The Daily Escape:
Bishop Creek, Eastern Sierras, CA – October 2021 photo by Scott McReynolds
CNNâs Brian Stelter asked on Sunday:
âWe know what Trump will do….So what will the rest of us do?â
Heâs talking about the continuing slow rolling coup inspired by the Big Lie, thatâs rolling across America. Stelter presented a scenario about how Trumpism might dim our democracy between now and 2024. His perspective as a media reporter informs his view about how FOX news is reacting to the competition from OAN (One America News). He says that FOX is now simply feeding red meat to its viewers rather than reporting the news.
The result? Paranoia deepens, and Trumpâs Big Lie becomes gospel to Republicans. External reality retreats into the background for the Red Hats. More from Stelter:
âThereâs a clear difference between the people who pay for news…and want to know what is true, versus people who pay for views….of what they want to be true…â
Wrongo has been banging on about the state of journalism for the last few days, and not sorry, weâre doing it again.
After the attempted coup on Jan. 6, the prospect of political violence threatening a peaceful transfer of power has become a reality that America must face before itâs too late. Trumpists are dreaming publicly of violence, while a new poll by PRRI (margin of error of 2.1%), shows some scary data:
- 67% of all Americans disagree that the election was stolen.
- But 68% of Republicans overall, and 82% of respondents who trust Fox News more than any other news outlet, say they believe the 2020 election was stolen from Trump.
- That figure climbs to 97% for those who trust OAN and Newsmax more than any other news outlet.
- 18% of all Americans think resorting to violence may be necessary to save the nation. PRRIâs question was: âBecause things have gotten so far off track, true American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save our country.â
- The scary part is that 30% of Republicans agreed, while just 11% of Democrats agreed.
Stelterâs apocalypse scenario is that by 2024:
âNeighbors turn on neighbors….Normally easygoing local elections turn into existential battles….Threats of violence become real violence….while MAGA-media apps, broadcasters, and commentators justify stomping all over the Constitution as an attempt to save it.â
Letâs emphasize that this is a worst-case scenario. Stelter says âWe know it could happen because it has all happened before. Almost everything I have described has already happened in one form or another.â
More from the PRRI survey:
- 80% of Republicans said America is in danger of losing its culture and identity. Of the far-right television viewers, 98% agreed with this sentiment.
- 56% of Republicans said things have changed so much in America that they often feel like a stranger in their own country. 61% of Fox News viewers and 78% of Newsmax types agreed with this statement.
When youâve been around as long as Wrongo you remember the 1980s, when Reagan Republicans aspired to be the Party of hope and opportunity. Theyâre now the Party of blood and soil.
Much of this is made clear in the reporting by the WaPo and by others about the planning that led up to Jan. 6, and the efforts to spread the Big Lie after the attempted coup. The WaPo calls what happened in the aftermath a period of âContagionâ as Republican efforts to undermine the 2020 election began immediately after the Capitol attack. Since then:
- Nearly a third of the 390 GOP candidates around the country who have expressed interest in running for statewide office this cycle have publicly supported a partisan audit of the 2020 vote, downplayed the Jan. 6 attack, or directly questioned Bidenâs victory.
- Election officials in at least 17 states have collectively received hundreds of threats to their personal safety or their lives since Jan. 6, with a concentration in the six states where Trump has focused his attacks on the election results.
The full PRRI survey shows that for many Republicans the culture war is front and center, and for a significant minority, itâs close to being a literal war, not just a metaphorical one. They share a vision that Democrats wonât rest until thereâs a taco truck on every corner, and a drag queen story hour in every library, and so theyâre ready to fight.
The Trumpist Republicans have no interest in staving off political apocalypse. Theyâre interested in making it happen. Weâll see over the next few years whether the will of those who cherish democracy will prevail over those who reject facts and the rule of law.
Weâre going to find out soon which groupâs will to survive is stronger.
I believe the major key to understanding Trumpism is that:
“80% of Republicans believe America is … losing its culture and identity and 56% … often feel like a stranger in their own country.”
When people feel like this, they will believe obvious lies simply because they want to believe them.
I feel we are at a time similar to when Germany was full of unrest. And the brownshirts are already there. but there are no “reds” to push back. At 70, I am not one to take action but I am worried still.
Yet these same Republicans [L Bobert 4 eg.] claim to be a Christian. And that USA is a Christian country. Their stance and their demeanor thoroughly belie their claim. As Gandhi said to the colonizers of his time “I know your Christ, I like your Christ, but you all bear no semlance of Christ.”