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I read that same Politico piece and wondered what the evidence/basis was for their statements about CA vs FL covid outcomes. Without explanation the reader is led to believe DeSantis had it right after all, science be damned; not a good conclusion to draw given all we know about the virus. Even I wondered how that could be true? Imo, DeSantis is a hack despite his having earned a Yale degree; an arrogant Trump pretender ensconced within FL’s powerful, immutable Republican legislature. How about a story about that?

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Fla facing a world of hurt, indeed

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You psychopaths can only wish that to be true. The reality is that y’all are just a disgusting and hateful collective that wishes harm on your fellow countrymen because they don’t 100% align with your draconian views.

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yep, Fla’s awful Covid stats are mostly brushed aside

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I must be losing my mind--this seems like gaslighting. DeSantis is unbelievably awful.

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he really is

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DeSantis emulated Himmler as squad leader for the GOP death cult. In December he ordered the firing and then raid of Florida's lead data scientist, Rebekah Jones, armed agents entering the home with guns drawn in front of her children. He'll gladly go further to suppress negative press.

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like Trump, he decided fighting w/ the press is good politics

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I am only guessing, but our failed political press loves attention-seeking jerks (See Trump, Donald), and FL Gov. DeSantis is the next coming of Trump. Or will be with some grooming from the media. I’d be on the look-out for CNN’s take as they love drama. He’s raw meat for their pundits.

DeSantis is click bait who says outlandish things, a thin-skinned seeker of vengeance for slights, and exists only to promote himself.

Sound familiar? It should.

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I should have added that DeSantis is actively cultivating this perception, too.

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Trumpism is alive and well. Just because Trump will likely be too feeble or wearing an orange jump suit in four years doesn't mean we won't have another Trump like candidate to lead the ruins of the Republican Party back into the White House. The press is coddling DeSantis much the way they did with Trump five years ago. Fascism in Germany took a good ten years to take full control. The fascist movement here in the US is far from over. Even during these better times under Biden we are seeing hate crimes continue against African and Asian Americans. Much of the Republican Party continues to deny the Big Lie as hundreds of voter suppression bills are being pushed around the country. This can only help DeSantis, Ted Cruz and others like them to rise to power for the next presidential election. Unfortunately and sadly the mainstream media is continuing to help them along.

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I think yr def right abt DeSantis and Trumpism w/ the press

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I've referred to him as Ron DeSADIST.

But I'm not surprised that Tiger Beat On The Potomac (tip o the hat to Charlie Pierce) did that glorification of him since it's just another cog in the 24/7 Republican Brainwashing Machine!

I'm curious as to why the DC Press Corpse slams Newsom yet kisses up to DeSADIST...

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As long as a Republican is reasonably housebroken, doesn't shoot too many people, and only wears KKK robes in private, they'll serve as an object of press adulation, to 'fair and balance' coverage of Democrats.

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I think they've stretched their criteria. They're trying so hard to rehabilitate Former Thing.

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Also bear in mind that there have been credible accusations that DeSantis lies about the number of cases, etc. The metrics being used to compare him with other governors are at best flawed.

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It is very rare for me to disagree with Eric Boehlert, but, alas, I must. He said that "journalists are lining up" to do the bidding of Florida's governor, and then cites Politico and CNN.

When have they employed journalists or practiced journalism?

Thank you. I'm here all day.

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Will your comment serve the veal?

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I am surprised to hear anyone is touting DeSantis’ response to COVID, my guess is someone is giving misleading, or completely false information to the media. My parents, both in their mid-70s have not been able to get a vaccine in Charlotte County, and now it’s open for 60+. My mom has underlying health issues, and has been told by each of her doctors that the medical providers haven’t even all been vaccinated, they haven’t been given the vaccine supply they need. Everyone is frustrated. Meanwhile, I am in California, and every person I know, who is eligible, has received the vaccine: doctors, nurses, teachers, people 65+, friends who care for their elderly parents, food service and hospitality workers, and volunteers at food banks. I have been online to try to get an appointment in Florida for my parents, there is nothing available in their area. It is infuriating.

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Egad! I don’t watch CNN or read Politico so I had no idea. At least MSNBC has not been giving kudos to De Santis; they have been taking him to the woodshed.

Eric, I think you would really like the Pod Save America episode from Monday the 14th “Beat the Press”. I listened to it after another commenter mentioned it. They harshly criticize the media for all the gotcha questions, trivial focus (Will Biden’s dog be put down), distractions like not giving Trump credit for the vaccines, etc. Then they play a game of identifying which questions for Biden came from political journalists and which were from ordinary people. The difference was striking. The questions from the public were much more substantive than those from the professionals.

