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Trump threatens media with violence against Cheney. Vote accordingly
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Trump threatens media with violence against Cheney. Vote accordingly


If Donald Trump really feels like the race is starting to slip, his rhetoric will increasingly call for violence, even as he battles the campaign and insists he’s not saying the same things we’ve all heard him say.

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Presidential campaigns often spend a lot of time strategizing and staging a closing message, a final offer of support, and a final appeal for your vote.

Donald Trump? He’s a convoluted mess that ended his re-election campaign a rambling series of complaints and fantasizes out loud about violence against those he perceives as enemies, including the news media.

Vice President Kamala Harris must be thrilled by all this. working on it a strictly worded message of unity and optimism. Trump offers a perfect contrast.

I don’t know who won this race. But I know Trump seems to know he lost. So he’s increasing the lies about voter fraud again. This is why he wants to see violence against journalists. He always needs someone to blame because Trump can never consider taking responsibility for his own fate.

Trump ends his campaign by: Lying and sowing violence

Trump ditches typical rally script During a stop in Lititz on SundayA small Pennsylvania town about 63 miles west of Philadelphia. After a while, he thought about the ballistic glass erected to protect him during open-air rallies. failed assassination attempt In July in another small town in Pennsylvania.

“There’s a piece of glass here,” Trump told the crowd before turning to violence. “But all we have here is fake news. And to get me Someone had to destroy fake news. And I don’t mind it that much.”

During the assassination attempt in July, one of Trump’s supporters was killed and two others were injured. And here Trump was clearly wishing the gunfire would penetrate the crowd. This is his closing message.

Trump’s campaign staff reacted the only way they knew how: by wrapping a lie in a blanket of anger. Trump spokesman Steven Cheung claimed the boss spoke “intelligently” about the July shootings and that what he said “had nothing to do with media harm.” Cheung claimed that Trump was actually talking about protecting the media.

In short, Cheung claimed that what we all hear is not what we all hear. Imagine a job where you demand a break from reality every day.

Trump uses litigation and misdirection to avoid being asked tough questions

Such ramblings and attacks on the media marked Trump and his campaign in the closing days of the race.

Trump told a rally crowd in Wisconsin last week that he would serve as a protector of women if re-elected president.Whether women like it or not“What kind of man is this? found responsible for sexual assault talking about women in a civil case?

Harris, who has made restoring access to abortion the focus of her campaign, in contrast to Trump’s nomination three U.S. Supreme Court justices Roe v. in 2022 who helped break the Wade case, attacked the spookiness Trump’s statement was described as “offensive to everyone.”

This is not a helpful narrative for Trump. His campaign needed to change the subject. For this reason Trump sues CBS News because this channel’s news program is “60 Minutes” posted an edited version of an interview with Harris last month.

As pointless as this is, Trump, who is reluctant to appear on the show, has been complaining about it regularly, and now he’s saying “Hey, look here!” He could take legal action that was doomed to fail.

Trump threatens Liz Cheney, then distracts by attacking news media

Need another example? You may have heard Trump openly wishing for a violent end on Thursday. to former U.S. Representative Liz Cheney.He is a Republican who is urging voters in his party to support Harris.

“He is a radical war hawk. Let’s put him in there with a nine-barrel gun and a rifle shooting at him, okay?” Trump told former Fox News host Tucker Carlson It’s about Cheney. “Let’s see how he feels about it when the guns are pointed in his face.”

Trump opened the door once again and Harris burst in. I condemn what you said“This must be disqualifying” for the presidency, he said. Of course not. It’s now standard fare from Trump. His campaign later insisted his remarks were taken out of context.

So the thing we’ve all heard about? Trump’s side must insist that you disconnect from this reality and not hear it. Maybe they wave something shiny to distract you.

And so on Friday, Trump opened a new front in his war against the news media. File a complaint with the Federal Election CommissionHe accuses the Washington Post of making “in-kind contributions” to Harris’ campaign because of the way the paper markets journalism.

Another load of nonsense. Trump will not win this war. But it gives him something to talk about, and maybe he changes the subject from how much he wishes Cheney were dead.

We all know what Trump said. Trust that when you vote.

If you haven’t voted yet, I hope you go to the polls and cast your vote on Election Day. When you do this, think about the rhetoric you’ve heard in this final week of the campaign.

Of course, Harris’s reliance on canned explanations can feel stale, especially when she hits the same notes over and over again. But try to imagine him loudly calling for violence against Trump or his campaign. I just can’t hear it.

But Trump? That’s easy to hear because we’ve heard it all before and we’re going to hear it some more. If Trump really feels like the race is starting to slip, his rhetoric will increasingly call for violence, even as his campaign scrambles to introduce legal distractions and insist that he’s not saying the things we’ve all heard him say.

Trust your hearing. Use this to inform your vote.

Follow USA TODAY election columnist Chris Brennan, formerly of X, on Twitter: @ByChrisBrennan