London Bangla A Force for the community…
US PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP has picked a fight with the US media – but they are fighting back in the courts and with direct action to defend the principle of a free press.
The context for the spat is that the US mid-term elections take place on Tuesday, 3rd November and Donald Trump’s approval ratings are currently around 30-35% – a historic low. The mid-terms are elections for Congress (Parliament): all members of the House of Representatives (equivalent to the UK House of Commons) and one third of the members of the Senate (the second chamber), as well as some state Governors are up for election. Although the US President has many powers, he does need to win the two Houses of Congress to make it easier to govern.
Sadly for Trump, he is out of ideas. His political stand is basically “vote for me; I’m great” – which is hard to believe given that the prices of food and fuel are rising sharply. The war on Iran was designed to bring Trump glory and support: it has done neither. The Republicans recently held the kind of political rally usually seen at presidential elections, not the mid-terms. Trump encouraged the sparse gathering to imagine his name was on the ballot paper when they go to vote – and to vote for him. Oh dear.
Trump appears dejected.
Trump may believe he is still an electoral asset, but the value of the asset is falling. That’s why Trump needs the critical press to be silenced. Trump has blocked CNN, Politico and MS NOW from coming into the White House, including taking their turns on the press rota (the “pool”). He claims they print lies and left-wing propaganda so he won’t invite them into his home
His diktat will stop these media outlets reporting with first-hand information, which will only be available to the parts of the media which are not critical of Trump – the very opposite to the right of a free press, which, along with free speech, is guaranteed by the US Constitution.
Trump also needs the press to be vilified. The ban makes it look like parts of the press are propaganda sheets for the US Democrats: this encourages Republicans to go out and vote and will provide an excuse if the vote is close or even lost. Trump can claim it is another election illegally stolen from him. The stakes are high. Losing even one part of Congress will weaken Trump on the international stage – just as he is trying to find a settlement to all the wars he thinks he has won.
The ban has, at least for the moment, brought the press together to defend their constitutional rights. The three media outlets affected are taking legal action on the basis that the ban is unconstitutional and was decided without due process. More immediately, media outlets are not taking their places on the White House media rota. When the turn of a banned outlet comes up, there will be no cameras.
This war of words is another one that Trump will find hard to win.
●Read more about it:
Trump: war aim or just a very bad joke?
Is Trump trying to wreck the world economy?
