# Does Trump want to undermine the role of the press? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 19, 2018, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796 "2018-11-19T15:21:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/61 "2018-11-20T06:27:14Z")
> [@galen\_ubal](#): > > Since the original question seems to have been abandoned entirely…All of this going back and forth over Acosta’s conduct is no more than diversion from the question posed by the OP. No one abandoned the original question posed by the OP. It was easily and simply answered many posts back. Allow me to repeat: > [@Me](#): > > Trump wants to undermine the role of the press when they point out that he is bullshitting, which is their job. > > He wants to praise the role of the press when they suck his dick, like Hannity. Everyone knows this, and there isn’t much need to discuss it, so we might as well talk about Acosta’s conduct. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/62 "2018-11-20T07:54:39Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > Trump wants to undermine the role of the press when they point out that he is bullshitting, which is their job. > > He wants to praise the role of the press when they suck his dick, like Hannity. Well, plus for some reason an anti-journalism message seems to resonate with a surprisingly and sadly large number of Americans. Want to get cheers in America? Go after journalists, “intellectuals”, “elites”, “city-folk”… some of them will just go nuts for that. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/63 "2018-11-20T11:37:39Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > Right I forgot about the litttle “As you know, Mr. President, it was not an invasion.” As you know. > > That is straight up calling the President of the United States a liar in the White House at an event that he has no obligation to be at. > > Of course, you guys on here would gladly call Trump a liar, no President should have to allow his press conferences turn into personal insults. It is not. Quit projecting victim hood. Calling someone a liar is a reflection of intent. Saying someone is wrong is not. As a member of this board, you ought to know that. In this particular case, it’s clear that Trump was lying to inflame racist opinions for the election - but that isn’t what Acosta said, to his credit. > [@](#): > > Of course, you guys on here would gladly call Trump a liar, no President should have to allow his press conferences turn into personal insults. If the roles were reversed (Dem President and Fox News Reporter) I would have no objection at all to the Dem President not putting up with such a thing after the 100th time it happened. If Fox questioned Obama on statements like “If you like your doctor you can keep him” in the same manner Acosta did, that would be a MASSIVE improvement for Fox and I would applaud them! ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/64 "2018-11-20T12:40:29Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > Ok, what do you imagine the real question was going to be after Acosta finally browbeat Trump into accepting the truth of his premise? “What were you trying to accomplish by brazenly lying to the American people?” Next question…? ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/65 "2018-11-20T13:18:36Z")
> [@Steve\_MB](#): > > “What were you trying to accomplish by brazenly lying to the American people?” > > Next question…? [one member of press corp starts slow clap] ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/66 "2018-11-20T13:23:50Z")
The best evidence that the Mueller investigation is gonna churn up all sorts of shit is Trump’s behavior. He knows what he has done, and he knows that the people talking to investigators now know what he has done. His only option is to try to cast doubt on the investigators who will release the reports and the press who will report on it. And that’s what he is doing. And I’m only half sure it won’t work. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/67 "2018-11-20T13:30:04Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > Right I forgot about the litttle “As you know, Mr. President, it was not an invasion.” As you know. > > That is straight up calling the President of the United States a liar in the White House at an event that he has no obligation to be at. To be fair, Trump has no obligation to be a straight-up liar either. And there’s nothing wrong whatsoever with calling out the President of the United States on his brazen lies; it’s appropriate behavior. But as I’ve said, it’s perfectly easy to imagine a variety of substantive responses to Acosta’s question. The president is always welcome to stop lying and to admit what he did. If he’s not willing to do that, he could engage in some rhetorical flourish to double-down. On the infinitesimal chance he wasn’t lying, he could either explain how what he said was accurate, or obliquely explain why national security concerns prevent him from revealing the intelligence he’s received that justifies his claim. Buying into the president’s war against the media is a deeply terrible thing to do. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/68 "2018-11-20T14:08:26Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Buying into the president’s war against the media is a deeply terrible thing to do. Unless of course you secretly believe there is a way for your political party to stay in power indefinitely. ---
