This story reminds me of an old REO Speedwagon song:
But I know the neighborhoodIan Millhiser, the Justice Editor at ThinkProgress, informs us:
And talk is cheap when the story is good
And the tales grow taller on down the line
President Trump "is considering a proposal to mobilize as many as 100,000 National Guard troops to round up unauthorized immigrants, including millions living nowhere near the Mexico border," according to the Associated Press.But AP did not say that. Notice the placement of the opening quotation mark.
Follow the link in the ThinkProgress story, and we find that what the AP story actually said was:
ThinkProgress links to the version on the CNBC site, which as of this writing says the memo was "written by U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, a retired four-star Marine general." But was it really? The memo is a draft. It is not unusual at all for staffers to write drafts with the boss's name on them to submit for approval, which the boss may then accept, revise, or reject entirely. To use an example familiar to lawyers, the first draft of an appellate opinion that bears the name of a judge is often written by a clerk.
A 12:30 EST version of the story on AP's own site says the memo "bears the name of U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, a retired four-star Marine general." That is a very different thing, but the difference is easily lost on the average reader, who is not aware of how document production typically works in offices such as this.
It is highly unlikely that Secretary Kelly wrote this memo, and there is no good reason to believe he even saw it before the story broke, but that is the impression that AP creates.
Now back to ThinkProgress. How do they get to the conclusion that President Trump personally has seen this memo and is considering this move? They just leap to that conclusion without any evidence.
So a leaker gives AP a draft memo with Secretary Kelly's name on it. AP leaps to the conclusion that he actually wrote it. Even in the revised story, AP still misleadingly gives readers that impression. ThinkProgress leaps to the conclusion that the President is considering the proposal.
The tale grows taller on down the line. People who live in information silos and never read or watch media with differing viewpoints end up believing a lot of garbage.
The Trump administration is considering a proposal to mobilize as many as 100,000 National Guard troops to round up unauthorized immigrants, including millions living nowhere near the Mexico border, according to a draft memo obtained by The Associated Press.What is "the Trump administration"? In theory, that could be the entire executive branch of government. The carrier who delivers your mail could be considered a member of the "administration." Who wrote the memo?
ThinkProgress links to the version on the CNBC site, which as of this writing says the memo was "written by U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, a retired four-star Marine general." But was it really? The memo is a draft. It is not unusual at all for staffers to write drafts with the boss's name on them to submit for approval, which the boss may then accept, revise, or reject entirely. To use an example familiar to lawyers, the first draft of an appellate opinion that bears the name of a judge is often written by a clerk.
A 12:30 EST version of the story on AP's own site says the memo "bears the name of U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, a retired four-star Marine general." That is a very different thing, but the difference is easily lost on the average reader, who is not aware of how document production typically works in offices such as this.
It is highly unlikely that Secretary Kelly wrote this memo, and there is no good reason to believe he even saw it before the story broke, but that is the impression that AP creates.
Now back to ThinkProgress. How do they get to the conclusion that President Trump personally has seen this memo and is considering this move? They just leap to that conclusion without any evidence.
So a leaker gives AP a draft memo with Secretary Kelly's name on it. AP leaps to the conclusion that he actually wrote it. Even in the revised story, AP still misleadingly gives readers that impression. ThinkProgress leaps to the conclusion that the President is considering the proposal.
The tale grows taller on down the line. People who live in information silos and never read or watch media with differing viewpoints end up believing a lot of garbage.
Gads.............could this be...........FAKE NEWS?? Horrors.
I had previously decided to turn off comments on all posts mentioning President Trump, but since Bill got one in before I turned them off, in fairness I should relent and let others comment also.
But let's keep it on topic and civil, folks.
There are other talks about immigration policy (new EO, DACA, etc.) in the transcript I linked below. I copied just the part discussing the memo, however, to stay on topic.
Press Gaggle by Principal Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Sanders En Route West Palm Beach, Florida
https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2017/02/17/press-gaggle-principal-deputy-press-secretary-sarah-sanders-en-route
Q Sarah, can you say if the administration has ever considered having the National Guard help round up undocumented immigrants?
MS. SANDERS: The President and the White House have never had that as part of any plan to use the National Guard in any capacity for that.
Q Why did Kelly draft this memo?
MS. SANDERS: I’m sorry?
Q Why did Kelly draft this memo if that was never considered?
MS. SANDERS: Secretary Kelly?
Q Yeah.
MS. SANDERS: Secretary Kelly did not draft that memo.
Q We’re now on day 28 --
Q Who drafted it then? Wait, who drafted it?
MS. SANDERS: I’m not aware of the specific person, but I know that it wasn’t Secretary Kelly, or at his direction.
Decency evolves: It's difficult for the press to do it's job when the Press has declared it an "enemy of the people" and the Administration refused requests for comment about the memo in advance of the story's publication:
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/02/the-brief-and-wondrous-life-of-a-leaked-trump-memo/517149/
I'm inclined to agree with Senator McCain that the behavior of the President on this issue is how dictators get started:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/02/18/thats-how-dictators-get-started-mccain-criticizes-trump-for-calling-media-the-enemy/
Decency evolves stated: "It's difficult for the press to do it's job when the Press has declared it an "enemy of the people"..."
Such a declaration, whether or not you agree with it, has absolutely zero impact on the press doing its "job." In fact, the biggest reason that the popularity of the press is south of anal cancer is because it is not doing its job. Report the news. Don't craft it.
DE stated: "...and the Administration refused requests for comment about the memo in advance of the story's publication."
Oh, the horror!
Sure, I usually want more transparency. However, let's not pretend that Trump's people invented "no comment" or use it any more than Obama did.
DE stated: "I'm inclined to agree with Senator McCain that the behavior of the President on this issue is how dictators get started."
Nonsense. The previous POTUS was seizing phone records of AP journalists not accused of a crime and emails of James Rosen. They also tried to stiff arm FOX News out of the press pool and Obama and his minions constantly alluded to them as not real news. You would agree that at least the first two acts are many times worse than calling an outlet "fake news" or "failing", right? Then Obama is a dictator?
It's worth reviewing what happened here. AP obtained a 13 page long administrative proposal to nationalize the National Guard to deport people. They contacted the Admnistration, who refused to comment. They then reported on the proposal and they get the Administration whining "Fake News!" and Sean Spicer saying they should have contacted the White House first. The AP did. The White House has no one to blame but themselves. Every report Trump doesn't like is fake news andaccoridng to him, the press is The Enemy of the People. A little competence on the part of this Administration, Presidential or even adult behavior on the part of the already beleaguered President, even fewer unforced errors, would be great to see. I'm not holding my breath.
Neither of the factual misstatements noted in the OP is excused by a refusal to comment.
That's absolutely right Kent. The AP story was sloppy and just plain wrong. It's one thing to say there is a proposal, another to get the details that wrong. If the Administration wants the news media to get the story right, clamming up, treating them like the enemy, and providing them with misinformation so obviously false as to insult reporters' intelligence is unlikely to achieve that goal.
That would make them, at worst, incompetent. Incompetence is not sole property of budding "dictators."
You stated: "The White House has no one to blame but themselves."
Demonstrably false. Journalists are responsible for what they print regardless of how much or little help they get from politicians or if the politician attacks the journalist.
The AP misrepresented what likely happened. Perhaps the Trump Administration could have cleared things up before it became a story but it does not excuse the AP for printing false information.