Fox News Is Fighting for the War Inside Donald J. Trump's Mind!
A condensed overview of 16 hours of Fox News for the week ending 3/3/24.
Fox News and the shriveled corpse of what is left of the Republican Party have become warriors in battles created by the deluded fantasies of a cognitively impaired racist man-child. If Trump makes up a ridiculous scenario involving plots to fill the United States with deranged violent criminals and hapless mental patients Fox will dutifully repeat it.
One would think the network might have learned something after it paid out $787.5 million dollars in a defamation settlement to Dominion Voting Systems for knowingly lying about fraud in the 2020 election.
Fox News is as hooked to Donald J. Trump as their favorite proverbial punching bag Hunter Biden was to crack cocaine when he was using.
At some point Donald J. Trump decided Mexico and then later, every country on planet earth, was purposefully trying to undermine the United States by sending prisoners and mental patients across our southern border.
What makes Trump’s deep-seated fear and hatred of immigrants even more puzzling is the fact that not only did he marry two immigrants his mother emigrated from Scotland. Four of his five children also had immigrant mothers.
The network has established a pattern of repeating and promoting everything that Trump says. The network probably won’t face a multi-billion-dollar lawsuit as poor migrants are unlikely to combine forces to sue the network.
While Fox was promoting nonsense bout secret migrant wars the network largely ignored the Israel-Hamas war, the war in Ukraine and various other conflicts around the world.
Shows I watched last week:
Fox & Friends
The Five
Jesse Watters Primetime
Hannity - Thursday only
Fox News Continues to Exploit the Death of Laken Riley
On February 22 the body of a 22-year-old nursing student, Laken Riley, was found in a wooded area at the University of Georgia in Athens. Local law enforcement quickly apprehended a suspect, Jose Antonio Ibarra, 26, that was later revealed to be an immigrant from Venezuela.
Ibarra’s exact immigration status remains unknown.
Most right-wing media outlets pounced on the story as evidence that undocumented migrants were part of a wave of crime terrorizing most of the country. Several hosts on Fox News claimed without any supporting evidence that the Venezuelan government was releasing its prisoners so they could illegally emigrate to the United States.
Former President Donald J. Trump coined the phrase “migrant crime,” to describe what he called an invasion of military-aged men across the southern border.
The biggest problems with these theories is that rates of violent crime have dropped, no one has produced any credible evidence of a policy to release foreign prisoners inside the United States and studies have shown that migrants commit fewer crimes than native born Americans.
None of that mattered to Fox News. They had a horrific story about a young woman randomly killed by a Venezuelan immigrant and they were going to milk it for all it was worth.
On Thursday on Jesse Watters Primetime, the Fox News host employed a propaganda technique of using the actions of an individual to smear an entire nationality.
Watters started the segment by reading a headline from “The Atlanta Journal Constitution,”
“‘Not Fair’: After UGA Killing, Venezuelans in Georgia Worry About Backlash.”
Watters then implied that every Venezuelan might be a violent criminal.
“My gosh. The poor illegal immigrant Venezuelans who broke into the country are worried. Well, the Venezuelans should be worrying about the backlash. The media is worrying about illegal aliens worrying instead of worrying about how to stop Venezuelans from killing us. How about they worry about that?”
Language like this is especially dangerous as Watters is lumping all Venezuelans together as if they were a hive mind with one objective - to murder Americans.
There is a real danger that Venezuelan immigrants could become the target of violence for the actions of Ibarra.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics most female murder victims know their attacker. The percentage of women murdered by an intimate partner was five times higher than male murder victims.
Overall, 76% of female murders and 56% of male murders were perpetrated by someone known to the victim.
What happened to Riley was tragic and horrific but also quite rare. It makes sense that most undocumented immigrants would try to limit any exposure to law enforcement as it could trigger an investigation into their immigration status.
Donald J. Trump Calls the Border Crisis a Military Invasion
On Thursday former President Donald J. Trump visited Eagle Pass, Texas to view the border and make speeches about his plans to fix the border crisis.
