campaign. In fact, Sessions had met with the Russian Ambassador twice during the campaign. So, at the very least, he had given false testimony to the Senate. Needless to say, this was bigger news than the President giving a decent speech at last. This was the United States' new "top cop" providing false statements under oath.

Trump was furious. No more basking in praise, ferociously patting himself on the back. Attention was back to the Trump/Putin Non-Aggression Pact due to one of his own. So, it was back to the distraction machine with an unsubstantiated, seemingly absurd, and very specific criminal accusation of former President Obama:

There has been absolutely no evidence provided to support this extraordinary criminal accusation. But, nevertheless, Trump did what he had to ... he used a Twitter tantrum to change the conversation from his campaign's ties with the Russian government to Obama ordering an illegal wiretap for Trump Tower in NYC. While it is an accusation rightfully ignored as just another "trumped-up" accusation, he dictated the conversation like he was dangling a chew-toy in front of a dog.

Trump is desperate to control the media. He successfully did this during his primary and general election campaigns, getting free coverage at every turn and focusing the political conversation on him. Now he uses unsubstantiated accusations, akin to gossip between teenage girls, diverting attention away from any problems his administration is having. He has also secured a certain protection by unilaterally declaring the media to be the "opposition party", automatically dismissing any criticism or challenge that might come his way. And, we have all gotten used to unsubstantiated accusations being thrown around, and the barrage of new scandals means nothing manages to stick.

At the risk of sounding alarmist, this progression is dangerous. We have to live up to our responsibility as informed citizens by holding the President to account for every word he says. He is the leader of our country, and the rest of the world is listening. If we allow this administration leeway, we will end up in a situation where facts aren't important, news sources "friendly" to the President have a monopoly on access to the White House, and our political representatives aren't held accountable. These are the pillars of representative democracy; a truth that history has repeatedly confirmed.

#Trump #Sessions #president #obama #trumpedup #Putin #Russia