Three Years of the Corporate Media Shrieking About the ‘End of Democracy’ and trashing Trump

In speeches throughout his time in office (and in particular starting with the 2022 midterms), President Biden has warned a second Trump term would herald the “end of democracy.” But if anything, Biden is late to the party. The corporate media were doomsaying about democracy’s brutal demise as far back as early 2021, and their rhetoric has only grown more absurd since then.

The most obvious issue with this dire warning, other than its absurd overuse by journalists loyal to liberals, is that it always entails an almost comically vague, ever-changing definition of “democracy.”

the DNC operatives in the news media had already branded Republicans the anti-democracy party. On October 12 of 2021, CNN contributor and former Clinton aide Paul Begala warned that, if Democrats ever lost power again, democracy would be over forever:

I’ve got a piece coming out tonight or tomorrow [about this] on cnn.com — shameless plug — and I really don’t think this is hysterical. I’m a pretty moderate guy. If the Democrats fail, it might be the end of American democracy.

n December of 2022, MSNBC host Ali Velshi remarked while filling in on The Last Word that Moore v. Harper — a gerrymandering case concerning the North Carolina redistricting map — “could be the end of democracy if it goes the wrong way.” Velshi was far from alone in his assessment. In October of that same year, the ACLU put out a podcast episode about Moore titled, “This Supreme Court Case Could Upend Democracy.”

In June 2023, MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell agreed enthusiastically with Mount Holyoke College president-elect Danielle Holley when she remarked that the Dobbs decision was “a case that could end democracy.” A few weeks later, the Los Angeles Times published an opinion piece titled, “How the end of Roe turned into a threat to American democracy.”

Do these ideologues really think any of these events will result in the mass-disenfranchisement of millions of Americans? Presumably not, but then what is their definition of democracy?

The truth, as most have probably realized, is that “democracy” is simply a stand-in term for the DNC agenda.

• Trump Is Testing the “Bedrock Tenets” of “Democracy” — Moderator George Stephanopoulos on ABC’s This Week, April 28.
• A Trump Win Could Lead to the End of a “Free Press,” and “The Rule of Law Itself” — Host Nicolle Wallace on MSNBC’s Deadline: White House, April 29.
• If You Vote for Trump, You Are Not a “Patriot” — MSNBC contributor/presidential historian Jon Meacham on HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher, April 19.
• Fretting That Trump’s Trials May Hurt Biden – — NBC chief foreign correspondent and MSNBC host Andrea Mitchell on NBC’s Meet the Press, April 21.
• “Wonderfully Poetic!” Joy Reid Cheers “My DEIs” for Prosecuting Trump — Host Joy Reid on MSNBC’s The ReidOut, April 15.
• Katie Couric’s Condescending Take on Trump Voters — Former NBC Today co-host and CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric on HBO Real Time host Bill Maher’s podcast Club Random with Bill Maher, April 14.
• Immediately Tying Trump to Man Who Set Himself on Fire — Correspondent Terry Moran during ABC’s live coverage of the Donald Trump trial, April 19.
• Trump = Cult Leader Like David Koresh, Jim Jones or Charles Manson — Co-host Joy Reid on MSNBC’s The ReidOut, April 2.
• It’s a Conspiracy! Blaming High Gas Prices on Donald’s Oil Business Buddies — Host Stephanie Ruhle on MSNBC’s The 11th Hour with Stephanie Ruhle, April 17.
• NBC’s Brief Hiring of Former RNC Chair Was a Blow to “Democracy” — NBC’s Today show co-host Savannah Guthrie on CBS’s The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, April 3.
• Republicans Are Making Women’s Lives “More Miserable” — Co-host Joy Behar on ABC’s The View, April 9.
• “Hitler” Trump “Will Punish Everybody That Didn’t Vote For Him,” Put “Us In Camps” — ABC’s Black-ish actress Jenifer Lewis on the Sirius/XM radio show Mornings with Zerlina, April 4.
• Joe Biden and Kamala Harris Are the “Father” and “Momala” of “Our Country” — Actress/talk show host Drew Barrymore to Vice President Kamala Harris on the syndicated The Drew Barrymore Show, April 29. — Host Howard Stern to President Joe Biden on Sirius/XM’s The Howard Stern Show, April 26.
• Trump Actually Benefiting From “Two-Tiered System of Justice” — Musician/actor John Legend on MSNBC’s Inside with Jen Psaki, April 15.

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