Running Against a Troglogdyte and the Media – Backwards and in High Heels

I have to keep repeating to myself, "politics of joy, politics of joy, politics of joy."

As we endure Trump campaign's unheard-of exploitation of the "hollowed" ground at Arlington and their multiple attempts to smear Tim Walz as a liar about dogs, coaching levels, and every other detail of his life, now we have Trump himself openly sexually harassing Kamala Harris... something I never thought would be possible in a presidential campaign.

What will the media do with that? They've already failed on the Arlington story, though maybe they will catch up. MSNBC had, at least, an accurate headline on it last night ("Trump Campaigns on Graves at Arlington Cemetery"), though that doesn't get at the physical assault that happened. The Washington Post story, as carried in the Star Tribune, had this headline: "Trump's Cemetery Visit Sparks Alleged Altercation."

The allegation is from the U.S. military, and the other side comes from Donald Trump, so gee, I don't know, Washington Post. Maybe pick a side.

So far the coverage of his sexual harassment has been treated it as not harassment, as if it's somehow within the range of normal. The coverage has repeated what Trump said about Harris ("just the facts"), which is the opposite of George Lakoff's "truth sandwich." What he wrote is not news, it's a smear: that's the fact that should be reported. You don't have to say what the details of the smear are.

It will get worse, and big media (as many have said at this point) are complicit.

And meanwhile, there's the double standard on policy... which reminds me. Jen Sorensen just shared this cartoon from 2019:


Still relevant.