In a well-received speech before South Korean lawmakers on Tuesday, President Trump tried to rally the region and the world against the rogue North Korean regime. The President glorified South Korea for its booming economy and democratic government. He also drew attention to North Korea’s decades of human rights abuses, the hellish living conditions of its people, and the desperate things they would do to escape, including selling themselves into slavery. That’s the truth about life in North Korea, but for MSNBC’s Brian Williams and members of his panel on The 11th Hour, it was just too much.
“But the other thing that stuck out to me in this speech was, he painted a picture of what life in North Korea is like under this regime. He described it as hell. He talked about a murderous regime. In very dark terms,” said Philip Rucker, the White House bureau chief for The Washington Post.
After Rucker noted how it was in contrast to Trump’s flowery language about South Korea, Williams agreed with his guest’s initial point. “Yeah, Phil, to one of your points, I was struck by how clinical and graphic this speech got at one point,” Williams critiqued. “Very dark, wondering what, where, how that was injected into this speech? It's not the kind of thing you wanted children in the room to hear.”
Rucker opined about how it reminded him of how dark Trump’s campaign speeches would be:
It's not, but we've seen this before in some of President Trump's speeches, including his inaugural address when he talked about American carnage. He likes this sort of graphic imagery. He spoke this way on the campaign trail a lot. He describes terrorists as animals. I mean, he likes to come up with really sort of visceral terminology when he's making his points.
Williams then whined that Trump’s speech didn’t match his recent nice language about North Korea. “Yesterday's theme though from him was kind of let's make a deal. Even in Japan, he was saying we can work something out. It was a little bit of outreach,” he noted. “Today/tonight we are back to something closer to fire and fury.”
Their criticism of Trump’s speech was ridiculous. If Trump couldn’t speak the truth about the communist regime’s atrocities in a room full of adults, then how was he supposed to rally other foreign leaders? And as journalists, they should be all for exposing the truth and not hiding it because it offends their weak sensibilities.
And the assertions made by the disgraced Williams regarding Trump’s shifting tone were disingenuous at best. In Trump’s speech, he did talk about wanting to have the United States and North Korea sit down for negotiations. He also painted a bright and glorious future for North Korea:
The Korean people do have a glorious destiny, but they could not be more wrong about what that destiny looks like. The destiny of the Korean people is not to suffer in the bondage of oppression but to thrive in the glory of freedom.
So, if Brian Williams and his panel couldn’t stand to listen to the harsh oppressive reality of the lives of the North Korean people, or tell the truth about what the President actually said, perhaps journalism was not for them.
Their fear of the truth was sponsored by Prevagen, Wayfair, and It's Just Lunch.
Transcript below:
MSNBC
The 11th Hour
November 7, 2017
11:40:42 PM(…)
BRIAN WILLIAMS: We are seeing differences in these remarks from day to day.
PHILIP RUCKER: That's right. But the speech that he delivered, the formal speech that he delivered a couple hours ago is very much in keeping with what the top national security advisers had previewed back in Washington before they departed on the trip. And Trump's top aides are with him on this trip, including General Kelly, the chief of staff, and general McMaster the national security adviser.
But the other thing that stuck out to me in this speech was, he painted a picture of what life in North Korea is like under this regime. He described it as hell. He talked about a murderous regime. In very dark terms. And then he painted a picture of South Korea, talking about South Korea's economy that's been booming for decades, about the political independence there. He even praised scientists and authors and writers and talked about the Olympics and really tried to draw a comparison out as he really tries to build support around the world to join this coalition against North Korea.
WILLIAMS: Yeah, Phil, to one of your points, I was struck by how clinical and graphic this speech got at one point.
RUCKER: Very much so.
WILLIAMS: Very dark, wondering what, where, how that was injected into this speech? It's not the kind of thing you wanted children in the room to hear.
RUCKER: It's not, but we've seen this before in some of President Trump's speeches, including his inaugural address when he talked about American carnage. He likes this sort of graphic imagery. He spoke this way on the campaign trail a lot. He describes terrorists as animals. I mean, he likes to come up with really sort of visceral terminology when he's making his points.
WILLIAMS: Kimberly you to admit, yesterday's theme though from him was kind of let's make a deal. Even in Japan, he was saying we can work something out. It was a little bit of outreach. Today/tonight we are back to something closer to fire and fury.
KIMBERLY ATKINS: I think that's right. I think, we've heard the President say many times that he doesn't want his enemies to know what he's thinking and he likes the element of surprise and unpredictability. So we're certainly seeing that play out in these very different -- these very different words, very different approaches that we've seen in a matter of 24 hours. I mean, while he still has not gone all the way to calling, you know, calling Kim Jong-un pejorative names, it was a lot stronger, a lot more resolute that you either put these -- you stop this nuclear program or it's going to end very badly for you. And being really strong and resolute. So I think it's a way to keep the enemy guessing.
(…)
