This Week's Best Opinion Writing On President Trump
Welcome to Trump Takes, your weekly guide to the best opinion writing about the Trump presidency.
On Loyalty
Trump's Uses Lies As A Loyalty Test
According to Matthew Yglesias, President Trump doesn't care about the truth. He repeatedly tells falsehoods after being corrected. Why would he do this? For one, as he's written, he's willing to bend the truth for his own benefit and only cares about the outcomes of his statements, not the veracity. Secondly, his repeated falsehoods are a useful test for those around him: who will go to bat for what he says regardless of the content?
Clan Devotion Will Bring Down The Trump Administration
David Brooks, The New York Times
David Brooks argues in The New York Times Jared Kushner's clan mentality that was taught to him in New York real estate is bringing him down in the world of politics. According to Brooks, success in politics comes from bringing people into the fold, working within the rules, and not taking things personally. Clan-mentality divides insiders from outsiders, prioritizes loyalty and revenge, and sows distrust of anyone outside the clan. Looking at his mistakes (telling Trump to fire Comey, working with Russians behind the Obama administration's back, and shamelessly fighting with Steve Bannon) Kushner's failings can be traced back to his clan-mentality.
Trump's Taste For Loyalty Will Save Kushner...For Now
Despite Jared Kushner's recently revealed efforts to establish backchannel communications with the Russians while Obama was still in office, what many would consider espionage, President Trump will not fire him, Michael D'Antonio argues. The two share an extreme prioritization of loyalty, which will save Kushner's position for now. But D'Antonio argues that in the end, that loyalty will bring them both down, institutionalizing bad behavior a yes-manning the commander-in-chief.
On The Media
The Media Is Roasting Flynn Without A Trial
Typically, when a government official is accused of a high crime, evidence is collected before major conclusions are reached. But Eli Lake argues that in the media trial of Michael Flynn, the cart has been put before the horse. Lake says that while there's definitely evidence of minor infractions, the insinuation of treason is rampant, yet baseless.
Trump Is Just A Distraction
With the election of Donald Trump, the media licked its lips at its new job of reporting what was bound to be a gaff-heavy presidency. This job could be seen as part of keeping Trump accountable — not letting America slip into the idea that a Trump presidency is anything near normal. But, Francine Prose argues in The Guardian, the number of gaffs that Trump has made are becoming more of a distraction from the politics we should really be caring about, than an illustration of incompetence.
Trump Is Being Slammed By The Media, And It's His Own Fault
The media is gunning for Trump, but it's nothing to cry foul about. The President has repeatedly complained that he is a victim of media bias and "the deep state" — a network of bureaucrats that the administration says is set to undermine him. While both bias and the deep state exist, they've also existed for every other Republican president from the last 50 years, but that didn't stop them from being effective, argues Jay Cost in the conservative Weekly Standard. What's slowly killing Trump, is his own series of mistakes, gaffs, and blunders.