Later that day on “The Five,” a Fox News producer cut up excerpts from Trump’s speech that were featured in a segment about his visit.
As Trump stood behind a lectern near the southern border flanked by border patrol agents, local law enforcement, and Texas Governor Greg Abbott he made several hyperbolic statements about illegal border crossings.
“This is a Biden invasion . . . Now the United States is being overrun by the Biden migrant crime. It's a new form of vicious violation to our country. It's migrant crime. . . Joe Biden will never say Laken Riley’s name, but we will say it and we will remember it. We're not going to forget her. . . And I'll say this. It's a military operation. I mean, we have a military this is like a war.”
The producers cut back to Jesse Watters on the set of the “The Five.”
“So, Donald Trump said her name, but I don't believe Joe Biden said Laken Riley's name. But the way he's making this into a military invasion really hits home with a lot of people and should be effective,” said Watters.
An actual military invasion would include an organized and trained army with lethal weapons. Un-armed individual migrants and families do not constitute a military invasion by any stretch of the imagination.
Who would lead such an army of disparate people? What is the objective of this figment of Donald J. Trump’s imagination?
Later that night on Jesse Watters Primetime the Fox News hosts ramped up his rhetoric.
“Protect the homeland from an illegal alien invasion. Donald Trump says Biden doesn't know it, but we're at war now. The president's allowing a cartel run Trojan horse military campaign into the heart of the homeland, and he's blaming Trump for it.”
Of course, Watters had nothing to back up what he said. Who were these specific cartels that had organized thousands of migrants to pretend they were passing over their border as individuals when they were really a secret military force.
I’d love to sit across from Watters and ask him the following questions.
Is it one cartel or several who have agreed to work together to take down the United States government? Are these secret sleeper cells planning to battle various national guard units?
Do they have the kind of weaponry needed to battle the largest, strongest, and best financed military in the world? What is the objective of this war?
Are 22-year-old nursing students a specific target in this war?
How is ‘migrant crime’ any different than crime? If migrant crime is any crime committed by migrants, would ‘white male crime’ be any crime committed by white males?
I’d love to force Watters to explain every single aspect of this so-called war.
Jessica Tarlov: Immigration is NOT the #1 Issue for Democrats
During the same segment on “The Five,” Jessica Tarlov, the liberal voice on the show, pointed out that Democratic voters view immigration differently than Republicans.
“Jesse is right that there are a bunch of people for whom immigration is their number one issue, but they all identify as Republicans. The latest Quinnipiac poll, for instance, has the number one issue for Democrats as preserving democracy, something that Joe Biden talks about a lot and obviously has a great case against Donald Trump,” said Tarlov.
Her co-host Jesse Watters interrupted her.
“Talk about Americans. In the latest Gallup poll, all Americans identify immigration as the top issue,” said Watters.
Tarlov responded, “Did you look at the breakdown of who said this?”
“I’m talking about Americans Jessica,” said Watters.
“Oh, we’re not red and blue?" asked Tarlov.
“No, there's some Democrats that also care about immigration,” said Watters.
“Yes of course, but ranking it as the number one issue and saying this is going to define the election has failed for Republicans repeatedly 2018 the caravans,” said Tarlov.
Watters interrupted her, “2016 Trump won on immigration.”
“I’m talking about 2018 and 2020 when we had these ‘caravans’ right, that you remember they stopped because it was an illusion that we were having a mass invasion and people didn’t like that kind of language.”
They’ll be Riots in the Streets Over Fani Willis
When Fox wasn’t pushing paranoia about the border crisis it was desperately trying to make the investigation into Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis the scandal of the century.
After a months-long investigation into possible election interference in the 2020 presidential election in Georgia a grand jury recommended criminal charges against Trump and 18 other co-defendants.
Willis is leading the prosecution against Trump and his associates in a RICO case.
