36 thoughts on “Toe-curlingly Torturous”

  1. while awaiting our fearless leader’s critique of the hopefully last hurrah of the T-word’s townhall on CNN lastnight, here’s some more of that Guardian analysis by David Smith:

    Donald Trump, the former US president appearing on CNN for the first time since that fateful election year, lied and lied and lied. He was a leviathan of lying, a juggernaut of junk, an ocean liner of mendacity that left little boats of truth spinning and overturning in its wake.
    Trump called a Black police officer a “thug”. He made racist comments about Chinatown in Washington. He described host Kaitlan Collins as a “nasty person”. He made fun of a woman he sexually abused as a “whack job”. He refused to say whether he wants Russia or Ukraine to win the war.
    Given the 45th president’s inability to change, it was the definition of shocking but not surprising. What may have come as a rude awakening to the pundit class is that many in the audience in Manchester, New Hampshire, were lapping it up and cheering him on. Some gave Trump a standing ovation as he walked in. Some clapped and hollered at his responses. Some laughed or put their hands to their mouths, visibly thrilled by his “Can he really say that?” taboo-busting.
    Anyone taken aback by these reactions has not been paying attention to Trump rallies, where being outlandish and outrageous and cruel is the point. Although CNN’s decision to devote more than an hour of prime time to Trump backfired horribly, it did perform the service of forcing the American public to look at itself in the mirror.
    The vocal support for Trump made this feel like a home fixture. CNN political commentator Van Jones likened Collins to a white suited matador against Trump’s bull in familiar blue suit, white shirt and red tie. It was less town hall than a debate, Trump versus Collins, lies versus truth. Truth didn’t stand a chance. Trump, 76, was like a child with crumbs around his mouth repeatedly telling a parent (Collins, 31) that he didn’t take the last cookie.
    […]
    It was toe curling, not-knowing-where-to-look bad television reminiscent of Trump appearing with women who accused Bill Clinton of rape and unwanted sexual advances before he debated Hillary.
    As the torture continued, Collins could have been forgiven for thinking her bosses have got it in for her: first a morning show with Don Lemon, now a dark night of the soul with Caligula. She held her own at some moments but was overwhelmed by the geyser of deceit and missed follow-ups at others.
    [continues and concludes with]
    When the ordeal was over, the ghosts of 2016 were everywhere and the grim expressions in the CNN studio said it all. Host Jake Tapper admitted: “We don’t have enough time to fact check every lie he told.”

  2. Old Berman says: cnn’s new [fascist-leaning] owners are trying to siphon off Faux viewers by using paste-eater Chris Licht, the ultimate lackey; once head-lackey for scarbro when the scar was still cheerleading for little bush.

    Old Berman:
    All mainstream American news organizations must today solemnly and unflinchingly look inward after what happened last night and understand that if you simply assume as CNN did that if you apply the journalistic rules of 20, 50, or 150 years ago to a candidate who will speak any lie, who will slander any person, who will manipulate any fear, who will betray any and all aspects of democracy, you will inherit the wind. CNN handed over 70 minutes of its primetime, and all of its remaining credibility, to a madman, to a criminal, to a liar, to a would-be dictator. It gave him an audience of braying cult members who gave him not one critical nor even less-than-fawning question. It gave him a moderator whom he ignored, mocked, insulted, lied to, lied about, and who in turn thought everything would be fine if she simply responded to his lies by saying “no you’re wrong.”
    CNN must fire its CEO Chris Licht for birthing a journalistic abomination unprecedented in American television history last night; Its new owners must sell the network whose brand they irreparably damaged last night. E. Jean Carroll needs to sue Donald Trump for the new defamatory comments he made about he last night; And moderator Kaitlan Collins needs to sue her agent for ending her career last night.
    Last night, CNN legitimized the lies and the feral venom of Donald Trump. And for whatever shamed remorse might leak out of that organization today and in the days ahead; for whatever sober self-reflection might be done at the New York Times or The Washington Post or the other outlets who may have now seen what happens when you apply the laws of honest journalism in a democracy to a man who will not and cannot even consider honesty or democracy; for whether or not some editor really stopped someone writing “Trump lied to and abused America for 70 minutes last night; here’s why that’s bad news for Joe Biden”…for whatever regret felt, or lesson learned.. there will be others who will look at the ratings as they come out later today and say “Did you see those numbers? We need to do one of those right away!”
    It was a disaster from start to finish. And the bottom line is: CNN as a credible news organization, as the FIRST credible full-time American television all-news organization – THAT’S what’s finished.

  3. more maga trope oldies but definitely not goodies:

     

    Attribution: Crisis du Jour by Dave Whamond, Canada, PoliticalCartoons.com

  4. I did not watch CNN last night, the same as for at least the last fifteen years.  There was no reason to, I do not watch sfb or CNN.  From the comments spread around on twit and other locations the orange idiot was still lying about everything and anything.  I do wonder how many people will have attorneys filing cases against him.  Hopefully he said some stupid stuff that would get the attention of a certain judge who told him “no”.
     

