Much is being made of this editorial in the New York Post:
There has been much debate over whether Trump’s rally speech on Jan. 6, 2021, constituted “incitement.” That’s somewhat of a red herring. What matters more — and has become crystal clear in recent days — is that Trump didn’t lift a finger to stop the violence that followed.
And he was the only person who could stop what was happening. He was the only one the crowd was listening to. It was incitement by silence.
Trump only wanted one thing during that infamous afternoon: to pressure Vice President Mike Pence to decertify the election of Joe Biden.
He thought the violence of his loyal followers would make Pence crack, or delay the vote altogether.
To his eternal shame, as appalled aides implored him to publicly call on his followers to go home, he instead further fanned the flames by tweeting: “Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution.”
His only focus was to find any means — damn the consequences — to block the peaceful transfer of power.
There is no other explanation, just as there is no defense, for his refusal to stop the violence.
It’s up to the Justice Department to decide if this is a crime. But as a matter of principle, as a matter of character, Trump has proven himself unworthy to be this country’s chief executive again.
This is very bad news for Trump because the chances that an editorial like this wasn’t approved by the highest levels of the Murdoch family are zero.
If the Murdochs are done with Trump, the Orange Menace from Mar-A-Lago is in deep shit.
Of course, the Murdochs also own Fox News.
Thus far, the main entertainment components of Fox News have refused to so much as cover the Jan. 6 hearings.
Whether the Murdochs will now expect Hannity, Carlson and others to start toeing the New York Post line against Trump remains to be seen.
The financial calculus for Fox News is different than it is for a daily newspaper. The NY Post does not have the same competitive pressures as Fox News.
And, if anything speaks louder than ethics at the Murdoch organization — to use the term “ethics” loosely — it’s profits.
You can read the rest of the editorial here.
