Trump Watch: Day 35 Wrap-Up
Good evening, Trump watchers. It was a big day in Trump news…here’s your wrap-up for Friday, February 24, 2017:
— Today, Trump spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Maryland. He used the platform to intensify his fight with the media, stating that “fake news” outlets are “the enemy of the people” according to the New York Times. He also said that the media should not be allowed to use anonymous sources. Several news outlets have since pointed out the fact that Trump himself uses anonymous sources all the time. As someone with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, this entire story made me think back to my J-school days. I, along with anyone else who ever earned a journalism degree, learned about the use of anonymous sources and the seriousness of doing so. I doubt any of the nation’s major news outlets that use them do so carelessly. I invite you to read the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Ethics Committee’s views on the use of anonymous sources. For more on Trump’s CPAC speech, in which he continued to spread easily proven falsehoods such as the one about Sweden and immigration, read this.
— As if the CPAC speech didn’t add enough to the animosity between Trump and the media, the Trump administration later banned major national and international news outlets such as the New York Times, CNN, USA Today, the LA Times, BBC News, Politico, and BuzzFeed from attending a press briefing with Press Secretary Sean Spicer. The Associated Press was invited to attend the briefing, but declined due to the exclusion of the other major outlets. The move appeared to be designed to send a message to the news outlets that Trump views as being most critical of him. Many news outlets were quick to point out that Press Secretary Spicer said in 2016 that banning media is indicative of a dictatorship. The New York Times put out a statement saying, “Nothing like this has ever happened at the White House in our long history of covering multiple administrations of different parties. We strongly protest the exclusion of the New York Times and the other news organizations.”
— Not to be lost in all of the news from today, it is important to point out that yesterday Trump’s Chief Strategist Steve Bannon and Chief of Staff Reince Priebus also spoke at CPAC. Bannon called the media “the opposition party” and also said that his plans to “deconstruct” Washington as we know it.
— The Trump administration admitted that it had conversations with the FBI regarding the media reports that Trump officials had contact with Russian intelligence agents, but refused any claims of wrongdoing. Tonight the Washington Post reported that when the White House’s attempts to persuade the FBI to dispute the accuracy of news stories about the Trump administration and Russian officials were unsuccessful, the administration turned to intelligence officials and members of Congress. These officials contacted media outlets to challenge the stories, and Trump insisted that they speak on the condition of anonymity — interesting, since he condemned anonymity in his CPAC speech today.
— Today Trump signed another executive order. This one is designed to repeal and simplify existing regulations, and Trump’s purpose for it is to create new jobs. According to USA Today, the order will require “federal agencies to appoint a regulatory reform officer”.
— Trump met with the President of Peru, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, today. According to Reuters, the Peruvian President told Trump that he, “prefers bridges to walls and favors the free movement of people across borders.” Trump called Peru, “a fantastic neighbor.”
— On Thursday, Sean Spicer announced that the Department of Justice will likely increase enforcement of federal laws against the recreational use of marijuana, superseding states’ rights in the eight states (plus Washington, D.C.) where it is currently legal.
— Somehow I missed this a few days ago, but Trump signed an executive order that allows coal mines to dump their waste in to nearby waterways (like rivers where people get their drinking water). Also, he is apparently preparing to sign executive orders that will roll-back existing policies on climate and water pollution. Trump’s new policies will mean more greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, and just generally more pollution for all of us.
— Finally, the Associated Press reported today that it was privy to a document produced by the Department of Homeland Security that says their “intelligence arm found insufficient evidence that citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries included in President Donald Trump’s travel ban pose a terror threat to the United States.” As most of you already know, there have been no major terror attacks or attempts on the United States from anyone in the seven banned countries since at least 2011.
That’s all for tonight. If I missed anything, feel free to comment with a link. Just a reminder that I try to include news only from the following sources that do not have a deep partisan affiliation or slant, and that uphold journalistic ethics and standards: the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, CNN, Reuters, the Associated Press, Bloomberg News, NBC News, ABC News, CBS News, USA Today, Politico, and Roll Call.
