I’m not happy about that Donald Trump has renewed its attack on the ‘corrupt media’.
Fresh off his $15 million win over ABC and George Stephanopoulos, Trump yesterday sued the Des Moines Register and gold standard pollster Ann Selzer over shoddy research. She predicted he would lose by 4 points, and he won state by 13 points. He called this “blatant election interference.”
Trump is also taking legal action against CBS over the ’60 Minutes’ sharper replacement blunder Kamala Harris answer to a different question than asked. But the network can claim this was normal television editing.
Trump is unlikely to win these lawsuits, but he doesn’t care. Just putting his perceived opponents through the ordeal and significant expense of defending himself is reward enough.
A KINDER, SOFTER ASSET? The president-elect is taking a more moderate position
Most legal experts say ABC could have won its lawsuit, with Stephanopoulos repeatedly saying Trump was found liable for “rape,” as opposed to “sexual abuse” in the E. Jean Carroll lawsuit, due to the malice standard for a public figure . . Trump would have to prove that the network knowingly showed a reckless disregard for the truth. But ABC would have endured the embarrassment of handing over emails, text messages and cell phone records.
What surprised me, however, was that just days after saying he had “tamed” the press, the president-elect went into attack mode and got better reporting. So much for the ceasefire.
But some of Trump’s more positive aspects came to light during the hour-long news conference, a seriousness of purpose that I saw in our interview in New York two weeks before the election.
After his $16 million legal victory over ABC, newly elected President Trump appears to be targeting the so-called “corrupt media” again. (Getty Images)
I’ve known Donald Trump for more than 30 years, interviewed him twice this year, and now that we’re done with the sometimes inflammatory rhetoric of the campaign, he sounds different.
With seemingly boundless energy at age 78, he deliberately speaks more slowly and softly, while moderating his positions on a number of divisive issues. He knows how to dodge questions he shouldn’t answer, like “Do you want revenge on Iran?” He threw in phrases like “maybe it was my fault,” emptying any superhuman image. He recently admitted that it would be difficult to bring down food prices.
The new president was asked if Republican Senators those who oppose his nominees should be given priority. His answer was carefully crafted.
TRUMP THREATENS MORE LAWSUITS AGAINST MEDIA AS ABC TO PAY $15 MILLION TO SETTLE THE CASE
“If they are unreasonable, I will give you a different answer. An answer that you will be shocked to hear. If they are unreasonable, if they oppose someone for political or stupid reasons, I would say that is .” I would say they would probably take precedence, but if they are reasonable and honest and really disagree with something or someone, I could see that happening.”
Of course, it is Trump who determines what is reasonable or fair.
Asked about the parade of Silicon Valley executives who have come or are coming to Mar-a-Lago — the heads of Meta, Amazon, Google, Apple and others — Trump noted that they were “very hostile” during his first term (‘ and maybe that was my fault, but I don’t really think so”). It doesn’t hurt that Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos are throwing in a million dollars for his inauguration.
“One of the big differences” is that “everyone was fighting me” in the first term. Now: “Everyone wants to be my friend. I don’t know, my personality has changed or something.” That was tongue in cheek.
What was striking about the press conference was how much news Trump delivered on a wide range of topics, some of which were barely mentioned.
He confronted the false Duke rape accuser, who eventually admitted she lied in 2006 and said life would never be the same for the lacrosse players who had done nothing wrong. He said the Biden team was not aligned with the public on the drones. He described the “sickness” of those who view positively the alleged murderer of the UnitedHealthcare CEO. He supported the polio vaccine. He defended Pete Hegseth. He talked about Venezuela and Syria and Turkey and North Korea and Bibi. He worried about TikTok.
The 24-hour coverage of Trump seems to be making a comeback – and a month earlier. (Oleg Nikishin/Getty Images)
There was a sense of deja vu, a stark reminder that Trump was a 24-hour source of news during his first term, even when he spoke to journalists he didn’t like, sometimes denigrating them or opposing their reporting entered. The contrast with the soon-to-be Former Guy, who did not report any news during the weekends he usually spent in Delaware or at Camp David, could hardly be greater.
So aside from the outright attack on the media, long his favorite foil, the Incoming Guy actually showed restraint and nuance and clearly enjoyed himself.
Maybe Trump was just in a bad mood these past few days. After Judge Juan Merchan refused to withdraw the hush money conviction because his private actions were not among the recent Supreme Court ruling on official actions, the new president posted this yesterday:
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“Merchan, who is far worse and even more corrupt than (Jack) Smith in his fight for my hopeless political opponents, simply cannot let go of this charade. Is it because of his conflicts and relationships that he continues to break the law? fuses!…
“In a completely illegal, psychotic order, the deeply conflicted, corrupt, biased and incompetent Acting Judge Juan Merchan has completely violated the Supreme Court of the United States and its landmark decision on immunity. But even without immunity, this illegal case is nothing more than a rigged hoax.”
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Now there’s the Donald we all got to know during the trial.