In January Michael Roman, a former Trump campaign official, made accusations that Willis hired a lawyer to work on the case that she was romantically involved with. He also accused Willis of benefiting financially from the employment of Wade as the two went on trips together as a couple.
Willis and the lawyer, Nathan J. Wade, acknowledged that they had personal relationship but that it started after he was hired. Willis has also testified that she reimbursed Wade for her half of the travel expenses with cash.
After both sides submitted evidence and testimony it’s now up to a judge to decide whether to disqualify Willis from the case against Trump.
Fox News has revealed in the drama surrounding Willis.
On Friday Katie Pavlich, a Fox News host sitting in on “The Five,” made a ridiculous prediction.
“Can I just say one more thing about the judge and the pressure on the judge. He is appointed by the governor, Brian Kemp. And he has to get reelected. And he's in Fulton County, where Fani Willis is very popular. And given the way the left explodes and riots against decisions they don't like, there's a lot of pressure for him to keep her on.,” said Pavlich.
Jesse Watters added, “Are you saying the good people of Fulton County would riot?”
“I'm not saying. I'm saying there could be some consequences,” said Pavlich.
“That’s a high bar, even for the people of Fulton County,” said Watters as he openly laughed at her suggestion.
Jessica Tarlov chimed in.
“Yeah, I don’t think we’re going to be seeing a January 6th for Fani.”
Then Pavlich seemingly doubled down.
“Well maybe a summer of 2020.”
“Let's everybody stay calm in Fulton County except Nathan, you go.” said Watters.
Clutch Your Pearls - Other Media Companies are Biased!
Sandra Smith, one of the legit journalists at the network sat in Dana Perino’s chair on “The Five,” on Tuesday.
“Just looking at The New York Times, I was talking Larry Kudlow about a piece that they did today. Trump's got no plan on inflation. Every single day we look at the New York Times and we wonder the bias from which that particular writer is coming from. There's a quote in front of me that automatically says, this person's not being a journalist. They started from a place of party politics, assessing how a particular story could affect affect the election. That's not journalism. So immediately that removes you from the equation of being a journalist. I will defer my time.”
Anyone on Fox News clutching their pearls over another media organization’s lack of journalistic integrity has zero self-awareness. Fox New hosts don’t even try to hide their bias as they often use the pronoun “we” to describe the Republican Party. Last year over 94% of the elected officials who appeared on the network were Republicans.
Although some of the legit news team attempts to offer a more objective perspective Fox News at its core is a propaganda network.
I Hope Ruby Freeman’s Lawyer Watches Fox News
In December a jury awarded two former Georgia state election workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter Wandrea “Shaye” Moss just over $148 million in compensatory and punitive damages from Rudy Giuliani in a defamation suit.
According to the lawsuit Giuliani repeatedly lied about Freeman and her daughter falsely accusing them of committing election fraud.
Giuliani used a heavily edit video clip that he claimed showed Freeman and Moss exchanging a USB drive and pulling out what he claimed was a suitcase full of illegal ballots during the ballot counting process of the 2020 presidential campaign in Georgia.
Giuliani made these accusations against Freeman and Moss in multiple media appearances and across social media platforms for months. Freeman and her daughter faced aggressive harassment from Trump supporters who believed Giuliani’s lies.
In one terrifying incident supporters of the former president showed up at the home of Moss’s grandmother to make a citizen’s arrest.
On Wednesday on “Jesse Watters Primetime,” Lara Trump appeared to talk about her bid to become a co-chair of the RNC.
“If I am elected co-chair of the RNC, I can promise you we are laser focused on all of these things. We have to play this game better than the Democrats. We know their tricks. We know how they operate. We know they don't play things on the up and up. We will play everything legally, of course, But we have to do things like make sure that people get out and start early voting. We have to do things like legal ballot harvesting all across this country. We have to ensure that on Election Day we have so many votes banked for Donald Trump that it doesn't matter how many three and dumps they have or suitcases full of ballots. Donald Trump will be victorious,” said Trump.