  6. sturge, thanks for posting that berman piece.  worthy of a repost is his observation:

    CNN handed over 70 minutes of its primetime, and all of its remaining credibility, to a madman, to a criminal, to a liar, to a would-be dictator. It gave him an audience of braying cult members who gave him not one critical nor even less-than-fawning question. It gave him a moderator whom he ignored, mocked, insulted, lied to, lied about, and who in turn thought everything would be fine if she simply responded to his lies by saying “no you’re wrong.”

  7. The Fox is Dead…..Long live the CNN.  
    Said the rabidly right-wing owner walruses in the next room.

  8. the gong show returned last night on CNN.

    anyone remember these?


    and

    Lovable Robot gets his big break in this 1977 episode of the Gong Show.

  9. Axios

    Forget the theatrics in former President Trump’s falsehood-filled town hall on CNN, and the Twitter-bubble hysterics. Trump actually made lots of news at Saint Anselm College in Goffstown, N.H., last night, Axios’ Alex Thompson and Sophia Cai report:

    • He inserted himself into the delicate negotiations over the debt ceiling and said congressional Republicans should let the U.S. government default unless Democrats agree to “massive” budget cuts.
    • He downplayed the potential fallout from a default, saying it’s largely “psychological” and could be “a bad week, or a bad day.”
    • He promised to pardon “a large portion” of his supporters who rioted at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, while saying that “a couple of them probably got out of control.”
    • Asked five times whether he’d sign a national abortion ban, Trump never said yes or no. “President Trump is going to make a determination what he thinks is great for the country,” he said.
    • He refused to call Vladimir Putin a war criminal over the killing of Ukrainian civilians: “If you say he’s a war criminal, it will be a lot tougher to get a deal to get this thing stopped.”
    • He repeatedly dodged whether he wants Ukraine or Russia to win.
    • He refused to commit to recognizing the 2024 election results unless he deems it an “honest election.”

    Read the story

    I would add this was the first time I heard him directly take full credit for abolishing Roe v. Wade. That TV ad writes itself.

  10. A gem from the rumour pages, a little voice in the mens room is spreading something about Manchin running as a third party president type thing.  Yeah, the guy is earning his money stopping President Biden from doing things.

  11. My hope is a lot of people who saw last night’s fiasco and haven’t paid much attention to Trump for a while were shocked at how he’s become even more vile and disgusting in the last couple years. If so, CNN did us a favor. I cannot imagine any chance that he attracted swing voters who cost him defeat in 2020. And the more they see him the less they like him.

  12. Short Story of the Week:
    “Hills Like White Elephants”
    by E. Hemingway

  13. Saddest thing I have seen today are a couple of pictures of Senator Feinstein taken earlier this week, Tuesday on her return.  It looks like she may have had a stroke of some level, but with modern science and medical arts was not heavily damaged by it.  Worse has been covered up in the past, see President Wilson.
     
    If this is correct she joins another senator who has had one.

  14. Yeah…  I didn’t watch a second of it either.  Watched a playoff basketball game instead.
     
    Yes…  my state of NH has it’s share of crazies… like every other state.  The good news is they are a significant minority…  and like most of those… they are loud!
     
    so…. what…

  15. hey.. I don’t know what to think of CNN… but this is what greeted me this morning…
     
     

  16. Renee and I were watching the same thing.  I just couldn’t bring myself to even flip to the craziness during commercials.  What little I saw was what they replayed on MoJo while Joe was ranting and raving about Dumbass. Apparently the only counsel Dumbass is getting these days is his own.

  18. https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/10/investing/premarket-stocks-trading/index.html

    “A lengthy default would wipe out about 8.3 million jobs and bring unemployment 5 percentage points higher, economists at the White House said last week. Even under a shorter default, the economy would suffer the loss of about half a million jobs and the unemployment rate would rise by 0.3 percentage points, they said.”

    Republicans want to tank the economy to hurt Biden, and they don’t care how many Americans suffer if they do. It’s not just the millions of jobless, but many of those faceless numbers have families. Republicans are willing to hurt families, they are willing to hurt kids. 
     
     
    Remind me, how many times did Republicans raise the debt ceiling under tRUMPsky?   1-2-3

  19. https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/08/allen-mall-shooting-right-wing-death-squad/

    “The man who killed eight people at a Dallas-area mall wore extremist insignia, posted racist and misogynistic screeds and praised Nazis online.”

    “…Mauricio Garcia, who was killed by police during Saturday’s attack at Allen Premium Outlets, had neo-Nazi tattoos and beliefs. Garcia also wore a patch during the killing spree that said “RWDS” — an acronym for “right wing death squad” — and while police have yet to announce a motive for the attack, journalists have uncovered a trove of social media posts in which the gunman fantasized about violence and glorified the Third Reich.”

    “The Tuesday announcement contradicts days of claims by prominent conservatives — including U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia — who pointed to Garcia’s name and presumed Hispanic ethnicity to discount his potential ties to white supremacist movements.”

    “Seeing a recruitment opportunity, the Daily Stormer — arguably the most influential Nazi propaganda outlet in the world — began publishing in Spanish in 2017. And there is ample evidence that extremist views are on the rise among communities of color, despite often being couched in ideologies that perpetuate false notions of racial or ethnic hierarchy.”

