WTF? Brian Williams says American people are to blame

[Marthe48]

for not demanding to see trump's tax returns. Did he have his head up his ass for the last 2 years? You can't even rely on MSNBC for a unslanted report.

[NRaleighLiberal]

1. and just how does that work? "even" MSNBC" we can rely on NO media.

$$$$$$$$$$ is what it's all about - they are in (what they think of is) a protective bubble.

[Cha]

14. It wasn't the American People.. it's was the Damn media's fault.

the m$m Always tries to shift the blame for their dereliction.

[still_one]

16. darn right it was Cha. All during the campaign we were screaming for it, and Hillary's campaign

brought it up all the time. Media just glossed over it

[Cha]

20. Exactly, stillone. I can't believe people are acquiesing

to this.

The media should have been broadcasting it 24/7 like they did her emails.

They're always trying to shift the blame.. and here they are doing it again.

Damn.

Thank you!

[Ilsa]

3. Well, they voted for him instead of telling him

No tax returns, no votes. His white supremacist platform was more important.

[madaboutharry]

4. David Cay Johnson said that.

He is a journalist and he said the American people should have demanded the tax returns.

Brian Williams was asking Johnson about his comments.

[Marthe48]

11. Thanks for redirecting

I was wandering, and missed the beginning of the exchange.

[msanthrope]

5. He's right. nt

[JCanete]

48. Yes, if he's talking about humans and our intellectual laziness that got us here. No, if he thinks

he can deflect responsibility away from the media, which has a history, when it is good, of helping us to find our intellectual curiosity and moral compass, and when it is bad, of literally selling Donald Trump to the American people, not to mention the Iraq War .

[msanthrope]

51. Well...a shitload of ire was about Goldman Sachs speeches.....

not about the tax returns of Sanders or Trump.

Can't blame the media for listening to the squeaky wheel.....

[JCanete]

58. that just isn't the case. The media made emails sexy. Do you think the public at large knows what

that is even about? And yet they covered them for 2 weeks right before the election. They Make news, they barely cover it.

[LibraLiz1973]

6. I don't disagree with him

He's 75% right
Yes, WE were demanding the tax returns.
HIS voters were not. If they had- and if the press had done their fucking jobs- we wouldn't be in this fucking position.

[eleny]

7. that was the turd in the punchbowl

otherwise it's been a decent broadcast. i'd like to see rachel and nance weigh in, too.

[Marthe48]

12. I bet RM hates being off tonight

hope she is digging deeper for the rest of the week.

[Leghorn21]

13. eleny, I hope Rachel and Malcolm are in the corner booth of an appropriately dark and funky bar

somewhere sharing a bottle of cheap wine and chuckling every now and then at the wonder of it all!!

A toast to these two relentless guardians of Truth, Justice and the American Way!

[eleny]

25. Nance got Matthews' attention

Nance almost got the chance to flesh out his belief about Trump being Putin's dupe. Time ran out.

[Leghorn21]

31. So Chris is the only person on the planet who DOESN'T know? Sad! eom

[eleny]

35. CM still tried to tamp down Nance

He sounded well prepared for that role. But Nance persevered and got out his thoughts. Matthews knew what he was doing.

[Leghorn21]

39. Well ffs! I won't even ask "why?", eleny! Cheeze! No tampin' on Nance, fool! eom

[eleny]

47. yeah, after the way he dispensed with milo on friday night

Matthews was on shaky ground trying to take him on.

[Leghorn21]

53. Missed it - just as well, apparently! eom

[eleny]

55. I only saw a decent size clip. Good stuff

[bravenak]

8. It's true

[Cha]

17. I blame the media.. we were demanding his taxes.. the media

should have demanded them too.. they should have ran with it 24/7 like they did her emails.

They're always trying to shift the blame.

[bravenak]

18. I blame his voters

They said they trusted him like the FOOLS they are

[KittyWampus]

21. which blends into my post below about another candidate who didn't release his taxes either...

unless there is a law stating it's required... it speaks to the voters.

[bravenak]

22. I despise cults of personality

I mean, damn, can we not have ANY standards anymore? Or is life just sound bites and catch phrases? Sad!

[KittyWampus]

24. you and me... we both didn't like Hillary but kind of got forced into it...

If only O'Malley had entered first.