Lara Trump’s comments would amount to defamation, but she was right on the edge of it as the claim of “suitcases full of ballots” is a specific reference to Freeman and Moss.
Jesse Watters Continues To Be the Biggest Creep on Fox News
On Friday on “The Five,” Jesse Watters turn a breathtaking heroic rescue into a tawdry romance novel plot point.
For a short segment on “The Five,” Fox News producers featured a short clip of a tractor trailer driver being rescued from her rig as the front half of it dangled precariously off the edge of the Clark Memorial Bridge in Louisville, Kentucky.
The driver was rescued by Firefighter Bryce Carden, 29, who rappelled down from the top of the bridge and hooked the woman into his harness. The rescue took nearly 40 minutes as the two were carefully hoisted back up onto the bridge above the water.
This was how Jesse Watters reacted to the media clip of the daring rescue.
“So, it was a female driver. Is that what I know? I'm just asking because I want to know from the females at the table who are all the female driver was rescued by that heroic, strapping young man. Do you think she has feelings for him now?” asked Watters.
Katie Pavlich, Jessica Tarlov and Gillian Turner erupted at his remarks.
Turner responded with, “that’s the worse question I’ve ever heard in my life.”
“Do you think if you're dangling in this man as you like this around and he's saving your life, do you think you might develop feelings? I think yes,” said Watters.
Jessica Tarlov cut him off, “The producers are actually trying to save your job, So I've got to move on.”
Stories Fox News Ignored
Every week I compare the hours I’ve watched on Fox News to five hours of the PBS NewsHour. The following list are stories PBS covered that Fox News did not.
Updates in the Israel-Hamas war
PBS produced a segment that included the video diary of Sam Sank, an IDF soldier who filmed himself during his deployment. Special correspondent Malcolm Brabant interviewed Sank in his family’s home in London. *This segment was not an endorsement of the IDF or the actions of the Israeli government.
In Northern Gaza Palestinians gathered to receive much needed food and humanitarian aid when IDF soldiers fired into the crowd. More than 100 people were killed and 700 injured in the chaos that followed. The Palestinians say that most of the victims were shot while the Israeli government has claimed that they were accidentally trampled and that their troops only fired when they felt endangered by the crowd.
The families of Israeli hostages staged a four-day march from Southern Israel to Jerusalem. As the families got closer to the capital thousands of Israelis joined them demanding the release of hostages held in Gaza. Many families of the hostages have expressed their anger and disgust that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not done enough to secure the safety of the hostages or negotiate for their release.
A leader of Hamas said they are considering a cease-fire but are also willing to keep fighting. The president of Egypt has said that an agreement could be reached within days.
Hamas claimed that seven more hostages were killed due to Israeli airstrikes and military operations in Gaza bringing the total number of hostages killed by the Israeli military to 70. Three of the men Hamas claimed were killed were aged 79, 80 and 85. They were all taken hostage on October 7th.
After being delayed due to the Israel-Hamas war, Israel held some local elections. Ultra-Orthodox and far-right parties saw gains although voter turnout was low in most areas.
Aaron Bushnell, a 25-year-old active-duty member of the U.S. Air Force set himself on fire outside the Israeli Embassy to protest U.S. policy in the Israel-Hamas war. He filmed his act of protest and posted it to the streaming platform Twitch. The social media platform has since removed the footage. Before he dosed himself in accelerate he said, “I will no longer be complicit in genocide,” as the flames consumed him he shouted “Free Palestine.” Law enforcement officers attempted to save his life. He later died of his injuries.
A quick note about the death of Bushnell. I’ve seen some criticize the media for not giving this story more focus. For decades most media companies have chosen to downplay suicides to avoid copy cat events. I’ve included a link to the American Psychological Association that explores this topic in detail.
Updates in the Ukraine War
During an annual speech to the nation Russian President Vladimir Putin said the West could risk nuclear war by directly helping Ukraine. Putin alluded to comments made by President Emmanuel Macron of France that NATO countries might send troops to help Ukraine.
