Quickly the battle in opposition to COVID-19 shall be ending. As a senior citizen I lived by way of a number of our historical past and I discover myself dwelling by way of occasions that carefully align with what I’ve have skilled previously.
In a current Gallup Ballot, 90% of Republicans don’t belief the media whereas 74% of Democrats do. The seeds of this discrepancy in belief could have begun in the course of the Clinton administration.
In 1996, President Invoice Clinton used scare techniques and half-truths on Medicare spending. He was in a position to get the media to assist his efforts whereas demonizing the Republican chief Home Speaker Newt Gingrich in a lot the identical means President Trump has been demonized. At this time it’s COVID-19, again then it was over the so-called cuts in Medicare. It was alleged that the Republican Celebration was going to “throw grandma out of the nursing house and over a cliff in her wheelchair.” Clinton, with using a really accommodating media, satisfied thousands and thousands that going from $100 billion to $105 billion was a reduce in Medicare spending. In actuality, the GOP opposed Clinton’s requests for a spending change from $100 billion to $110 billion. Notice that each side proposed will increase. The GOP was merely slowing the expansion of Medicare, not chopping it. However Clinton’s messaging labored. It gave Clinton a landslide victory and helped to finish my elected service in Congress at age 43. COVID-19 was utilized in 2020 with half-truths and assist of the liberal media focusing on one man.
COVID-19 has been a battle. It turned the focus of the 2020 election very similar to the Vietnam Warfare was a long time in the past. We turned divided over our COVID-19 battle turning it right into a political soccer whereas greater than 300,000 American lives have been misplaced.
The Vietnam Warfare had a pivotal journalistic motion – the publication of the Pentagon Papers – that served because the smoking gun on American prospects in Vietnam. Quickly thereafter, a part of the US went in a single course whereas the opposite half went in one other. We have been divided as a nation and we misplaced the Vietnam Warfare.
This election cycle we had one other trusted journalistic report — this time by Bob Woodward — gained by way of interviews with a very candid president and used as a smoking gun to substantiate issues with Trump’s evaluation of COVID-19. This report was sufficient to divide an already divided nation with Democrats fixated on defeating Trump in any respect value. Because of this, People break up on the problems of sporting masks, opening or closing companies, distant or in-person college, further funding or no further funding, and taking the vaccine versus not taking the vaccine.
Coping with the unknown is all the time precarious. Choosing sides throughout a pandemic and assigning blame on some whereas praising governors with the best dying charges was an enigma to Republicans and goal observers.
Due to President Trump and the contributors of Operation Warp Pace, all People will quickly have entry to a vaccination that may finish this pandemic.
Timing is all the things. Again in 1980, President Jimmy Carter was wrestling with getting the hostages launched in Iran. It occurred actually minutes after Carter was now not president of the US. The announcement of a vaccination occurred lower than every week after Election Day 2020. I’m positive historians would agree that if both occasion have been introduced previous to Election Day, it could have given each incumbents the momentum wanted for a major distinction of their elections.
The media writes the information and finally writes the historic accounts, and so they know learn how to produce their desired outcomes.
Historical past is the darndest factor. Stay lengthy sufficient and also you get to see all the things, typically twice.
Gary A. Franks served three-terms as U.S. consultant for Connecticut’s fifth District. He was the primary Black Republican elected to the Home in almost 60 years and was New England’s first Black Member of the Home. He’s host of the podcast “We Converse Frankly.” Comply with him @GaryFranks.
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