Does the left fear a 2024 run by President Trump? Looks that way, judging from this morning's AM Joy show on MSNBC, guest-hosted by Maria Teresa Kumar. The show devoted a segment to the possibility of Trump 2024. And in a pre-emptive strike on a possible run, the panel pleaded that the media shouldn't cover Trump, and that supporters shouldn't contribute to him.
The segment began with a clip of Kamala Harris cackling past the graveyard, replying "oh, please" to a reporter's question as to whether she believes Biden-Harris could defeat Trump were he to run again.
That segued into the unspeakable Jennifer Rubin, the MSNBC contributor and Washington Post columnist, begging the media to ignore Trump. She ranted:
I think it’s somewhat ridiculous. And it’s also a good test for the media, frankly. There is absolutely no bigger story than the inauguration of Joe Biden and no one should cover Trump. This is his pathetic venting — like a two-year old jumping up and down, 'Me, me, me!'
But in point of fact, he is going to do all sorts of things and he is not the center of our political life anymore. He is not the story. And I think Kamala Harris may have been amused that this is now Republicans’ problem to deal with. He is the one who is now going to be hanging like a dark cloud over the 2024 wannabes. So let them cope with him, and they should ignore him thoroughly and get on with the business of governing the country.
Tim O'Brien of Bloomberg heartily agreed. And in a particularly nasty twist, O'Brien advised people not to donate to Trump, warning that if he is convicted of a crime, he'd be ineligible to run, and thus that donors would be throwing their money away: "And the reality is, there's some real wild cards out there about his ability to run again in 2024. The one that’s most salient to me is if the Manhattan district attorney charges Donald Trump with a crime and Donald Trump is convicted, he won’t be allowed to run again."
O'Brien also committed some unintentional humor, claiming the media normally tries to be "objective" and let readers decide. He implored the media, when covering Trump, not to fall into "both-sideism." Rest easy, Tim: when it comes to Trump, there's no chance the media will be "objective" or cover both sides equally!
Liberals imploring the media not to cover President Trump, and supporters not to contribute to him, was sponsored in part by Walmart, Proctor and Gamble [maker of Gain], NordicTrack and Dell.
Here's the transcript. Click "expand" to read more.
MSNBC
AM Joy
11-29-30
10:18 am ETREPORTER: President Trump has been making motions that he will run again in 2024. Do you feel like you and President-elect Biden would be ready to face him again?
KAMALA HARRIS [cackles]: Please.
MARIA TERESA KUMAR: Despite what the Vice-president-elect may think, Donald Trump is reportedly already planning on running for president again in 2024. And according to the Daily Beast, in Trump fashion he may even hold a campaign event during the President-elect Biden’s inauguration.
. . .
Jennifer, as a, you know, minted Republican, what’s your take on this, having a side event during one of the most important pieces of transferring power from one president to the next? What’s your take?
JENNIFER RUBIN: I think it’s somewhat ridiculous. And it’s also a good test for the media, frankly. There is absolutely no bigger story than the inauguration of Joe Biden and no one should cover Trump. This is his pathetic venting — like a two-year old jumping up and down, 'Me, me, me!'
But in point of fact, he is going to do all sorts of things and he is not the center of our political life anymore. He is not the story. And I think Kamala Harris may have been amused that this is now Republicans’ problem to deal with. He is the one who is now going to be hanging like a dark cloud over the 2024 wannabes. So let them cope with him, and they should ignore him thoroughly and get on with the business of governing the country.
KUMAR: Tim, I want to talk this whole thing that we’re finding that one of the reasons that he may be saying that he’s running for president is more to line his own coffers. Take this [reads WaPo headline]: "Trump solicits 'election defense' donations that also finance his new leadership PAC." But according to the fine print, 60% of each donation goes to Save America and 40% goes to other committees, including the national party and the Trump campaign accounts. You wrote “Trump Nation.” Is this just a way for him to line his coffers?
TIM O'BRIEN: Of course it’s a way for him to continue lining his pockets, his wallet, his coffers, his vault in the basement of Trump Tower. He's been doing these kinds of things forever. I mean, remember — pardon me — this is a man who has been essentially ex-communicated from the philanthropic world because he and his three eldest children looted a charity that they have been soliciting funds for forever. And the second they began this narrative about election fraud, Eric Trump was tweeting people to donate to Trump’s reelection fund.
I think there’s no question in their minds that this is a money making opportunity. He will get to keep the money that goes into something like this.
And the reality is, there's some real wild cards out there about his ability to run again in 2024. The one that’s most salient to me is if the Manhattan district attorney charges Donald Trump with a crime and Donald Trump is convicted, he won’t be allowed to run again. So any Republican or Trump supporter who wants to give money to Trump, should bear in mind that he has a long track record of being — scamming and weasely with other people’s money, and that he has run afoul of the law and that could complicate things as well.
. . .
RUBIN: Well, far be it for me to quote or use something that Roger Stone said, but he suggested that Republicans boycott the Georgia elections. Well, if Republicans want to do that maybe we should boycott coverage of Donald Trump. Seriously.
There is plenty of news being made, and I think both the Biden camp and the media have to sort of agree that we’re going to get back as you said to policy, to facts, to normalcy.
. .
And I think it behooves the media, I think it behooves all the political class, to exercise some self-discipline and keep the eye on the ball.
. . .
KUMAR: Is the media going to be disciplined enough to do that and to change the chapter that Jennifer is encouraging us to do once he's no longer in office or will we be too tempted to cover his shenanigans, and what harm can that cause if we do?
O'BRIEN: Well, I think that that is the — that is the core question about how the media deals with Trump obviously going forward . . . And I think the challenge now for the media is — and it’s always been the challenge with Trump, because politics obviously is a world in which there's a lot of dissembling and spin. But Donald Trump is of a different order of magnitude. Because he is a pathologic liar and because he has the traction and the imagination of a large swath of the voting base, how does the media cover someone like this, when the traditional approach of the media is to try to be, at least institutional mainstream media, objective, present readers with fact, present readers with both sides of an issue and, then quote/unquote, let the readers decide in an ideal world.
Donald Trump, I think, blows that approach up. And the real challenge for the media going forward, I think is, to limit his air time when he’s obviously lying or when he’s twisting the public interest to his own services. And then to cover him in a way that doesn’t fall into "both-sidesism," and doesn’t fall into overly credulousness about — being overly credulous, about who he is and what he has done. Because he is a very dangerous force in American society right now.