**Author:** ![Wolf333](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf333/32/3460_2.png) [@Wolf333](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolf333)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/69 "2018-11-20T14:08:30Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > Right I forgot about the litttle “As you know, Mr. President, it was not an invasion.” As you know. > > That is straight up calling the President of the United States a liar in the White House at an event that he has no obligation to be at. > > Of course, you guys on here would gladly call Trump a liar, no President should have to allow his press conferences turn into personal insults. If the roles were reversed (Dem President and Fox News Reporter) I would have no objection at all to the Dem President not putting up with such a thing after the 100th time it happened. You know how I keep people from calling me a liar? I don’t lie every time I open my mouth. Maybe Trump should give that a try. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/70 "2018-11-20T14:30:44Z")
> [@Fiddle\_Peghead](#): > > Is there any doubt now that President Trump actively seeks to [undermine](http://fortune.com/2018/11/19/white-house-cnn-jim-acosta-press-pass/) the role of the press in the United States? > > ETA: I don’t think there is any doubt. Well, I think a distinction needs to be made here. Is this what is actually happening wrt Trump’s actions? Absolutely it is. Is it what he intends? That’s a more difficult question. First off, I don’t know if Trump actually understands what role of the press is, or respects that role if he does. Secondly, I think that Trump doesn’t have some 3-D chess level strategies or strategic goals. What Trump wants, IMHO, is to shut the press that disagrees with him down while inflating the press that agrees with and gets his message out. It’s pretty clear that he’s simply pissed off at both CNN and Acosta because they don’t play along with his narrative, and he’s just lashing out. Like a kid in day school throwing a temper tantrum because he’s not getting all the candy. I honestly don’t think ascribing deep motives or strategy to this guy is the right way to view things. It’s certainly having that effect, and that’s certainly a bad thing…join it to the list of all the reasons we should have voted in Clinton and damned well better vote in ANYONE ELSE in the next election. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/71 "2018-11-20T14:59:26Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > _That_ was certainly out of left field. 😕 Did you mean to post this in some other thread? Absolutely not. If taking Acosta’s pass for being disrespectful is “undermining the press” the bar is super low. He hates the press and they hate him back. He doesn’t play the game they were used to with other presidents (for better or worse). He gives blunt answers or avoids them without the finesse Obama or Clinton had or even GW Bush. When he imprisons a couple of reporters or forces a network owner to sell it to one of his friends or something like that, then call me. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/72 "2018-11-20T15:09:57Z")
> [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](#): > > Absolutely not. > If taking Acosta’s pass for being disrespectful is “undermining the press” the bar is super low. > He hates the press and they hate him back. He doesn’t play the game they were used to with other presidents (for better or worse). He gives blunt answers or avoids them without the finesse Obama or Clinton had or even GW Bush. > When he imprisons a couple of reporters or forces a network owner to sell it to one of his friends or something like that, then call me. Sure thing…and I’ll be sure to wait until your barn is burned to a cinder before letting you know your horses might be in danger. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/73 "2018-11-20T15:32:35Z")
> [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](#): > > If taking Acosta’s pass for being disrespectful is “undermining the press” the bar is super low. … > When he imprisons a couple of reporters or forces a network owner to sell it to one of his friends or something like that, then call me. I’m certain that the press can be undermined with steps short of kidnapping, murder, etc. Taking administrative steps to punish reporters for asking questions that the President doesn’t like is a perfectly valid description of “undermining the press.” ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/74 "2018-11-20T16:08:41Z")
