Ezra Klein column: Trump has always been a wolf in wolf's clothing.
'For years, there has been a mantra that Republicans have recited to comfort themselves about President Donald Trump both about the things he says and the support they offer him. Trump, theyd say, should be taken seriously, not literally. The coinage comes from a 2016 article in The Atlantic by Salena Zito, in which she complained that the press took Trump literally, but not seriously; his supporters take him seriously, but not literally.
For Republican elites, this was a helpful two-step. If Trumps words were understood as layered in folksy exaggeration and shtick designed to trigger media pedants but perfectly legible to his salt-of-the-earth supporters then much that would be too grotesque or false to embrace literally could be carefully endorsed at best and ignored as poor comedy at worst. And Republican elites could walk the line between eviscerating their reputations and enraging their partys leader, all while blaming the media for caricaturing Trumpism by reporting Trumps words accurately.
On Nov. 5, 2020, just days after the election, Vice President Mike Pence offered a classic of the genre. As Trump declared the election stolen, in terms as clear as a fist to the face, Pence tried to take him seriously, not literally; to signal solidarity with Trumps fury while backing away from the actual claims. I stand with President @RealDonaldTrump, he tweeted. We must count every LEGAL vote.
But Trump did not want every legal vote counted. He wanted legally counted votes to be erased; he wanted new votes discovered in his favor. He wanted to win, not lose; whatever the cost, whatever the means.'>>>
https://www.baltimoresun.com/featured/sns-nyt-op-trump-always-a-wolf-20210107-2z6gl2kpxvcirjr7yc7ijweica-story.html
czarjak
(11,263 posts)The same yesterday, today and forever. Close as theyll get to Jesus.
frazzled
(18,402 posts)And it was excellent. I look forward to reading his columns regularly there.
elleng
(130,825 posts)nam78_two
(14,529 posts)I did not take him seriously or literally...I thought it was just a pointless stream of drivel ensuing from a reality show star who cpuld not grasp that reality television and reality are different and while trps have some effect on the latter (sadly), at the end of the day, you need substance and expertise, not tweets. It is not hard to get..expertise is super hard. Verbal incontinence is easy....to that extent I get him.