    “Today, the RWDS patch is prevalent at events that feature neo-Nazis, Proud Boys or other far-right extremist groups, and you don’t often see it anywhere else.”

    “Often shortened to RWDS, “right wing death squad” has for years been a popular slogan among neo-Nazis and other extremist groups.”

    “And the slogan has a direct connection to political violence — specifically Augusto Pinochet, the CIA-backed dictator who murdered and tortured countless Chileans in the 16 years he led the country. Today’s far-right movements adore him.”

    “Texas is home to at least 52 hate groups, many of them active in the Allen area, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. And white supremacist propaganda incidents in Texas increased by 61% last year, fueled by what experts say is an increasing normalization of political polarization, hate speech and violence.”

    “Many of those groups and attackers have been animated by conspiracy theories that claim there is an intentional, often Jewish-driven effort to dilute white blood through immigration, LGBTQ rights and interracial marriage. Other attacks were fueled by rhetoric that depicts immigrants as “invaders” — a common trope among Republican Party leaders such as Gov. Greg Abbott, who has continued to use such language despite routine warnings of its danger. The gunman who killed 23 people at an El Paso Walmart in August 2019 said he wanted to stop the “Hispanic invasion of Texas.”

    “Several school shooters — including the perpetrators of mass killings in Santa Fe, Texas, and Parkland, Florida — have also espoused white supremacist views.”

    “Other mass shooters — including Garcia — reportedly held beliefs that are common among so-called “incels.” The term is shorthand for people who are “involuntarily celibate” and who frequently blame their lack of romantic success on feminism. The ideology is replete with misogyny, racism and antisemitism, and online “incel” communities have for years been targeted for recruitment by white supremacists and other extremist movements.”

    “Incel” ideology also has significant overlap with the broader “men’s rights” movement, which claims that men are losing power in society because of feminism. Such ideology was foundational to the spread of today’s far-right movements, particularly among disaffected young men in online gaming communities nearly a decade ago.”

    What a bunch of losers.  Dangerous losers.

  20. With luck, it will be 2020 all over again, the more normal folks see Trump the less they like him.
    Now an interesting polling question for Trump 2016 voters is: “do you feel the CNN Republican crowd reflects your vision of what the Republican party represents? ”
    BTW, I can’t boycott CNN, I don’t do cable news, so nothing that happened yesterday is in the least bit surprising. All cable news has the equvilance of “The  Gong Show” or worse Jerry Springer.
    My alternative was to watch a rerun of Conan the Barbarian. Kinda a nice little fun retro memory.
    Oh and for those who slogged through last nights, MAIN EVENT!!!!!!, (Insert pro-wrestling announcer voice. Wasn’t that what you saw?) thank you for your sacrifice.
    Jack
     

  21. I didn’t watch because I have a tendency to high blood pressure

    ps why were only Fatass supporters in the audience

  23. The CNN town hall is another example of supposed liberal trump-haters perpetuating his cult-of-personality: the only reason i know anything about it is due to the their complaining about it while simultaneously amplifying everything he said, literally no one but the political blogosphere gives a shit

  25. “another example of supposed liberal trump-haters perpetuating his cult-of-personality: the only reason i know anything about it is due to the their complaining about it while simultaneously amplifying everything he said”

     

    bink, that’s pretty much what michael steele (who BTW is no liberal, but the former RNC head back when GOPers cared about such things as democracy, law and order, etc) has been saying over and over to convince the media to stop being sucked into giving him free air time and some legitimacy he otherwise wouldn’t have gotten.

  26. Why did CNN do it. Hey when you are down and out. You have admit they are getting tons of free publicity.
    Jack

  27. steele gives one of the many examples of how the t-word used and uses the media

  28. The ratings are in and the twenty to forty (roughly) was lower than usual and the old farts who were going to vote for sfb anyhoo were the viewers.  Ooops.  AT lest the world is talking about how crummy CNN is now.

  31. He is a stupid stupid stupid man.  Even if he won’t speak honestly in public he must know that to
    goad her into suing him for the same offense; which he committed in front of a television audience
    I think Mitten’s words should be repeated loudly and often.
    “Utah Sen. Mitt Romney told reporters Donald Trump is “not suited to be president of the United States” after news broke that Trump was ordered to pay $5 million in damages to E. Jean Carroll, who accused the former president of raping her in a department store dressing room in the 1990s.In remarks to CNN, Romney said Trump should not be “who we hold up to our children and the world.”
    “A jury of President Trump’s peers found him responsible for sexual assault. I hope the jury of the American people reach the same conclusion, which is he is not fit to become President of the United States,” he told ABC.

    Report 

  32. The people who vote for him are not suited to be citizens of the United States. 

  33. Go, E Jean, go!  He can’t keep his fat trap from lying.  Go after him, again! 

  34. BB
    It is publicity, better they are talking bad about you rather than not talking about you at all. ; )
    Of course. the problem is they drive off all the good eyeballs, those advertisers want. So their next trick has to be even more over the top. Once you go Jerry Springer there is no going back.
    Jack

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