Ukraine’s military said it had retreated from two more villages outside of the Eastern city of Avdiivka which was captured earlier this month by Russian forces.
In Russia a human rights campaigner, Oleg Orlov the co-chair of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization "Memorial", was found guilty of"repeatedly discrediting" the Russian armed forces. After the judge named his crime she sentenced Orlov to prison for two and a half years. Orlov remained defiant throughout the trial he sat in court reading a copy of ‘The Trial’, Franz Kafka's classic on the absurdity of life and injustice.
Hungary’s parliament ratified Sweden’s accession to NATO bringing the country one step closer to NATO membership. The vote comes 600 days after Sweden decided to join the alliance after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Biden admin. plans to block a merger between supermarket giants Kroger and Albertson’s citing the combined company would hurt competition and raise prices for consumers.
Xolair, a brand name for the asthma drug omalizumab, received FDA approval for severe food allergies. The medication has been available for asthma patients since 2003.
The first U.S. spacecraft to land on the moon launched by a private company landed on its side and went dark, as its solar panels are not at the right angle to receive sunlight.
Two men were convicted for the murder of Jam Master Jay. Over twenty years ago Run-D.M.C. star Jam Master Jay was gunned down in his recording studio. An anonymous Brooklyn federal jury found Karl Jordan Jr. and Ronald Washington guilty of killing Jay in 2002 over what prosecutors characterized as a drug deal gone wrong.
City supervisors in San Francisco apologized to African Americans and their descendants for decades of past racist policies. The vote was unanimous with all 11 board members signed on as sponsors of the resolution.
The Supreme Court will hear a case involving the legality of ‘bump stocks’ in semi-automatic weapons. Bump stocks can make a firearm operate more like an automatic weapon or machine gun. A bump stock was used in the 2017 mass shooting at a music festival in Las Vegas.
PBS produced a segment as part of its America at a Crossroads series that explored how governors were trying to ‘disagree better’ during this time of intense political polarization.
President Biden issued an executive order intended to safeguard the personal data of American citizens from China, Russia and other hostile countries.
The White House is leading an investigation into the national security risks of smart cars made in China that could gather sensitive information about the Americans driving them.
In Haiti four police officers were killed due to gang violence as the country continues its descent into lawlessness. The prime minister was in Kenya trying to get help with policing via the UN.
A Colorado paramedic , Peter Cichuniec, 51, was sentenced to five years in prison for the death of Elijah McClain. In 2019 McClain, a 23-year-old Black man, was stopped by police after a 911 call of a suspicious person. McClain was aggressively restrained and placed in a carotid chokehold. Paramedics then injected him with an overdose of the powerful sedative ketamine. McClain died in a hospital days later. He had committed no crime and had no criminal record.
CVS and Walgreens will start selling abortion medication in states where abortion is still legal. Access to the drug will require a prescription.
PBS produced a segment about Muhammad Yunus, an economist and advocate for the poor in Bangladesh. He was a pioneer in micro-lending to help lift women out of poverty. Yunus has received the Nobel Peace Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Congressional Medal of Honor. Yunus ran afoul of the prime minister is now facing criminal corruption charges that he and his many supporters have said are politically motivated.
Richard Lewis, comedian and actor died of a heart attack at the age of 76. Lewis was best known for his self-deprecating dark humor. He made his stand-up debut in 1971. In addition to performing live in comedy shows he worked in television appearing on “The Larry Sanders Show,” “Two and a Half Men,” and “Everybody Hates Chris.” Among his film work was the Mel Brooks spoof “Robin Hood: Men in Tights,” “Leaving Las Vegas,” and the screwball comedy “She’s Funny That Way.” His last role was a version of himself on the long-running comedy “Curb your Enthusiasm.”
I especially like reading well-written and short descriptions of what I — as well as Faux — missed on PBS Newshour.
Chock full of info, this piece. Thank you for decoding all that, at least making it less obnoxious than watching all that would be.