The PBS NewsHour Friday evening pundit panel of Jonathan Capehart and David Brooks took on the shutdown showdown. Anchor Geoff Bennett quoting from a “information report” from The Washington Put up that sounds lots like a liberal editorial, that Musk’s advising reeks of “oligarchy.” These folks actually need to maintain insisting democracy on the wane:
BENNETT: Jonathan, David talked about Elon Musk. I imply, what about his affect? As a result of he led the riot towards the preliminary invoice, as you talked about. And The Put up reported that “his swift accumulation of political energy has sparked criticism that the incoming Trump administration will perform like an oligarchy.”
CAPEHART: Nicely, sure, as a result of, keep in mind, this all bought began, not as a result of Donald Trump weighed in first. Elon Musk weighed in. And he is the — he — I simply begin calling him the primary buddy. He’s in on all of the telephone calls. He is in on all of the conferences.
Nobody elected him to something! nobody! And but Republicans on the Hill listened to what he needed to say. Donald Trump listened to what he needed to say. There is a cause why Democrats this week had been calling — had been saying — had been calling him President Musk after which calling Donald Trump Donald Trump.
PBS @NewsHour anchor Geoff Bennett quotes from The Washington Put up that Elon Musk serving as a Trump adviser someway reeks of “oligarchy.” Jonathan Capehart protests: “Nobody elected him to something!” No one elects the media both. pic.twitter.com/uYtA4Jq5xs
— Tim Graham (@TimJGraham) December 21, 2024
Nobody elected journalists to run Washington, however right here they’re routinely intimidating politicians with their recommendation or critiques. David Brooks provided somewhat sanity, that gee, presidents have advisers, however he thinks that is very momentary: “This bromance goes to finish in tears. We’re all — I give it 30 days, perhaps 60 days, one thing like that. We’re all going to be crying as they half methods they usually begin taking pictures at one another.”
However Brooks nonetheless advised Trump and Musk do not know what they’re doing: “My posture proper now’s let’s let him attempt. He is bought some instincts which can be horrible and a few instincts that aren’t horrible. And let’s let him attempt. However change in authorities is simply phenomenally laborious. And it’s a must to actually know what you are doing. And neither Donald Trump nor Elon Musk actually is aware of how the sport is performed.”
Then Bennett requested about Biden being almost invisible in all this, and nobody talked about this week’s reporting his long-running psychological decline:
BENNETT: Jonathan, the place was President Biden in all of this? And I increase the query as a result of at one level Donald Trump posted on social media, if there’s going to be a shutdown of presidency, let it start now below the Biden administration, not after January 20 below Trump, and no response from President Biden himself. He actually appears to have abdicated the bully pulpit.
CAPEHART: No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Why ought to President Biden get in the course of a Republican-on-Republican meals struggle melee? Why ought to he? If this had been every other time, every other president, everybody could be saying the president is staying out of it as a result of, while you’re when your opponent is digging the opening, simply allow them to dig the opening.
Or he is staying out of it as a result of his fellow Democrats don’t desire him to be the babbling focus. They simply wish to let him play president for an additional month and go away.
