Trump recently quoted Thomas Jefferson to sustain Trump’s campaign against the press, which he has called “The enemy of the American people.”
Trump certainly didn’t read Jefferson, but someone on his staff found this quote for him, to make it appear that Jefferson opposed a free press.
“When Thomas Jefferson said ‘nothing can be believed which is seen in a newspaper. Truth itself,’ he said, ‘becomes suspicious by being put into that polluted vehicle.’ That was June 14 — my birthday — 1807.”
The Washington Post has started a regular column to fact check Trump’s claims, and the fact checker pointed out:
Trump selectively quotes from Jefferson here, who for most of his life was a fierce defender of the need for a free press. When Jefferson wrote to 17-year-old John Novell, urging him to avoid a career in journalism, he was embittered by reports spread by his political opponents that he had slept with Sally Hemings, one of his slaves. Today, most historians now believe she was the mother of six of his children.
This quote from Thomas Jefferson shows his fierce dedication to a free press and literacy:
Paris Jan. 16. 1787.
the basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter. but I should mean that every man should receive those papers & be capable of reading them.
Based on his attacks on the press, we can safely assume that Trump would prefer the former.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I thought it was proven through DNA that Jeff had fathered children with Sally. Catching Trump in yet another lie does nothing to diminish his avid followers. In fact, they love seeing him not afraid of being caught in a lie and just getting away with it.
LikeLike
White House chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon spoke at a conservative summit in Washington on Thursday (his boss is scheduled for today) and continued to preach the administration’s mantra of contempt for the mainstream media. He warned his audience of fellow travelers that the media, whom he has labeled the “the opposition party,” will keep fighting the Trump presidency. “If you think they are giving you your country back without a fight, you are sadly mistaken,” he said — a statement that ought to furrow many brows.
LikeLike
What can be said? Our society had moved forward…perhaps one step and now
we have taken two giant step back. It is like living in a world where the
TWilight Zone and Big Time Wrestling describe the White House….The
Demo party must push back and we must hope that some Republicans
show some courage. and break from Trump…..if not, I just taught a unit using Farewell to Manzanar,
the Jungle and some song-poetry of Bob Dylan…”a hard rain is a
gonna fall.” It’s already falling and unlike the Dylan song, “the executioner’s face
is (not) always as in the song-well hidden…Trump’s intentions are clear.
He still can be–at least partially stopped.
LikeLike
Marek,
He can be stopped.
By hundreds of people flooding into Town Halls and telling their Congressmen to do their job. To stop the assault on government.
By millions of people voting in 2018 to throw out his Republican Congressmen.
He can be stopped sooner than you think.
LikeLike
Diane, yes he can be stopped. He’s already done a great deal of
damage. But you are right and the 2018 elections will be key.
Hopefully at least some of his supporters will realize they have
been used like a tool, to again quote from Dylan’s Only a
pawn in their game…the white working class is a pawn
in Trump’s game. But , as you say, he can and will be stopped.
LikeLike
I think he’d prefer the opposite of the end of the quote – people NOT capable of reading them!
LikeLike
Trump said he loves the uneducated
LikeLike
And we know why! Thanks, Diane.
LikeLike
On a side note: Isn’t it a tragedy that Jefferson couldn’t express his obvious love for Sally in any public way.
LikeLike
Reblogged this on Lloyd Lofthouse and commented:
The Malignant Narcissist in the White House misquotes (lies about) Thomas Jefferson in an attack on the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and a free press.
LikeLike
The Jefferson-Hemmings story is very suspicious, probably not true, and even the dna evidence indicates that. For one thing, when Sally was in Paris, Jefferson was involved deeply – at least emotionally – with Maria Cosway. He would not have had the emotional or physical desire to be with Hemmings. For another, his brother, who was a well-known abuser of his female slaves, had the same dna. The dna evidence more likely implicates his brother. As to the press, Jefferson believed passionately in its freedom, as do I. But at the same time, he was well aware of its manipulation of facts – and that is true, down to today. Look at how the press worked against Bernie Sanders, how they have now convicted Russia of hurting Hillary in the campaign WITHOUT ANY ACTUAL EVIDENCE other than the mouthings of people who insist they can’t reveal their evidence. It’s WMD all over again. If they can’t reveal their evidence, they don’t have any, and the press should hold their feet to the fire. That is the kind of crappy journalism that starts wars; and it is the kind of crappy journalism that Jefferson was referring to.
LikeLike