A presidential wrecking ball
By Julian Zelizer, CNN Political Analyst
Updated 2:29 PM ET, Sun October 1, 2017
From the start of his administration, President Donald Trump has used presidential tweets as a wrecking ball that divides, insults and spreads false information -- confusing the nation in ways that potentially benefit his administration.
And this weekend was no exception. With residents of Puerto Rico struggling to survive a humanitarian disaster, the President sent out a barrage of hate-filled tweets, invoking racial stereotypes and fueling division in the body politic ...
What has President Trump done with his power to tweet? The most important use of this medium has been to stir social and political divisions, aggravating deeply rooted cultural tensions within the national psyche. We have seen this at numerous points in this presidency, including recently with his tepid response to white racist protesters in Charlottesville and his blasts against African-American players protesting racial injustice by kneeling during the national anthem. These are not "dog-whistles," but megaphones, which he uses to get across his message loud and clear. And in his latest tweet about Puerto Ricans, he appears to be comfortable using his words to reinforce obvious social stereotypes .. that are extraordinarily damaging ...
Never have we seen a verbal barrage like what we have witnessed since January. When historians look back at this presidency, Trump's Twitter feed will be the first thing they examine, an x-ray into the troubling soul and strategy of our Commander-in-Chief.
http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/01/opinions/trump-tweets-politics-opinion-zelizer/index.html