Melania Trump’s Plagiarism Matters

[MADem]

Melania Trump’s Plagiarism Matters

Sure, it pales in comparison with other Trump transgressions. That doesn’t mean we should ignore it.


http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2016/07/melania_trump_s_plagiarism_of_michelle_obama_s_speech_is_a_legitimate_scandal.html

Earlier this week, Slate published a story headlined “141 Things Donald Trump Has Said and Done That Make Him Unfit to Be President.” If we added in “his wife plagiarized Michelle Obama at the Republican convention,” it would probably rank below “Said he would force the military to commit war crimes,” “Proposed to create a database to track Muslims in the U.S.,” “Called Mexican immigrants rapists,” and roughly 130 or so other entries. But that doesn’t mean the Trump campaign’s plagiarism is trivial.....Here’s what those arguments basically add up to: We have serious problems to solve, and we need serious people to solve them. (I grabbed that from The American President—owe you one, Aaron Sorkin.) Yes, Donald Trump is terrifying. Yes, we should be extremely wary of normalizing his behavior, and of losing sight of the hate and rhetoric at the core of his candidacy and on display throughout Monday night’s RNC program.

But come on, stern-faced finger-waggers of America. The wannabe first lady of the United States told a massive prime-time audience “that you work hard for what you want in life,” a phrase one of her speechwriters seems to have copied wholesale from the current first lady, the wife of the man Trump calls “the worst president in U.S. history.” It is astonishing that this happened here, on our home planet. It is amazing and unfathomable and world-historically ironic. It is a moment to be cherished forever, not waved away like some D-grade campaign gaffe. The RNC’s chief strategist is defending Melania Trump by quoting from My Little Pony!

If you’re too high-minded to care about a little light prose theft, you’re missing the story of a campaign crack-up. In a just world, the Trump-istas would’ve turned on one another on account of, to pick one example at random, the hypothetical rapist-repelling wall that Mexico is going to pay for. But “heads are going to roll” when heads are going to roll.

The notion that videos and stories and follow-up stories and analysis and tweets and memes about word-is-bond–ghazi will distract from the “real issues” at hand in this election is infantilizing and wrong. People are capable of thinking multiple thoughts each day, and of reading multiple articles. It’s ludicrous to suggest that coverage of any individual story will totally drown out other campaign news. As I write this, the most-read story on Slate is Will Saletan’s piece arguing that Rudy Giuliani’s speech, not Melania Trump’s, was the most damning of the evening. Readers of this website were somehow not too distracted to click on it.....

[BumRushDaShow]

1. "we should be extremely wary of normalizing his behavior"

This has been my biggest issue and concern about this election cycle. I.e., the media "normalizing" (legitimizing) his aberrant and abhorrent behavior as somehow "socially acceptable" - all in some fool's errand to appear "unbiased". It's like allowing Bozo the Clown to go around mocking the entire process dressed in full clown garb, while the press busily scribbles down or records every idiotic word out of his mouth.

In the past, the bigger media organizations used to hold aftermath sessions to look at what they may have done wrong (nowadays they call this "Lessons Learned&quot , but it seems they stopped doing this in any meaningful way in recent years.

[MADem]

2. The emperor has no clothes....

And it's been a long, long wait until some little kid points at Drumpf and bellows, in one of those early-episode Leave It To Beaver voices, "Gee Wally, I can see his wee-wee!!!"

I am astounded it has taken so long for even a question to be raised....let's hope there's more of this line of questioning in future.

[BumRushDaShow]

4. What is sadder

is that given some of the recent suggestions about speech-gate possibly being a gag (i.e., the references to the Rick Roll meme in it) as well as a general collection of bizarre occurrences surrounding the campaign, it makes one wonder if the whole thing really IS one big semi-orchestrated/scripted production - (CT time) perhaps as part of some sort "bet" whether he could pull it off or not. You can see all sorts of signs of this (including the TP logo false start among other things). If this is so, whoever is behind it is well hidden (and not his campaign manager). This has gone well beyond the Palin disaster and relies on the "herd mentality" behavior of the party to keep the ball rolling.

