The buck no longer stops with anyone

| 2:00 pm EDT July 31, 2018
Dear Palmer Report readers, we all understand the difficult era we're heading into. Major media outlets are caving to Trump already. Even the internet itself and publishing platforms may be at risk. But Palmer Report is nonetheless going to lead the fight. We're funding our 2025 operating expenses now, so we can keep publishing no matter what happens. I'm asking you to contribute if you can, because the stakes are just so high. You can donate here.

“The buck stops here” was the sign that, famously inscribed on the desk of the 33rd President of the United States, enshrined the principle that Harry S Truman was not a man to pass the buck. Truman knew his history and his place in it, knew that history had a funny habit of conferring cowardice and infamy on any president who tried to escape blame, or “pass the buck,” as it were.

“The buck stops anywhere but here” might be a suitable sign for Donald Trump. When in an informal meeting New York Times publisher AG Sulzberger asked Trump to stop using the toxic phrase “enemy of the people” to describe the mainstream media, Trump agreed. Sulzberger’s concern was the use of the phrase might reasonably lead to physical assaults on members of the press as it had in Annapolis in late June.

Trump’s blame avoidance was vintage Trump when he then tweeted: “Had a very good and interesting meeting at the White House with A.G. Sulzberger, Publisher of the New York Times. Spent much time talking about the vast amounts of Fake News being put out by the media & how that Fake News has morphed into phrase, “Enemy of the People.” Sad!”

In other words, “enemy of the people” is a direct result of the mainstream media’s careless reporting and not Trump’s fault. It just, well, “morphed” out of nowhere. No mention of the four or five times Trump (and no one else) used the phrase to characterize the media, no mention of the men and women murdered in Annapolis late June, no promise to stop using the phrase. It just “morphed.” Out of nowhere.

We now live in an era when it’s difficult to find adjectives to describe the behavior of the “president” of the United States without resorting to common vulgarities like “chickenshit.” But until someone can give us one more apt, “chickenshit” is going to have to do. Meanwhile, in Independence, Missouri, Harry S Truman is spinning in his grave.

Dear Palmer Report readers, we all understand the difficult era we're heading into. Major media outlets are caving to Trump already. Even the internet itself and publishing platforms may be at risk. But Palmer Report is nonetheless going to lead the fight. We're funding our 2025 operating expenses now, so we can keep publishing no matter what happens. I'm asking you to contribute if you can, because the stakes are just so high. You can donate here.