[bravenak]

26. I know. I think he could have won, but oh well.

Maybe soon we will get a chance for him, without all the attention going elsewhere. I do my duty, regardless.
I'm liking that Buttigieg guy. My state is kinda like his state, he could get the votes from moderates and liberals if we back him up.

[KittyWampus]

28. If Mayor Pete goes national he'll get my money. Don't have much but would sacrafice

a few frills.

[bravenak]

30. Mine too!

I have some time to spare for him too.

[uponit7771]

37. +1

[JCanete]

49. why do you never have a problem with the powers that be gaming people? only the people getting gamed

It confuses the fuck out of me.

[bravenak]

50. Because after all this damn time they should fucking know SOMETHING

[JCanete]

57. then that is at least one thing you do not know. Do you think propaganda works because people are

stupid or ignorant? Either way, how can you blame the ignorant or stupid person over the machinery and individuals who keep it oiled for their foolishness? If they are ignorant, then they need to to be given the tools to be discerning. If they are stupid, then that is a condition, and it is being exploited. Its not like I don't understand being frustrated with these people, but I do not understand directing all attention to them away from the actual puppet masters of their stupidity. It really makes it all seem so hopeless.

[bravenak]

60. I think it works because those people already hold beliefs that make them susceptible

I don't makes excuses for those who fall for propaganda and allow others to b harmed so long as they see a benefit for themselves.
It's like the nazis. Do i blame the officials and the party and hitler? Absolutely. But do I also blam those who aggred with his views and turned in their neighbors? For damn sure. i dont give one fuck if they were manipulated by propaganda that helped them feel better by finding a scapegoat.
You know you talking to me right? Black folks have been scapegoated since we got here.
You say they be a puppet master, but I see the puppets face to face. They just as bad regardless of who is pulling the strings and my safety is not guaranteed just because you say it aint they fault.

[JCanete]

62. Fair enough. I may disagree with you but I don't begrudge your sentiment...but you can't expect

Last edited Thu Mar 2, 2017, 03:01 AM - Edit history (1)

better results if you don't focus on the cause of those results. If some crazy kennel master were refusing to feed his doberman's and then occasionally he sent a person into the yard and they tore that person up, you wouldn't blame the dobermans equally to the kennel master. Nor would you blame the doberman's if the kennel master was training them to bite at certain people.


The sad truth is we are just animals. Our rational brain is only as capable as culture and experience provides. The only two ways people embark on a journey of engaging that part of us though, is through good models and mentors, or through experiencing severe cognitive dissonance. Otherwise we are all quite capable of being part of the mob or pack. It's where we're safe in our sameness and in our unchallenged beliefs.

But we've had that talk and I absolutely do not expect that you give of yourself to people who have nothing to give in return but disdain, and I didn't post to harp on the point that these people are products of ignorance. My distress was in the way you did seem to be letting the media off the hook, and everyone else who has a vested interest in keeping ignorance and truthiness alive. These people, far and above, are the MOST to blame. With power comes responsibility. With a voice comes the responsibility to use it for truth, or at least to not use it to propagate lies and falsehoods.

[Maru Kitteh]

9. To be fair, blame does lie with those who voted for him without demanding

the Tax returns first. Both in the Republican primaries and in the general.

[VOX]

10. There's some truth in Williams' words.

The set that constitutes "American people" certainly includes Republicans, who have been downright cavalier about Trump's IRS documents and his Russian connections.

[Cha]

15. We were Demanding his tax returns.. The damn media should have

broadcast that.. 24/fucking/7 Like the Emails.. remember them?

They're always shifting the damn blame.

[uponit7771]

38. +1, Williams words are disingenuous ... MOST Americans wanted to see his returns

[Cha]

41. And as stillone mentioned .. Hillary was asking for them too..

the only ones who weren't asking were his suckers.. they didn't give a shite what he did or didn't do.

They're responsible as well as the media.

The media should have picked up the slack of the trump fans and demanded he turn over his tax returns.

Thank you, uponit.

[uponit7771]

42. +1, you make a good point about the media continuing to want to exonerate themselves from Benedict..

... Donald with their "equally flawed candidate" shit they said 1234231n4u23 times

Mika is the prime person on this with the "this is what the viewers want"

[Cha]

45. Thanks.. they so do. I wish we the American People could Twitter those

media****** outta business.

[KittyWampus]

19. Funny, Bernie Sanders never released his taxes either. So who was to blame for that?

NO, I'm not "refighting the primary". But it's a fact that Sanders never released his taxes either.