> [@XT](#): > > First off, I don’t know if Trump actually understands what role of the press is, or respects that role if he does. Secondly, I think that Trump doesn’t have some 3-D chess level strategies or strategic goals. Sure he does. The role of the press is another marketing channel to spread the Trump “brand”. Look, Trump doesn’t care about that civics class “effective democracy” stuff. Trump does what he knows. Being the CEO of a family business he was born into. That is to say, someone who is used to having people do what he tells them without argument and having the resources at hand to do what he wants. All the political stuff is just an annoying distraction to Trump. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/75 "2018-11-20T16:17:09Z")
John Barron sure as hell knew what the role of the press was in relation to Donald Trump. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/76 "2018-11-20T17:29:57Z")
Laying off the Acosta question, what about his response to [Abby Phillip’s question](https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/what-a-stupid-question-trump-demeans-three-black-female-reporters-in-two-days/2018/11/09/272113d0-e441-11e8-b759-3d88a5ce9e19_story.html?utm_term=.9ee0c0387c23)? > [@](#): > > Phillip, a CNN reporter and former Washington Post journalist, drew Trump’s wrath on Friday, after she asked whether he hoped Matthew G. Whitaker, Trump’s appointee as acting attorney general, would “rein in” special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s probe of Trump’s presidential campaign. > > “What a stupid question that is. What a stupid question,” Trump snapped. He didn’t answer the allegedly “stupid” question, but he did pour more contempt on Phillip. “I watch you a lot,” he said. “You ask a lot of stupid questions.” This was a “stupid question” only in the sense that even an idiot could see that it was the obvious question that the president needed to answer. He just fired his Attorney General whom he had repeatedly criticized for having recused himself from the Mueller investigation, but not for anything else, and replaced him with someone whose only credentials are that he criticized the probe. It therefor entirely reasonable to speculate that Trump took this to reign in a probe that he had repeatedly called an unlawful [witch hunt](https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/08/22/opinion/trump-cohen-mueller-investigation.html). If Trump had an alternative explanation for his actions that would have been the time to give them. Instead he deflected by insulting the questioner. Even now almost two weeks later, I still don’t know the official white house explanation for Session’s firing. ---
**Author:** ![KidCharlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/77 "2018-11-20T18:04:44Z")
> [@Red\_Wiggler](#): > > John Barron sure as hell knew what the role of the press was in relation to Donald Trump. Trump is especially frustrated because today’s headlines are such a stark contrast from the planted ones from those 80s NY tabloid days. He went from: “ **Best Sex I’ve Ever Had!** ” to “ **Smaller Than Average, Mushroom-shaped Penis!** ” ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/78 "2018-11-20T18:07:40Z")
> [@Buck\_Godot](#): > > Laying off the Acosta question, what about his response to [Abby Phillip’s question](https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/what-a-stupid-question-trump-demeans-three-black-female-reporters-in-two-days/2018/11/09/272113d0-e441-11e8-b759-3d88a5ce9e19_story.html?utm_term=.9ee0c0387c23)? See, that’s an example of a meaningful question about the Mueller investigation and even Trump’s refusal can be taken as useful information. It blows me away that people are happy with “just admit ‘invasion’ was racist rhetoric!” or “are you scared of indictments?” as press corp questions. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/79 "2018-11-20T18:26:42Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > See, that’s an example of a meaningful question about the Mueller investigation and even Trump’s refusal can be taken as useful information. It blows me away that people are happy with “just admit ‘invasion’ was racist rhetoric!” or “are you scared of indictments?” as press corp questions. Your claim that Trump gave us useful information? This is the point of disconnect that makes meaningful conversation on this topic almost impossible. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2018, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796/80 "2018-11-20T18:39:59Z")
Refusing to answer a question with regard to your plans or intentions is significantly more meaningful compared to refusing to answer a question about how racist or scared you are. If you don’t get that, then yes the disconnect is likely unbridgeable. You aren’t saying it but your position seems to defend “when did you stop beating your wife?” as a legit question. I’m sure LHoD thinks there’s many substantial ways to answer that question. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-trump-want-to-undermine-the-role-of-the-press/824796.md?page=5)