There's a large region of the right-wing media ecosystem that is littered with those always-disappointing carbon-snake fireworks. Touch one of them with a spark and it springs to life, pushing out an unbroken chain of detritus. Eventually it dies out, leaving a mess, but there are other sparks and other snakes still to be lit.
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On Tuesday, filings from Donald Trump's federal indictment served as a spark. The mess that followed was unusual only in its hyperbole: because the FBI included documentation about how to handle contingencies in its August 2022 search of Mar-a-Lago, including limiting the use of firearms, this meant that the FBI — no, Attorney General Merrick Garland — no, President Biden himself! — wanted to have Trump killed. This was not true, but for a political movement centered around a presidential candidate who casts himself as a victim, the idea was irresistible.
“Newly-released court documents reveal that Joe Biden's DOJ authorized the use of DEADLY FORCE in its raid of President Trump's home,” Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), a fervent Trump ally, wrote on social media. “This is insane & this is what the political weaponization of our federal government looks like in real time.”
It wasn't insane; when the bureau executes any search, there is some chance that things might go south. So there are standard procedures and verbiage to set expectations about how such problems might be handled. But this isn't as exciting or politically useful as “why did Biden personally try to shoot Donald Trump?” The spark created a chain of detritus.
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Usually, these flare-ups remain unexamined. But when Donalds joined CNN host Abby Phillip on Thursday, she pressed him on this one.
“You and others have described it as an assassination attempt on the former president,” Phillip said. “That's just not true. Why would you say something like that?”
Donald's response was a series of redirections. Well, the FBI agents didn't want to search Mar-a-Lago. Well, this was politically motivated. Well, it was so that footage of the search would air on TV. (It didn't.)
Phillip noted that the FBI's search for classified documents at properties owned by Joe Biden included similar language. Donalds pivoted to accuse Biden of violating the Espionage Act.
“Congressman,” Phillip pressed, “I'm talking about the conspiracy theory that the FBI was trying to assassinate Trump. Would you acknowledge that that is not true?”
He would not, instead again criticizing Biden.
“Congressman, I just want to note that you are not responding to a very simple question about a conspiracy theory that you voiced,” Phillip said.
The exchange continued:
“Is it because the former president himself has raised this conspiracy that you feel like you have to support him?” Phillip asked. Donalds again tried to turn the question around.
Finally, Phillip stopped trying to wring blood from the rock.
“When you tell your supporters and the former president's supporters that there was a government attempt on the former president's life, and that is not true,” she said, “that is a major insinuation, and it deserves to be walked-”
“A government attempt?” Donalds interjected. “You have-”
“It deserves to be walked back, Congressman,” Phillip replied.
“I would argue right now, if you look at the actions of Jack Smith and Merrick Garland,” Donalds said, “there is an attempt to incarcerate Donald Trump over foolishness because they cannot win a political election.” And so on.
There is a theory about American politics, if not adulthood in general, that it is incumbent on people to own their mistakes. That if you are shown to have said something false and sit in a position of authority, that you have a responsibility, if only to yourself, to acknowledge the mistake. But this is not how the Donald Trump universe operates. Trump's political armor has always been his indifference to this mechanism, his immunity to shame. And his supporters have seen that it works.
A simple cost-benefit analysis of his CNN appearance makes it obvious why Donalds took the approach he did. If he cops to exaggerating, he’s both displaying disloyalty to the narrative and showing weakness. If he doesn’t, if he digs in his heels and drops his talking points, he gets CNN and The Washington Post and others calling him out — which is its own valuable currency in his political environment. Win-win, as has been the case for the past nine years.
Phillip effectively pointed out that Donalds was unable to defend his position and unwilling to acknowledge that he couldn’t and shouldn’t. Okay. In a day or two, there will be another spark and another carbon serpent.
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On Tuesday, filings from Donald Trump's federal indictment served as a spark. The mess that followed was unusual only in its hyperbole: because the FBI included documentation about how to handle contingencies in its August 2022 search of Mar-a-Lago, including limiting the use of firearms, this meant that the FBI — no, Attorney General Merrick Garland — no, President Biden himself! — wanted to have Trump killed. This was not true, but for a political movement centered around a presidential candidate who casts himself as a victim, the idea was irresistible.
“Newly-released court documents reveal that Joe Biden's DOJ authorized the use of DEADLY FORCE in its raid of President Trump's home,” Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), a fervent Trump ally, wrote on social media. “This is insane & this is what the political weaponization of our federal government looks like in real time.”
It wasn't insane; when the bureau executes any search, there is some chance that things might go south. So there are standard procedures and verbiage to set expectations about how such problems might be handled. But this isn't as exciting or politically useful as “why did Biden personally try to shoot Donald Trump?” The spark created a chain of detritus.
Follow Election 2024
Usually, these flare-ups remain unexamined. But when Donalds joined CNN host Abby Phillip on Thursday, she pressed him on this one.
“You and others have described it as an assassination attempt on the former president,” Phillip said. “That's just not true. Why would you say something like that?”
Donald's response was a series of redirections. Well, the FBI agents didn't want to search Mar-a-Lago. Well, this was politically motivated. Well, it was so that footage of the search would air on TV. (It didn't.)
Phillip noted that the FBI's search for classified documents at properties owned by Joe Biden included similar language. Donalds pivoted to accuse Biden of violating the Espionage Act.
“Congressman,” Phillip pressed, “I'm talking about the conspiracy theory that the FBI was trying to assassinate Trump. Would you acknowledge that that is not true?”
He would not, instead again criticizing Biden.
“Congressman, I just want to note that you are not responding to a very simple question about a conspiracy theory that you voiced,” Phillip said.
The exchange continued:
This pattern went on for a few more minutes, with Phillip demanding that Donalds acknowledge that the claims he and his allies made were nonsense and Donalds instead talking about all the various ways that Democrats were bad — generally using language that was no more accurate than the claims about the Mar-a-Lago search.
“Is it because the former president himself has raised this conspiracy that you feel like you have to support him?” Phillip asked. Donalds again tried to turn the question around.
Finally, Phillip stopped trying to wring blood from the rock.
“When you tell your supporters and the former president's supporters that there was a government attempt on the former president's life, and that is not true,” she said, “that is a major insinuation, and it deserves to be walked-”
“A government attempt?” Donalds interjected. “You have-”
“It deserves to be walked back, Congressman,” Phillip replied.
“I would argue right now, if you look at the actions of Jack Smith and Merrick Garland,” Donalds said, “there is an attempt to incarcerate Donald Trump over foolishness because they cannot win a political election.” And so on.
There is a theory about American politics, if not adulthood in general, that it is incumbent on people to own their mistakes. That if you are shown to have said something false and sit in a position of authority, that you have a responsibility, if only to yourself, to acknowledge the mistake. But this is not how the Donald Trump universe operates. Trump's political armor has always been his indifference to this mechanism, his immunity to shame. And his supporters have seen that it works.
A simple cost-benefit analysis of his CNN appearance makes it obvious why Donalds took the approach he did. If he cops to exaggerating, he’s both displaying disloyalty to the narrative and showing weakness. If he doesn’t, if he digs in his heels and drops his talking points, he gets CNN and The Washington Post and others calling him out — which is its own valuable currency in his political environment. Win-win, as has been the case for the past nine years.
Phillip effectively pointed out that Donalds was unable to defend his position and unwilling to acknowledge that he couldn’t and shouldn’t. Okay. In a day or two, there will be another spark and another carbon serpent.
