Staunch Republicans may have loved President Trump’s long speech on Thursday night, but it’s easy to suspect that the journalists watching it were going to go beyond skeptical. Here’s how the Associated Press summed up: “Rebranding Trump, former president recalls shooting details but avoids policy details.” There wasn’t any policy in that speech? Did they expect Trump to read paragraphs from the Heritage Foundation?
NPR.org summed up the media themes: First came “A temporary appeal for unity,” which felt phony to them, followed by “Trump returns to familiar rhetoric.” They absorbed Trump’s recounting of the shooting, but seemed almost relieved when it went back to Build the Wall and Drill, Baby, Drill.
Seconds after it ended, the taxpayer-funded PBS News Hour anchors Amna & Geoff were dismissing it as grievances and “falsehoods.”
PBS right after the…