Sanders certainly didn't have anything that nefarious like Trump.

But one would assume there was -something- he didn't want to talk about.

But how is it a candidate that received millions in campaign donations and ran for the Democratic party candidate for POTUS never was forced to release his taxes?

There is no law saying a candidate for POTUS has to release their taxes.

What is to force a candidate to release their taxes?

People still voted for Bernie, people still voted for Trump.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

29. There should be such a law. That would solve all the controversy.

Sanders actually did release his 2014 tax returns: http://www.politico.com/story/2016/04/bernie-sanders-tax-return-222041

[uponit7771]

43. +1, NO ONE WHO HASN'T SHOWN THEIR TAX RETURNS SHOULD BE TRUSTED FOR PRESIDENT !!!!

[Princess Turandot]

54. Perhaps the states could make it a requirement of someone being put on the primary ballot...

...in their state. That would certainly do it. They're the only ones with an 'enforcement' stick.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

23. Hillary's emails, though.

Funny how most Americans don't seem to care about her emails now that the media and right-wing propagandists aren't harping about them, eh?

Funny how most Americans polled now don't believe that Saddam Hussein was involved in the 9/11 attacks. Leading up to the invasion of Iraq, MOST Americans believed there was a connection between Saddam and Al-Qaeda despite no evidence! Remember the media and the propagandists back then? Freedom fries, anyone?

Brian Williams is correct in a way. On the other hand, he might as well be blaming Americans for not all having PhD's and IQ's over 100.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

27. I thought he was responding to a comment by David Cay Johnson.

[Marthe48]

33. He was

I erred posting-Williams was reiterating the other guys opinion.

[AnotherMother4Peace]

32. What did he say? I'm watching now and didn't hear this. nt

[randr]

34. Wake up, the squeaky wheel gets the grease

It is the responsibility of the electorate to demand answers when the media fails. The media has no power compared to the voters. Make his tax returns the question asked every day of every representative and the tax reports will surface.

[LisaL]

36. He didn't release his taxes but American people voted for him anyway.

So who else is to blame?

[uponit7771]

40. Most Americans didn't vote for him, that's what's fucked up

[Cha]

61. And, we're still asking for his taxes..

Link to tweet

[JI7]

44. His Racist supporters also like it that Putin helped Trump

[gratuitous]

46. Les Moonves of CBS said the ratings were just too good

I don't think he was speaking just for himself or CBS, either. Too many people were tuned into this farce for the various news departments to monkey wrench the circus and get tough on Candidate Trump. So, we got President Trump. Tell you what, Brian, let the American people be the assignment editor, and we'd have seen Trump's tax returns. We'd also hear from black people other than Michael Steele, David Clarke, or Ben Carson.

[radical noodle]

52. I think he meant that no one should have voted

for someone who hadn't released their tax returns. They had the power to make that choice.

[eniwetok]

56. I took this to be TRUMP supporters didn't care

Obviously Dems and the non-right media did.

[Caliman73]

59. No... Remember, Brian Williams was engaged in heavy combat years ago!

He was like flying sorties and taking enemy fire and everything. It was very dangerous!!

[pansypoo53219]

63. they did vote for turnip.

without seeing them. weeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[butdiduvote]

64. He's right.

At the end of the day, it was the American voters who had the most power to stop ALL of this. ALL OF IT.

I'm tired of this sugarcoating of the truth and coddling of the American people as being immune to criticism. I saw a Bernie supporter the other day saying no one should place any blame on any of the voters for their votes because it was up to the candidates to woo them into voting for them, and Hillary didn't do that enough. Give me a break. Hillary went out of her way to get her message out there the best she could among the distractions being created by the other side. Much of it was recorded and easily available on YouTube. The voters are, by definition, adults. They're not children who cannot be expected to use a basic level of reasoning in making decisions. Too many of them decided to hold the female candidate to an impossible standard while holding the male candidate to approximately no standards. There are certainly others to blame, but make no mistake, the American people did a shameful thing on November 8th and deserve to be scolded for it.

[JustAnotherGen]

65. This is why they shouldn't have had

That panel without Rachel. I'm not responsible. We knew at DU. We discussed it leading up to the election. A week ago we brought it up to Congressman Lance.

I don't watch his show for a reason. Instead of the five Ws and how . . . He wastes words with blame.