Posted on 07/19/2015 10:50:53 AM PDT by servo1969
Republican elites and the liberal media are piling on GOP front-runner Donald Trump today after his comments yesterday on Sen. John McCain.
Trump attacked John McCain after the Arizona senator called Trump’s conservative supporters a bunch of crazies.
Here is Trump’s full speech from yesterday.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJNfbthf9GA
Investigative reporter Sharyl Attkisson defended Donald Trump today after the media onslaught over his comments on Saturday.
Donald Trump appears to have gotten under the skin of not only Democrats, but also fellow Republicans and the news media. Has that subjected Trump, a Republican presidential candidate, to unfair and/or inaccurate reporting?
An article in the Washington Post today is headlined, “Trump slams McCain for being ‘captured’ in Vietnam.”
The article’s lead sentence states, “Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump slammed Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), a decorated Vietnam War veteran, on Saturday by saying McCain was not a war hero because he was captured by the North Vietnamese [emphasis added].”
Is this report accurate?
In fact, Trump’s actual quote is the opposite of what is presented in the Post’s first sentence.
Discussion
1. The Post did not provide context at the outset disclosing that McCain and Trump have been feuding, with McCain characterizing some Trump supporters as “crazies” and Trump stating that McCain graduated last in his class in Annapolis. The charged rhetoric continued at the conservative Family Leadership Summit in Ames, Iowa this weekend.
2. When a panelist characterized McCain as a “war hero,” the Post is accurate in reporting that Trump initially said McCain is “not a war hero.” But then, Trump immediately modified his statement saying– four times– that McCain is a war hero:
“He is a war hero.”
“He’s a war hero because he was captured.”
“He’s a war hero, because he was captured.”
“I believe, perhaps, he’s a war hero. But right now, he’s said some very bad things about a lot of people.”
3. Did Trump say McCain is not a war hero because he was captured? No, not in the exchanges represented in the Post.
4. Is the Post’s characterization an accident? It would appear not, because it is repeated in the Post’s caption of the video clip, which also states: “Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), a decorated Vietnam war veteran, was not a war hero because he was captured by the North Vietnamese [emphasis added].”
Further, in the Post’s second sentence, Trump is quoted as stating of McCain, “He’s not a war hero…He’s a war hero because he was captured,” but the article selectively left out the phrase Trump had uttered in between: “He is a war hero.”
Conclusion
Trump actually said the opposite of what the Post lead sentence and video caption claim. The Post might have been able to get away stating that Trump “implied” McCain was not a war hero because McCain was captured, but even that would have been a subjective interpretation since Trump had actually stated the opposite.
It’s true that Trump stated one time that McCain is not a war hero. But Trump stated four times that McCain is a war hero–and that was not accurately characterized in the article.
When you are running for President, how you phrase something is important. The media doesn’t care that he said that Trump said McCain was a hero as an afterthought. They only care that he said that McCain was not a hero. Be careful what you say is the lesson. But Trump is saying he owns his words so he is fine with the characterization being presented in the media obviously.
Hmmmm! I just posted Sharyl’s article but it was taken down wonder why. No matter. What amazes me is that the other Republican candidates are taking what the press says at face value and attacking Trump.
Boy! If Trump survives and thrives he will win!
Hmmmm! I just posted Sharyl’s article but it was taken down wonder why. No matter. What amazes me is that the other Republican candidates are taking what the press says at face value and attacking Trump.
Boy! If Trump survives and thrives he will win!
What a disgusting bunch.
All of the GOP wannabes who rushed to denounce Trump over his mis-reported comments have cooked their respective gooses with me.
Wouldn’t give a farthing for the lot of them.
Poltroons all.
They will twist what Trump says. Trump is showing more courage than all of them combined.
Pass this around to email and Facebook!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hr37eE0nO8&feature=youtu.be
The problem is that Trump ducked the draft and simply should not have gone there. Where he should have gone is after McCains gang of 8 support for amnesty. He could have got two birds with one stone there, McCain and Rubio. A simple ‘John McCain and Marco Rubio, plutocrats from the gang of eight, think their constituents are crazy for not supporting amnesty for illegals who commit numerous felonies’. Then let McCain jump of the deep end.
Very true. This attack on Trump is showing us who the good guys are and who the bad ones are in the GOP line-up.
Sheryl is a respected journalist. I appreciate her work here. Not that Trump needs defending.
Frank Luntz, who was leading the Q&A session, repeatedly protested, “He’s a war hero.”
Trump responded, “He’s a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren’t captured, okay? I hate to tell you.” Trump re-iterated, “He’s a war hero because he was capture, okay? You can have — and I believe — perhaps he’s a war hero, but right now, he said some very bad things about a lot of people. So, what I said is, John McCain, I disagree with him, that these people aren’t crazy.”
Sorry Naps,,what you are advocating for sounds a lot like PC-speak.
The bigger message carries. It’s the craven hyenas that want to dissect word by word.
trump will figure it out.
So far Trump is at the center of the stage. That is his m.o. He will figure out what he needs to do. No worries.
People like trump because he doesn’t lie.
So when the media and the panty-wetting Statist party (both R and D) continue lying to try and win, they hurt themselves worse.
Ha!
WEll, there’s still time.
You’re correct and not only that - Trump could give a rat’s arse about being PC!
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