Yesterday afternoon, I watched a White House press briefing on YouTube. That’s an interesting exercise, in itself, and a good way to get a clear idea of what the Trump Administration is communicating without media gatekeeper spin.
An Asian female reporter for one of the mainstream media outlets repeatedly asked whether President regretted having used the “racist” term or phrase Kung-Flu to describe the Chinese coronavirus. The manner in which she spoke trumpeted the assumption that it is a matter of settled fact that Kung-Flu is a racist term and no right thinking individual would dispute that assumption. That struck me as nonsensical. I wish Ms. McEnany had said so, but because the Washington Press Corps is comprised of anti-Trump activists – as evidenced by their typically silly, clearly biased questions – she was kept busy playing a sort of Space-Invaders game responding to the group’s more egregious attempts to denigrate the work of the current administration.
I admire Ms. McEnany’s preparation. She frequently refers to organized material in a notebook on the podium from which she cites verifiable information in refutation of most of the claims made by the activist press corps on a given day. I also, to a degree, admire her patience with the often childish behavior and inane questions shouted at her by several of the activists in the room.
As a citizen, can you imagine wasting an opportunity to ask a member of the administration real questions about serious matters relevant to the well-being of the republic? What passes for journalism today is sorry spectacle irrelevant to the lives of most of this nation’s people.