As Puerto Ricans suffer and die in the wake of Hurricane Maria, Fox & Friends might have you think that Donald Trump is the real victim because he’s not getting the credit he deserves from the “left-wing media” for what he’s done for the island. Ironically, this was shortly before Trump went on a Twitter rampage attacking Puerto Ricans.
Guest Dan Bongino started the conservative victimhood: “You know the media and you wonder why Americans want to vomit every time they have to listen to the left-wing media coverage.” He also complained that the media’s love for President Barack Obama’s "far from perfect" response to Superstorm Sandy, along with a hug from Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ), may have gotten Obama re-elected.
Then Bongino got back to Trump and the media: “And now you have Donald Trump’s response to Puerto Rico, to this devastating storm. No question a massive tragedy and what are they doing? Instead of trying to help they’re actually fabricating this story.”
Bongino cited the governor of Puerto Rico who said all his calls had been answered by Trump and that the federal government is doing everything they can.
Nevertheless, Trump's public behavior toward the Puerto Rico crisis was apathetic before he went on a Twitter rant against San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz later this morning. Trump’s ridiculous, earlier defense against criticism didn’t help either: “The response and recovery effort probably has never been seen for something like this. This is an island surrounded by water. Big water. Ocean water.”
Bongino argued that Trump “actually has to say things that are obvious to make sure that the media gets the story, like, ‘Hey folks, Puerto Rico is an island. It’s surrounded by water. Like big water.’ That's the president having to explain to the media, right? What an island is because they don’t seem to get that the logistics are different.”
As MSNBC’s Steve Benen noted, Puerto Rico is no more remote from Miami than Trump’s Florida golf resort is to the White House. It’s “obviously an island, but it’s not ‘in the middle’ of a ‘very big ocean,’” Benen pointed out.
Instead of correcting the record, cohost Abby Huntsman put forth more pro-Trump propaganda, including a falsehood:
HUNTSMAN: It all makes sense. I mean the way he worded it, it makes total sense. ...I’ve noticed whenever there is something positive to talk about when the president is on the ground, like we saw him in Houston. We saw him in Florida there hugging people, embracing them, making them feel comforted, like the government is going to be there for whatever they need. You don’t see those positive stories ever in the mainstream media. So where is that balance? I understand that the media’s role, you’ve gotta be critical at times but you never see the other side, you never see the good times.
Did Huntsman bother to check before making this declaration? If so, she somehow either missed these news reports or she was lying.
Ditto for Bongino. “The difference is the media’s role to be critical is only to be critical of Republicans,” he claimed.
45 minutes later, Trump went on his Twitter rampage that undoubtedly did nothing to comfort any Puerto Ricans.
But Huntsman and her Fox Friends will surely find a way to spin that in Dear Leader’s favor, too.
Watch the whine fest above, from the September 30, 2017 Fox & Friends.
Crossposted at News Hounds.
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