At White House briefings, in far-right outlets and among Republicans, Trump’s allies have made a sound stage out of protests across four city blocks.
President Donald Trump is conjuring up an American dystopia — using the government and his supporters as producers.
At White House briefings, in far-right outlets and among Republicans, Trump’s allies have made a sound stage out of four blocks in Portland, turning it into a campaign ad for the president. On Friday, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany showed a video of Portland protesters yelling obscenities at police. On Capitol Hill, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz on Thursday announced he would hold a hearing on “antifa terrorism” and wrote an op-ed promising to “take back Portland.” On Fox News, pundits have turned attention to other cities, such as Chicago, that they claim are in similar situations. In short, they say, it’s the America Joe Biden would create.
The theatrical display is giving Trump the ammunition he needs to fight perhaps his most aggressive culture war against urban, liberal voters. The effort is a subset of the broader “law and order” platform he is trying to create after the coronavirus pandemic decimated the economy — previously seen by Republicans as his best selling point — and massive anti-racism protests broke out across the country. It’s a foray Trump essentially launched the day he marched from the White House to the vandalized St. John’s Church, stopping to hold up a Bible and have his photo taken.
“I think he’s fishing around for an image, for optics that project the image he’s trying to retain,” said Seth Mandel, the executive editor of the right-leaning Washington Examiner magazine. “‘Law and order,’ as he says.”
Meanwhile, there is another image of Portland that has emerged outside of the Trump echo chamber. Local Portland media outlets — as well as most news organizations — have shown a scene that features mostly peaceful albeit vocal protesters taking up a few square blocks, spraying graffiti and lighting some fires. But the primary debate has been over the right of unmarked federal officers to enter the city, fire tear gas on unarmed marchers and toss protesters into unmarked vehicles without formally arresting them. In short, they say, it’s the America Trump has created.
It’s the latest split-screen reality of the last four years.
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At White House briefings, in far-right outlets and among Republicans, Trump’s allies have made a sound stage out of four blocks in Portland, turning it into a campaign ad for the president https://t.co/BLDBIZlWyH
— POLITICO (@politico) July 25, 2020
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