The US Presidency 2018

[PPCLI Guy]

If the CBC were CTV or Global, you'd have a point.

Thanks.  I am aware of the CBC's status and mandate.

I made no mention of the CBC in my post - indeed I deleted that part of the original article deliberately.

 

[Fishbone Jones]

Thanks.  I am aware of the CBC's status and mandate.

I made no mention of the CBC in my post - indeed I deleted that part of the original article deliberately.

Of the MSM, the CBC is so far left it makes Pravda blush. You can't speak about Canadian MSM  (or left leaning voters) without including the CBC..

 

[Edward Campbell]

I'm sorry to keep repeating myself, but: ALL media is biased about almost everything almost all the time ... hells' bells, I've even heard weather reports that sounded like advertising for the local tourist industry. Some media outlets, like the Toronto Star are up front about their institutional bias, others, like the CBC, try to deny it ~ which is dishonest.

In my opinion the Canadian mainstream media is reasonable balanced, across the board, given e.g. The Star and the CBC being on the left, as recceguy says, the Globe and Mail and CTV being, roughly in the centre, and the National Post (especially the Financial Post)  the Sun Media chain and Global TV being pretty firmly right of centre. There is no right wing media in Canada because, as PPCLI GUY points out, very correctly, there is no market for it.

If you withdrew CBC's massive public subsidy and got the CRTC out of the content (censorship) business then I suspect that CTV would slide left, towards The Star and the Globe and Mail and Global TV would occupy the centre and centre right bit of the bias spectrum and the National Post, the Sun chain and a few new, independent, local TV stations ~ former CBC licences will have real value in Greater Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, South Western Ontario, maybe Ottawa (it's hard to say, it's a small market and it already over-served) Montreal and, maybe Halifax ~ will have the right of centre area. I doubt there will ever be enough 'market' to support a 'Trump Party' TV station,  much less a network in Canada.

My  :2c:  ... worth precisely what you're paying for it.

 

[Rifleman62]

ERC:

.....Global TV being pretty firmly right of centre.

Your joking are you not? Possibly before Shaw Communications purchased in 2010, not now.

Global TV Washington correspondent just spits out half the story, leaving the facts out. Never seen him a WH press meeting so maybe he gets his feed from the Washington post.

 

[PPCLI Guy]

You can't speak about Canadian MSM  (or left leaning voters) without including the CBC..

It is clear that you can't - I on the other hand certainly can, given that I spoke of media as a group, and felt no compunction to single out specific outlets, or to list all of them.

 

[Fishbone Jones]

It is clear that you can't - I on the other hand certainly can, given that I spoke of media as a group, and felt no compunction to single out specific outlets, or to list all of them.

Kinda like stacking the deck in poker. Make sure your narrative fits your opinion, even if you leave the elephant outside.

 

[tomahawk6]

The political leaning of most of the media I think has its roots at college where they learned journalism. US journalists and their foreign brethren seem to be the same. Their are some exceptions like business media. But climate warriors seem to be found in the science or weather section. US college campii have evolved into some radical places. I wonder why the States don't crack down on their state universities. I saw first hand while my dad went through journalism school at Wisconsin back in the late 60's. One of his professors was an unapologetic communist and the university ROTC was almost run off campus.If you are in uniform you must be a baby killer even though the military was a draftee force then.

 

[FJAG]

Something to look forward to.

Bob Woodward: Trump's aides stole his papers 'to protect the country'
By Jeremy Herb, Jamie Gangel and Dan Merica, CNN

(CNN)WARNING: This story contains graphic language.

President Donald Trump's closest aides have taken extraordinary measures in the White House to try to stop what they saw as his most dangerous impulses, going so far as to swipe and hide papers from his desk so he wouldn't sign them, according to a new book from legendary journalist Bob Woodward.
Woodward's 448-page book, "Fear: Trump in the White House," provides an unprecedented inside-the-room look through the eyes of the President's inner circle. From the Oval Office to the Situation Room to the White House residence, Woodward uses confidential background interviews to illustrate how some of the President's top advisers view him as a danger to national security and have sought to circumvent the commander in chief.

Many of the feuds and daily clashes have been well documented, but the picture painted by Trump's confidants, senior staff and Cabinet officials reveal that many of them see an even more alarming situation — worse than previously known or understood. Woodward offers a devastating portrait of a dysfunctional Trump White House, detailing how senior aides — both current and former Trump administration officials — grew exasperated with the President and increasingly worried about his erratic behavior, ignorance and penchant for lying.

