The commander of the Navy Seal raid that killed Bin Laden denounced Trump’s absurd claim that the press is “the enemy of the American people.” Retired Admiral William H. McRaven said that Trump’s charge that the free press “the enemy of the American people” was “the greatest threat to democracy in my lifetime.
“William H. McRaven, a retired four-star admiral and former Navy SEAL, slammed President Trump’s characterization of the media as “the enemy of the American people,” calling that sentiment the “greatest threat to democracy” he’s ever seen.
“That’s coming from a man who’s seen major threats to democracy.
“McRaven, who was commander of the secretive Joint Special Operations Command, organized and oversaw the highly risky operation that killed Osama bin Laden almost six years ago. The admiral from Texas had tapped a special unit of Navy SEALs to carry out the May 2011 raid on the elusive terrorist’s hideout, a high-walled compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, The Washington Post’s Craig Whitlock reported shortly after bin Laden’s death.
“McRaven left the military in 2014 after nearly four decades and later became chancellor of the University of Texas System. The UT-Austin alumnus, who has a bachelor’s degree in journalism, addressed a crowd at the university’s Moody College of Communication on Tuesday.”
He is not a paid protestor.
At the CPAC meeting, Trump again attacked the media as fake news, dishonest, etc. He is doing his best to destroy the First Amendment. He is an enemy of democracy.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Reblogged this on It's Not Easy to Have Faith.
Trump is a threat to our democracy, to truth, sanity and decency. This was obvious before he ran for president and it became abundantly clear during his sordid campaign. For 5 years, Trump claimed that Obama was born in Kenya. He complicated his deliberately malicious fake news when he told the ABC Network News to the effect that he had hired a team of detectives to go to Hawaii and that they were reporting back to him “things that nobody would believe”…things which still have not been made public for some strange reason.
During the campaign Trump flip flopped and admitted that President Obama was indeed born in the United States. Trump did NOT apologize for 5 years of his FAKE news.
Trump made up fake news when he claimed that he couldn’t release his tax records because they were under audit. If he had really been under audit the first thing he should have done would have been to make public his audit letter from the IRS. But he didn’t do that because there was no audit letter from the IRS. Quite simply he lied about the audit, he lied about releasing his tax records, he piles lies upon lies. For you know who (plural): DO NOT DRAW SOME PHONY EQUIVALENCY BETWEEN TRUMP AND OBAMA AND TRUMP AND CLINTON. There is no such equivalency, not even close. Trump is uniquely pernicious and mendacious.
This should be interesting. Will Trump and his team brand as “an enemy of democracy” Retired William H. McRaven, retired four-star admiral?
I hope that Retired Admiral McRaven is joined other retired military officers and every university president and dean of a school of journalism to denounce the flagrant lies of the Trump/Bannon/Conway and the rest. The sooner this happens the better.
Too many people who are eager to give Trump & Co. “a chance.” He has created an administration that relies on intimidation and also that counts on many to remain silent in the face of the unfounded and relentless insults, displays of incompetence, deception, and fear-mongering. And that says nothing about the folks who again cheered “LOCK HER UP” at the last speech Trump gave to self-described “conservatives.” Every Republican in Congress who remains silent while these toxic tactics continue is aiding and abetting the new Trump/Bannon order: economic nationalism, deregulation, fend for yourself individualism.
Reblogged this on BLOGGYWOCKY and commented:
How many amendments does Trump seem to want to destroy?
It seems like most of them (but not the 2nd Amendment, of course.)
Marco Rubio claims to be a fervent supporter of the individual’s right to bear arms (although not in the halls of Congress).
He has refused to hold Town Hall meetings because he is afraid of violence.
You know, those people bearing arms.
LOL!
Actually, while the gun lobby may see Twitler’s coziness with the NRA as a plus at the present, should the feces hit the flabellum in a protest or town hall meeting and Bannon whispers “Marshall Law”, the whole game changes. I really think this is Bannon and Gorka’s endgame.
What combat (and I don’t mean from some command post far away from the actual fighting and dying) did McRaven actually see? My guess is none. Someone please cite otherwise.
the comment made by Trump is being misread…He had the word “fake” in his statement. The MSM is leaving it out to solicit emotional response from people.
It is FAKE news that is the enemy of the people.
Here is the TWEET:
Donald J. TrumpVerified account @realDonaldTrump
The FAKE NEWS media (failing @nytimes, @NBCNews, @ABC, @CBS, @CNN) is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American People!
He made this tweet as well:
FAKE NEWS media knowingly doesn’t tell the truth. A great danger to our country. The failing @nytimes has become a joke. Likewise @CNN. Sad!
http://www.latimes.com/politics/washington/la-na-essential-washington-updates-donald-trump-called-fake-news-media-1487377442-htmlstory.html
http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/trump-fake-news-media/2017/02/17/id/774296/