If you’ve been paying attention to the news, you’re probably aware that we are in perhaps the dumbest, most absurd outrage cycle since Donald Trump came down the golden escalator. What led to this new level of consternation among the chattering class? Did another indictment come down? Did he shout a racist epithet while shooting someone on Fifth Avenue?
No, it was nothing like that. Instead, and you may want to sit down for this, Trump visited a McDonald’s.
I know it sounds mundane, but rest assured it was an incredibly awful “stunt” the likes of which the political world has never seen. Fire-fighting journalists have spent every waking second since he dunked some fries and handed out a few Happy Meals to alert the public that the scene was “staged” and a show of intense manipulation.
Newsweek even went so far as to try to get the McDonald’s location he appeared at canceled. No, I’m not kidding. They dug up some health code violations to show just how evil this specific restaurant is.
SEE: Outrage After Newsweek Tries to Cancel PA McDonald’s Trump Visited
An inspection report for the McDonald’s restaurant in Pennsylvania cited employees not having “hands clean and properly washed.”https://t.co/qbTCVIXki9 pic.twitter.com/LUTPq32CiQ
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) October 21, 2024
Naturally, MSNBC decided to use Trump’s photo-op as evidence he’s mentally ill. You know, because no politician has ever visited a fast-food restaurant before.
The manic insanity of this – he is literally doing standard politics showmanship and they’re losing their minds. https://t.co/MiHIFdLDCj
— Ben Domenech (@bdomenech) October 20, 2024
Meanwhile, as all the caterwauling continued, The New York Times put out a “fact-check” that concluded Trump is lying about Harris never working at McDonald’s because her campaign and a “friend” say so. No other evidence of her supposed employment was found.
READ: The New York Times ‘Fact-Checks’ Kamala Harris Working at McDonald’s, and It’s Hilarious
For real: the greatest fact check of all time pic.twitter.com/A5lkL759zl
— Kyle Smith (@rkylesmith) October 21, 2024
Believe it or not, though, the stalwart American press corps wasn’t done. On Monday, Trump posted an AI-generated picture of himself posing as an NFL player. The former president had just attended Sunday night’s matchup between the New York Jets and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Here was the reaction.
And I thought this was real. pic.twitter.com/Gs2xIpGZ9L
— EducatëdHillbilly™ (@RobProvince) October 21, 2024
Where would we be without the mainstream media doing the hard work of ascertaining the above image is “likely” AI-generated? Still, the examples kept coming. On the same day as that laughable report, The New Republic published a piece claiming that Republicans win elections by “cheating.”
How Republicans win presidential elections, according to the factual record: They cheat. This has been true in most elections in recent American history.
From @mtomaskyhttps://t.co/UTjuDp8oAN
— The New Republic (@newrepublic) October 21, 2024
I think the point has been made. The press has set a new standard of absurdity when it comes to what they are freaking out over regarding Donald Trump. What does that tell us? It tells us they are scared.
I’m not suggesting the press were any softer in dealing with Trump a year ago than they are today. On the contrary, the penchant of legacy journalists to lose their minds anytime the former president breathes is well-documented. This feels like a new standard, though. We aren’t seeing them hyperventilate over “Russian collusion” or whatever the latest DOJ indictment is. They are going nuts over Trump going to a McDonald’s.
There’s a certain level of desperation exposed in that. With election day just two weeks away, the press can feel Trump’s momentum, and it terrifies them. If you thought the last nine years were crazy, just wait until you see what else the press cooks up in these final days.