What really got my attention was when one of them (Jon Favreau?) said that he thinks that there is a gender bias in they way the media treats Republicans v Democrats — Republicans are treated like they are masculine and Democrats as if they are feminine. “It is assumed that Republicans will be strong, intransigent, confident and that their needs need to be heard and appeased; and it is Democrats’ job to be nurturing, supportive, to listen, and to take care of those needs. It is why the idea of someone asking Mitch McConnell what are you doing to create unity today or asking Ted Cruz what are you doing to bring the Senate together or asking Tom Cotton why are you not doing more to address the fact that you alienate so many urban Americans...... it’s why these questions are some much more unusual than the ones pointed at Democrats. There’s an assumption that Republicans are who Republicans are and it’s Democrats’ job to kind of nurture and help them figure out how to work together for the benefit of the country.

For years I have thought that journalists treated Democrats, even Democratic men, in the same biased way women are routinely treated. They are more critical of Democrats when they act aggressively. They expect them to behave much, much better than they expect Republicans to, etc. There is a not-so-subtle disdain for Democrats like Gore and Kerry for not appearing to be manly enough despite the fact that a they both volunteered to go to Vietnam, clearly more impressed by the performative macho bullying of the chickenhawks Cheney and Bush. Bill Clinton was mocked for feeling people’s pain. Trump repeatedly called Biden weak, obviously seeing him as a “girly man”. In 2000 Maureen Dowd mocked Gore for being so feminized he was practically lactating because of his concern for our environment.

I think this subconscious belief that Democrats are the soft, nurturing “Mommy Party” and Republicans are the strong, authority-wielding “Daddy Party” is a major, but subtle reason, for the biased treatment of Democrats by the media that has not been addressed. Too many in the media are in awe of macho bullies just like they were in high school so Republican bullies get their respect.

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I agree. We are definitely watching them act out their Mommy/Daddy psychodramas. I will add that another reason media despise the Democrats is because African Americans wield power and influence. When most pundits talk about "what voters want" the subtext is "what white (male) voters want". They don't consider Black voters "real voters".

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After I wrote that comment I listened to Ezra Klein’s podcast interview with Rebecca Traister “Andrew Cuomo and the Performance of Power” which, like the Pod Save America discussion makes it crystal clear that our mainstream “liberal” media loves macho bully narcissists like Cuomo, Giuliani, Chris Christie, Newt, Cheney, Rummy, etc. and are more than willing to overlook past despicable behavior, especially in a crisis. Most of the public buys into the media framing of these men which greatly increases their political influence. From what I have seen the media then blames this on the public, not themselves.

Both podcasts are really worth listening to.

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I forgot to add they don’t really consider anyone white or black who doesn’t live in small towns or rural areas are “real” Americans, let along real voters.

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Well said.

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At what point can we call this: journalists today are not as educated or experienced as their forebears. They do not even seem to like their jobs - even when reading or listening to their missives I can feel their scowls. They do not have the experience that we, your readers, have. What, they saw George W. Bush and Barack Obama and decided nothing happened before they were born? Keep your Peter Bakers...where have all the Jack Germonds gone?

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DeathSantis is not the Florida Covid Savior, he is the number one Covid Idiot, way too ignorant for his years spent at expensive Ivy League schools, he no doubt took scholarships to attend, sports scholarships, NO way academic. DeSantis isn’t fit for Governor, perhaps playing captain on Six Leagues Under the Sea 💀 for the 500k deaths he & his really stupid dipt shit leader Jack Ass Thumper, who wizzed him into office.

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I don't know, man, the De Santis coverage just looks to me like the usual establishment press doing PR for the GOP.

BTW, difficult as it is for the mainstream to grasp, 32+k is an awful number. Too, I tend to suspect that amongst all the Covid undercounting, Florida had more than its share of deliberate undercounting. (Obviously, some undercounting was and is unavoidable. Deliberately is another story.)

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founding

Florida will become the new AMerican version of China! Between DJT** and DeSantis and whomever else goes out to Mar-A-Lago to visit to rub elbows with the King! And I recently read there could be a new casino coming to Mar-A-Lago! They will control their Kingdom of Gullible People whatever way they want! So Get out of Florida while you can and don't plan on visiting there any time soon! The Maniacs will own you!

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https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/floridas-ron-desantis-wrote-book-excusing-slavery-10809091

So the Beltway Mewling Media Malevolents are swooning over a guy who wrote a book excusing slavery.

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