The Timid Media Is Again Normalizing A Dangerous Trump

The following is part of an op-ed by Jennifer Rubin in The Washington Post:

We saw throughout Donald Trump’s two presidential campaigns and four years in the White House a symbiotic relationship between mainstream media outlets and Republicans, in which both made Trump out to be a far more normal politician than he was.

On the one hand, there was Republican denial (Didn’t see the crazy tweet! I’m sure he’s learned his lesson!). On the other, there was the media’s determination to avoid claims of bias and maintain a false balance — which often resulted in their obscuring how loony he sounded. The result: a never-ending Trumpian stream of threats (both policy-related and more personal), absurd conspiracy-mongering, and lies that were never regarded as disqualifying.

Apparently, neither the media nor supposedly sober Republicans have learned anything from the past. Trump gave a bonkers speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Saturday, musing about Russia blowing up NATO headquarters, claiming President Biden had taken the border wall and “put it in a hiding area,” and telling the crowd, “I am your warrior. I am your justice. And for those who have been wronged and betrayed: I am your retribution.”

We do not get headlines acknowledging this is unhinged. Instead, we get from the New York Times: “Trump Says He Would Stay in 2024 Race if Indicted.” And a similar angle from CNN. ABC started its website report this way: “Former President Donald Trump continues to reign supreme over the conservative wing of the Republican Party.” From The Washington Post: “Trump takes victory lap at conservative conference.”

CBS intoned that Trump “aired grievances with his familiar foes: President Biden, the Department of Justice, and the litany of legal fights he is embroiled in.” Politico went with: “Trump ties a ribbon on the most MAGA CPAC yet.” Hmm.

From the coverage, you would never understand how incoherent he sounds, how far divorced his statements are from reality, and how entirely abnormal this all is. Talk about burying the lead.

The press and Republicans’ mutual distaste for candidly acknowledging Trump’s break with reality and the danger he poses to democracy was on full display on the Sunday shows. On “Meet the Press,” New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu lamely offered that he’d supportwhomever the Republicans nominate for president. Equally cringeworthy, Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) on “This Week” wouldn’t rule out supporting a nominee indicted on a felony charge that involved overthrowing the 2020 election results: “That’s a huge hypothetical right now on the indictment issue. … But right now my plan is to support who becomes the nominee.”

On “Fox News Sunday,” former secretary of state Mike Pompeo said it’s time to reject any candidate who would tell “whoppers” and spends endless time on Twitter — but dodged the question when host Shannon Bream said surely, he must be talking about Trump.

This spectacle is equal parts infuriating and pathetic.