By Joe Lane
On Jan. 21, President Trump’s press secretary, Sean Spicer, berated reporters in a briefing room over what he considered “shameful and wrong” attempts to “lessen the enthusiasm of the inauguration.”
However, just about the only things shameful and wrong about the five-minute conference were Spicer’s statements about the inauguration. The “facts” that Spicer presented on behalf of the Trump administration have been widely discredited by a number of reputable sources, sources that even Trump supporters would be hard-pressed to call “fake news.”
But this is not what troubles me about this ridiculous diatribe.
As Spicer approached the end of his accusations, he said, “There’s been a lot of talk in the media about the responsibility to hold Donald Trump accountable. And I’m here to tell you that it goes two ways. We’re gonna hold the press accountable as well.”
In the now-famous words of the man himself: wrong.
The media exist to hold the president, other elected officials, and the rest of the government accountable. The president does not exist to hold the media accountable. This — much like the reporting with which Spicer and the Trump administration have become so angry — is a fact.
The chain of accountability in this country is not a circle. The president is held accountable by the media, and the media are held accountable by the people. The president’s job in this accountability chain is to remain morally and ethically sound.
The Daily Iowan has, on a number of occasions, expressed its hope that the media, itself included, would continue to play the role of accountability officer of the president during Trump’s presidency.
This applies not just to the Trump administration but to every administration in U.S. history as well. So this column is not a call to the media to hold the president accountable but a call for the people to hold the press accountable and for Trump to stop trying to take that job for himself.
It is important to note that the media corps is not meant solely for fact checking the president. It is also its job to disseminate information to the public about the important happenings in international and domestic governmental affairs.
Now that Trump has officially taken office, he is beginning to work on policy and signing executive orders. He’s accomplished a number of things, and even if they aren’t things I’d like to see happen, he has at least gotten down to the task of governing.
The media are doing their best — and mostly succeeding — at wading through Trump’s “alternative facts” to report the news on these proceedings. But Trump’s legitimate work hasn’t kept him from spending a large portion of his time arguing with the media.
Trump has spent months telling us how big his crowds are, how big his hands are, how much money he has, and how successful he is, and he shows no sign of stopping anytime soon. I will, therefore, put this in no uncertain terms: I do not care how big anything of Trump’s is, save for his character.
The philosopher Plato once said, “The measure of a man is what he does with power.” As we enter his presidency, I am unimpressed with Trump’s use of power. It’s time for him and his administration to let the media do their job and get on with the work of running the country.
The campaign is over. Now, somebody just needs to inform Trump.