John,
Yesterday, Donald Trump sent federal troops into Washington, D.C. to “restore order” and fight a crime wave that doesn’t exist.
Data shows that violent crime in D.C. is down double digits in every major category this year, hitting a 30-year low. While many legacy news outlets noted these facts, most stopped there — never getting to why Trump was manufacturing the crisis in the first place.
But by treating this as just another “both sides” debate, the media is helping Trump hide his real goal — distracting the public from his Epstein ties — while downplaying the danger of an American president willing to use the military against civilians for political gain.
We can’t meet that with silence or false balance. When the press treats Trump sending armed troops into our nation’s capital to confront civilians — for his own political survival — without sounding the alarm for democracy, it’s on us to do it.
We know this isn’t about crime — it’s about control.
Invent a crisis. Inflame fear. Project strength. Weaponize the backlash. That’s the blueprint at the heart of Trump’s authoritarian playbook.
He’s performing the “law and order” strongman act because he knows it energizes his base — and right now, it’s the perfect distraction from the growing smoke around his Epstein ties.
In the name of “objectivity,” the news media is treating this like any other Trump political controversy — repeating his premise, then quibbling over details — instead of focusing on the truth:
Trump is no law-and-order leader. He’s an autocrat who’s more likely to enable crime than stop it. Just look at his record:
- Pardoning violent January 6 attackers who beat police officers and tried to overturn an election.
- Becoming the first U.S. president to publicly support a convicted pedophile when he wished child abuser Ghislaine Maxwell “well” on national television.
- Being found liable in court for sexually abusing and defaming writer E. Jean Carroll.
These aren’t the actions of a crime fighter — they’re the actions of a man who embraces criminality when it serves him, and uses fear, force, and distraction to cover for his own corruption.
In solidarity,
COURIER Newsroom