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Flynn's resignation shows Trump can't afford to ignore 'dishonest media'

Trump is unlikely to be happy with 'dishonest media' exposing his administration.

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On January 17, just days before Donald Trump took oath as the US President, the Press corps wrote an open letter to the President-in-waiting. The letter was no olive branch to a new administration to forge a amicable relationship after a  contentious campaign. Rather it sought to establish some ground rules that the press will try to abide by while covering  the Trump administration. The essence was that the press would be tough but fair and will try to call out the lies and  deceits wherever it spots one. It also highlighted a crucial point that access is preferable, but not critical. Less than a  month later, the press has exactly followed up their promise exposing various errors of omission and commission by the  Trump administration, leading to high-profile exit of Trump's national security advisor, Michael Flynn. 

Michael Flynn, a three star general who was fired from Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) by US President Obama for mismanagement is best known for his borderline Islamophobia. There's also a delicious slice of irony in Flynn's resignation over a privacy beach given his rabid 'Lock her up' refrain for Hillary Clinton. 

By fate or design, Flynn along with Steve Bannon became the face of Trump administration's muscular foreign policy. However, history will remember Flynn as the shortest serving National Security Advisor, fired for disclosing information and virtually misleading the White House about his talks with Russian administration. Flynn as a civilian talked with the Russian envoy to US Sergey Kislylak about possibility of lifting restrictions once the Trump administration took office. 

But Flynn either forgot or deliberately misled US VP Pence about the nature of the conversation. Pence vouched for Flynn on camera. Hence when the Washington Post's highly sourced article dropped a bomb on the nascent administration, Pence was virtually exposed as a liar and Flynn's position became untenable. But the thing to remember is none of this would have been possible if not for a brilliant piece of journalism from Washington Post. 

The New York Times and CNN have followed it up with well-sourced articles that several members of the Trump team had established deep contacts with high ranking members of Russian intelligence well before the elections took place. This is directly in contradiction to Trump's complains that his team wasn't in contact with the Putin administration before the polls. Although the nature of such conversations are yet to be revealed, it is another blow to an administration increasingly fragile to perception of being soft towards Russia. While Trump may rationale it by saying that he is in favour of a friendly tie for greater good, the sneaking suspicion that it was done to manipulate the election results, is unlikely to go away anytime soon. 

So far Donald Trump has tried to shift the goalpost by complaining about such high-profile leaks, and complaining about 'failing' NY Times and Washington Post. 

Right-wing websites like Breitbart have been insinuating that many officials with allegiance to the past administration may be leaking out juicy information to the press. The amount of defiance the Trump administration had about the press can be estimated from the fact that Flynn talked nonchalantly with Russian ambassador fully aware that the call was likely to be wire-tapped. Or, that the Department of Justice alerted Trump administration about Flynn's possible compromised condition way back in January. But Trump refused to fire his blue eyed boy.

The deputy AG Yates alerted her higher-ups, only to get fired for refusing to carry out the travel ban. The administration underestimated the press, only to its peril. The leaks ensured that virtually the entire communication channel of the Trump's men with Moscow prior to polls is now in public domain. And that's what is likely to hurt Trump's ego.

While media's non-stop diatribe against him before elections, only bolstered the Trump brand and fuelled his base to vote vigorously, the rules of the game has changed now. Reports which expose various missteps of the administration  will only increase Trump's pain and show how grossly unprepared and callous they are, especially in matters of national security, a stick they beat Hillary Clinton with. His surrogates are also caught giving false assertions often to back up their boss' rhetoric, which are being promptly called out by the alert media. Like even with the Flynn firing, Press Secretary Spicer said that Trump sacked him after losing confidence, senior aide Conway asserted that NSA has left on his own accord.

 

A bizarre tweet shaming Ivanka Trump after Justin Trudeau's vist by HuffPo 

 

 While some in the new media like HuffPost and Buzzfeed have lost the plot with trivial, slanderous and unverified reports about Trump, the doyens of conventional journalism like NYT and WaPo are carrying the cudgels of exposing the 45th US President without compromising on their core integrity. They are pushing back against open hostility from the Trump administration with good old-school journalism, of checking and verifying facts, looking for scoops, patterns in dealings and bringing out the truth in front of the public. And Trump is not really liking such work from the 'dishonest media'.  The battle is only likely to get fierce in the coming days. 

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