First it was the Dallas Morning News, a conservative newspaper that has endorsed only Republican candidates for president since before World War II. The paper endorsed Hillary Clinton over Republican nominee Donald Trump.
Now perhaps the most conservative newspaper in the nation, always a sure endorsement for any Republican candidate for president, the New Hampshire Union Leader, has also refused to endorse the Republican nominee Donald Trump, a first for the paper in a century. I’m sensing a trend here.
Editor Joe McQuaid couldn’t quite bring himself to endorse the Democrat — it is the ultra-right Union Leader after all, they have a conservative reputation to maintain to keep that sweet New Hampshire GOP primary money flowing in every four years — so the paper endorsed GOP-light Libertarian Gary Johnson, the former Republican governor of New Mexico. An Editorial — Joseph W. McQuaid, Publisher: A better choice for President (No need to hold your nose):
Voters leaning toward Trump are understandably fed up with the status quo, of which Clinton is a prime example. But they kid themselves if they think Trump isn’t pretty much a part of that status quo as well, or that he is in any way qualified to competently lead this nation.
The man is a liar, a bully, a buffoon. He denigrates any individual or group that displeases him. He has dishonored military veterans and their families, made fun of the physically frail, and changed political views almost as often as he has changed wives.
Americans are being told that we have to choose the lesser of two evils. No, we don’t.
Libertarians Gary Johnson and Bill Weld are on the ballot in all 50 states. Their records (as Republican governors in politically-divided states) speak well of them. They would be worth considering under many circumstances. In today’s dark times, they are a bright light of hope and reason. The Union Leader and Sunday News endorse them.
Not so much a ringing endorsement of Johnson as it is a chance to trash Trump.
Donald Trump won the New Hampshire GOP primary this year after McQuaid and the Union Leader endorsed New Jersey Governor Chris “Bridgegate” Christie in the GOP primary. The Union Leader doesn’t have the influence it once enjoyed back in the day.
Thank God, according to Gallup, only 32% of Americans trust the media. Otherwise this might have been a problem. That’s less than Hillary, who 67% of Americans mistrust according to the latest NY Times/CBS poll. So Hillary is 1% ahead of the media in the trust category. It’s a start.
Have a lot of free time on your hands to troll this blog? The Gallup poll you did not link, http://www.gallup.com/poll/195542/americans-trust-mass-media-sinks-new-low.aspx actually explains the reason for the media’s low rating: Republicans. https://blogforarizona.net/epistemic-closure-and-the-conservative-misinformation-feedback-loop-media-bubble/.
“Republicans Fuel Drop in Media Trust
While it is clear Americans’ trust in the media has been eroding over time, the election campaign may be the reason that it has fallen so sharply this year. With many Republican leaders and conservative pundits saying Hillary Clinton has received overly positive media attention, while Donald Trump has been receiving unfair or negative attention, this may be the prime reason their relatively low trust in the media has evaporated even more. It is also possible that Republicans think less of the media as a result of Trump’s sharp criticisms of the press. Republicans who say they have trust in the media has plummeted to 14% from 32% a year ago. This is easily the lowest confidence among Republicans in 20 years.”
The NY Times/CBS poll you cite shows Donald Trump in a statistical tie with Clinton on the trust issue at 35%. You ignore the key emphasis of the poll, http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/16/us/politics/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-poll.html?_r=0:
“Most voters consider Donald J. Trump a risky choice for president, saying he lacks the right temperament and values . . . Mrs. Clinton, despite being as disliked as Mr. Trump, is seen as a safer option. Majorities of voters say she has the temperament for the job and would better handle foreign policy.” On the question of safe or risky choice, Clinton leads Trump 47-30% as a safe choice; Trump is seen as riskier than Clinton 67-51%.
The new Center for Public Integrity/Ipsos poll asks a similar question, https://www.publicintegrity.org/2016/09/14/20198/shadow-candidates-who-s-more-transparent-clinton-or-trump, “Do you think the following people have generally been honest and transparent when discussing their financial, business or investment dealings?”
“A new Center for Public Integrity/Ipsos poll shows only one in four respondents consider Trump “honest and transparent” about his financial, business or investment dealings. For Clinton, it’s about one in three.
Neither candidate deserves a transparency award. But a Center for Public Integrity analysis shows Clinton, when compared head-to-head with Trump, is the clear winner when it comes to making information available to the public.”
I don’t have as much time on my hands as you apparently do to play this game of “fun with facts and figures.”
As Hillary’s chief “Master of Spin” on this blog, both before and after the primary, I thought you had all the time in the world.
By the way, the key group regarding the effect of the newspaper endorsement is independents and the poll says that they trust the media even less, at only 30%. Thanks for making me feel even better about the minimal effect of the Hillary endorsement. The percentages of Rs and Ds matter little in this discussion because other polls show almost all Ds and Rs are locked into their candidate. So I restate my point, the newspaper endorsement of Hillary will have little effect because the moveable voters trust the media even LESS that the average voter.
And I think you are the one playing “this game of ‘fun with facts and figures.’”
Or should I say spinning them, Master.
As Hillary’ chief master of spin on this blog, both before and after the primary, I thought you had all the time in the world.
By the way,
who cares? the voters voted for trump.