Chief of staff John Kelly describes Trump as an "idiot" and "unhinged," Woodward reports. Defense Secretary James Mattis describes Trump as having the understanding of "a fifth or sixth grader." And Trump's former personal lawyer John Dowd describes the President as "a fucking liar," telling Trump he would end up in an "orange jump suit" if he testified to special counsel Robert Mueller.

"He's an idiot. It's pointless to try to convince him of anything. He's gone off the rails. We're in crazytown," Kelly is quoted as saying at a staff meeting in his office. "I don't even know why any of us are here. This is the worst job I've ever had."

. . .

See rest of article here.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/04/politics/bob-woodward-book-donald-trump-fear/index.html

 

[Infanteer]

Pretty damning, but not surprising....

 

[brihard]

And by Bob Woodward, no less. He is not a man easily dismissed by anyone. What a gong show.

 

[kkwd]

I don't see the book changing anybody's mind one way or the other. It will mostly be read by TV talking heads and internet analysts. General Kelly and General Mattis already came out and said his supposed quotes from them are full of crap.

 

[Infanteer]

It won't change anyone's mind, but this is a different case than the previous crackpot-style books.  Woodward has a couple Pulitzers, a fearsome reputation, and garnered a phone call from the President.  It's not that he's 100% accurate, but I'm less likely to take political dismissals (which Generals Kelly and Mattis are now) seriously.

 

[FJAG]

I don't see the book changing anybody's mind one way or the other. It will mostly be read by TV talking heads and internet analysts. General Kelly and General Mattis already came out and said his supposed quotes from them are full of crap.

Looking forward to seeing the sources for that allegation.

:cheers:

 

[CBH99]

His administration is like high school, except worse...

I work with a ton of high school kids & interact with a lot of them in their graduating year.  Even in the throws of the schoolyear, these kids are nothing compared to the "He said, she said..."  "No I didn't!"  nonsense that comes out of the White House these days.  It's truly unbelievable.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pq4M4YmO7xQ

John Kelly segment starts at the 3 minute mark roughly...


I'm still trying to find the quotes of John Kelly basically saying he's quit trying to intervene in attempts to blunt Trump's stupidity, and is instead just waiting for him to get himself impeached and/or convicted of various crimes. 

 

[Remius]

And by Bob Woodward, no less. He is not a man easily dismissed by anyone. What a gong show.

Nope.  He’s pretty legit and you can bet he has transcripts and recordings of his interviews. 

 

[tomahawk6]

Woodwards book is loaded with "anonymous" quotes.

 

[tomahawk6]

Here is Trump's response.

President Trump argued Wednesday that Bob Woodward's book on his presidency is so bad that Congress ought to consider changes to U.S. libel laws.
“Isn’t it a shame that someone can write an article or book, totally make up stories and form a picture of a person that is literally the exact opposite of the fact, and get away with it without retribution or cost,” Trump tweeted. “Don’t know why Washington politicians don’t change libel laws?”

 

[Oldgateboatdriver]

Nothing wrong with US libel laws.

If you are dealing with  totally made up stories that form a picture that is the complete opposite of the facts about a person - and it's a negative one, that IS libel under US laws.

However, Trump would have to prove that they are made up and the opposite of the truth before a civil jury, with all of his White House personnel being called in to testify under oath about the facts.

 

[Pelorus]

Woodwards book is loaded with "anonymous" quotes.

As was stated above by Infanteer, Woodward's reputation as a top-tier investigative journalist is well established.  That's why, IMO, this book will hold significantly more weight than "Fire and Fury", or the one that Omarosa put out.  I suspect that there are not too many people left out there who remain neutral on their position on Trump, but who knows.


On a related note, Trump recently tweeted his position on anonymous sources:

Unfortunately, old tweets last forever:

:dunno:

 

[tomahawk6]

The hunt is on for the author of the NYT op ed and for those that spoke to Woodward. 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/the-sleeper-cells-have-awoken-trump-and-aides-shaken-by-resistance-op-ed/2018/09/05/ecdf423c-b14b-11e8-a20b-5f4f84429666_story.html?utm_term=.fb544e6fd5ec