UPDATED
USA Today columnist Michael Wolff came out and said what every liberal journalist probably thinks of the Donald Trump administration and said it to Kellyanne Conway’s face: “You’re the darkness.”
At Wednesday’s Newseum “Press and the President” forum, Wolff recited the Washington Post’s new slogan to Trump’s White House counselor and admitted what the Post was really driving at: “I’m gonna tell you, when they say ‘Democracy Dies in Darkness,’ you’re the darkness.”
For her part, Conway handled the charge with aplomb as she replied “I’m not the darkness” and mentioned how she’s “getting used to the [SNL] skit” about her. She went on to offer advice she’s given to children: “Just because somebody says something, doesn’t make it true.”
After the audience, probably full of liberals, laughed at Wolff’s shot at Conway, he attempted to walk it back. NBCNews.com had the video:
Michael Wolff tells Kellyanne Conway: "When they say democracy dies in darkness, you're the darkness." https://t.co/lScxpthUZt
— NBC Politics (@NBCPolitics) April 12, 2017
To Wolff’s credit he did acknowledge that he was taken aback by the Post slogan and felt like Trump wasn’t being covered fairly. This is from C-SPAN’s feed of the event:
KELLYANNE CONWAY: Do you actually think he’s covered fairly and objectively?
MICHAEL WOLFF: Do I think, I think not at all. I think, I think “Democracy Dies in Darkness,” I look at this, I think ‘Oh my God!’ No, from, from my point of view as, as someone who literally writes about this I think we’re in totally unchartered territory. But having said that, this administration is more media crazy than any I’ve ever, I’ve ever, ever watched. I mean you talk to the media all the time. You want coverage all the time.
The following exchange occurred at The Newseum’s “The Press and the President: The First Amendment in the First 100 Days” event:
MICHAEL WOLFF: How personal do you take this?
KELLYANNE CONWAY: How personal, how personally do I take what?
WOLFF: What the, this, this coverage of you “Democracy Dies in Darkness?” Because I’m gonna tell you, when they say “Democracy Dies in Darkness,” you’re the darkness.
CONWAY: I’m not the darkness.
WOLFF: No and I don’t mean that –
CONWAY: Getting used to the skit “Walking on Sunshine.”
WOLFF: That’s not, that’s not a –
CONWAY: You’re saying that’s what it’s meant to be?
WOLFF: Yeah that’s not, certainly an attack here.
CONWAY: But again, it’s what I tell small children. Just because somebody says something, doesn’t make it true. And it’s a great lesson for everyone. And just because, you know, they say the darkness or democracy, it doesn’t make it true.
UPDATE: Wolff clarified, on Twitter, he was deriding the Post's slogan.
