Donald Trump took the unprecedented and dangerous step on Monday of going after former intelligence officials who criticize him – and it started with a Fox News segment.
According to NBC News national security reporter Ken Dilanian, the White House threat to revoke security clearance for ex-intel officials originated from a Tucker Carlson report.
“There’s a whole machinery in place,” Dilanian said. “This looked completely orchestrated to us.”
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National security reporter @KenDilanianNBC explains the crazy origin of Trump’s decision to attack former intelligence officials. #ctl #p2 #Trump #FoxNews pic.twitter.com/NswJguHagJ
— PoliticusUSA (@politicususa) July 24, 2018
The NBC News reporter explained:
There’s a whole machinery in place. This started with a story on Fox News with Tucker Carlson. Then it went to Breitbart. And then Rand Paul started raising questions about it. This looked completely orchestrated to us, many of us who were watching this unfold. Then it went into the White House briefing room. And now the president is threatening to revoke the security clearances of American patriots who served both Republicans and Democrats.
Fox News is running the country
Donald Trump doesn’t listen to experts, and there are very few – if any – level-headed adults who remain in the White House.
Instead, the void left behind by Trump’s ignorance and a lack of sensible advisers has been filled by the dangerous spewings of conspiracy theorists on Fox News.
This is increasingly true given the fact that former Fox News co-president Bill Shine is now running the communications team at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Trump may have an official cabinet, but it’s Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, Jesse Watters, Jeanine Pirro, Laura Ingraham and the three know-nothings on Fox & Friends, among many others, who do the real agenda-setting.
These right-wing talking heads likely don’t even believe half the nonsense they air during their programs, but the most powerful person in the world certainly does.
As a result, the actions taken by the United States president are dictated by a cable television network that knowingly spews falsehoods on an hourly basis.
Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.