[MADem]

5. You'll enjoy (well, you know what I mean) this article, then!!!

The simplest explanation of how Melania Trump’s speech was plagiarized, and six more exciting theories


http://qz.com/736128/the-simplest-explanation-of-how-melania-trumps-speech-got-plagiarized-and-six-more-exciting-theories/

The Trump campaign is not admitting any wrongdoing. “In writing her beautiful speech, Melania’s team of writers took notes on her life’s inspirations, and in some instances included fragments that reflected her own thinking,” a statement released on Trump’s website said. “Melania’s immigrant experience and love for America shone through in her speech, which made it such a success.”
RNC chairman Reince Priebus, however, said he’d “probably” fire whoever was responsible. (Priebus does not have any power to do so, and Trump’s campaign has already signaled that no one will be fired.)
Awkwardly for the Trump campaign, Obama’s 2008 speech was written by Sarah Hurwitz, a former speechwriter for Hillary Clinton:.....

And you gotta love the Big Finish....

[BumRushDaShow]

8. That about sums it up

The man spent a dozen years doing reality shows and as a note, his new "Director of African American Outreach" is none other than a former (infamous) contestant on one of his shows - Omarosa Manigault (she was on Joe Madison's show yesterday where he did an interview with her).

The whole thing, from day one of his announcement to run, has reeked to high heaven. Yet here we are - thanks to a news media, that over the past couple decades, got folded into the "entertainment" divisions of their respective networks (after being separate for many decades before), and is now relegated to producing "infotainment" as "news reporting".

[PJMcK]

6. So much brilliance in this political cartoon!

Notice his right pinky and the lipsticked mouth. Of course the smallish hands are indicative of the tiny black rectangle covering his personal pride and joy. Lastly, the jester's shoes. Mr. Day nailed this one!

Great post, MADem!

[tallahasseedem]

3. I agree...

the behavior has been very disconcerting and has no place in a civilized Democracy.

This country is bitterly divided because of the Bush administration and Ailes' Fox News Channel. It will be interesting to see how everything pans out once he is gone.

[BumRushDaShow]

7. The Ailes thing, having been temporarily lost among this other news

is going to have a longer-term impact. Certainly the rest of the (broadcast) news outlets are cheering privately but probably didn't want to appear to be gloating publicly (although knowing this is all part and parcel of the cutthroat media industry).

[MADem]

11. That'll be the gift that keeps on giving for awhile.

I think he's being SUED, and I don't think that will go "pooof" when he is no longer on the job--unless Faux wants to settle with all of the women he pawed. That could get expensive and it will take a little while, anyway!

This Ailes clown must have a lot of clout and reach in the industry, that so many were afraid to out him for his conduct.

[BumRushDaShow]

13. "This Ailes clown must have a lot of clout"

Rupert Murdoch (another lecherous old man) was the clout...

I expect Murdoch decided to cut what could have been "losses" and "damage to 'the brand'", finally agreeing to let Ailes hang. Apparently Aile's predecessor and Murdoch son Lachlan, was already waiting in the wings and put in place to return to the position that he once held. Not unlike what Comcast founder Ralph Roberts did (prior to his death last year) with out-of-control son Bryan, who has been running the day to day operations.

Of course "the brand" is irrevocably self-damaging. But as long as it infects every cable/satellite provider, hotel room, restaurant, gym, and any other "public" venue, it continues to generate "ratings" due to sheer proliferation.

[John Poet]

9. It is small potatoes, but

not helpful in getting what they needed to get this week.

[MADem]

10. I think it's at least a medium sized potato, at a minimum.

Mainly because it's emblematic of the disarray in the Trump machine--they have no friken plan.

A woman--a ghost writer for Trump---has stepped forward and taken (I doubt she deserves it, myself) responsibility for the plagiarism, saying she helped Melania with the speech (she's in addition to the OTHER speechwriter who said his input was NOTHING like what came out of Melania's mouth). I don't think she did it. The more I think about it, I think MELANIA did it. She watched the tape, liked what she saw, and figured she could get away with lifting part of it.

Anyway, the woman taking the blame is close to the family, so she's not gonna get the "Yer FIRED" treatment. Maybe she gets a raise for taking the fall...?

[StrictlyRockers]

12. Great article

I can't wait to read the rest. Thanks for posting.

[L. Coyote]

14. This certainly took the spotlight off her nudity.