Media stokes fear of ‘Trump dictatorship’ at Biden’s behest

What’s Behind the Coordinated Media Campaign Against‌ Trump?

So what’s with the coordinated media campaign this week claiming ‍a second Trump term will​ usher in ​the ⁣end of the ⁢republic and the rise of a fascist dictatorship?

Well, three weeks ago, ⁣President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign scolded the press for not attacking Donald Trump hard enough, specifically⁢ calling out​ The New York Times, saying⁣ “it’s time to meet the moment ​and⁣ responsibly ​inform the ​electorate of‍ what their ⁤lives might look like ⁢if the leading GOP candidate for president is allowed back in the WH.”

As⁣ my colleague David Harsanyi noted​ at the time, the Biden camp wasn’t working ⁤the refs,​ it was demanding obedience. “And ⁢the fact that the White House can brazenly petition a supposedly free press to join his campaign effort tells us a lot about how little⁤ the ⁢contemporary Democrat cares for a free press.”

This is like when the Biden White House complains that Americans think the economy is ‍bad because the media don’t do enough to explain how great the economy is, and a few days later, we’re inundated⁣ with stories about how the economy is doing great, ⁢even if it doesn’t feel like it.

In any case, ​message‍ received! Three weeks after Biden’s campaign made their demands of the press, nearly every major corporate media outlet in⁣ America rolled⁣ out​ some version of the campaign’s talking point about⁤ how dangerous a second Trump term will be.

The New‌ York Times, always ‍eager⁢ to deliver for a Democrat in power, didn’t⁣ disappoint. ‍On Monday, the paper ran a triple-bylined piece arguing that a second Trump ⁢term would be “more⁤ radical” than the​ first. ⁤Why? Because Trump would‌ “use the Justice Department to‍ wreak⁣ vengeance against his adversaries,” and “get prosecutors to go after his enemies.” ⁢In other ‌words, he might do what‍ President Biden is doing right now in plain sight. (As I said earlier this week, Democrats are afraid Trump will do to them what ​they’re​ doing to him.)

The Washington Post ran its own versions of the same⁤ argument. Robert Kagan ⁣penned a column about how⁢ to stop the “Trump dictatorship.” The always-absurd Jennifer Rubin used her column at the Post‍ to heap‌ praise​ on Liz Cheney, who went on the Sunday shows‌ to⁣ warn that if Trump⁤ is⁣ elected, ⁤it will be the last election we ever have, and that we’re “sleepwalking into dictatorship in the‍ United States.”

It’s fair to‌ call this kind of rhetoric “assassination prep,” because of course if⁢ this will really be the ⁢last ‍election, if we’re really facing a fascist dictatorship in Trump’s second term, well then drastic measures‌ are necessary, are they not? That’s the tacit argument ‍being advanced in these pieces. And⁤ it’s not some fringe thing on the left. The entire January/February⁤ issue of The Atlantic is nothing but hysterical essays warning​ that the next Trump presidency ‍“will be worse.”