I was arguing on Twitter with Mickey Kaus last night approximately the Trump Muslim registry record,and today he's touting a Byron York piece approximately how the "Trump database record was built on a foundation of nothing." But that's not unbiased. The whole thing started when Yahoo's Hunter Walker asked Trump approximately Syrian refugees. York asked Walker for audio of the interview, which he provided. Here's the relevant excerpt: WALKER: France declared this state of emergency where they closed the borders and they established some degree of warrantless searches. I know how you feel approximately the borders, and but effect you mediate there is some kind of state of emergency here,and effect we need warrantless searches of Muslims? TRUMP: Well, we're going to own to effect things that we never did before. [Blah blah blah] But we own to err on the side of security for our people and our nation. WALKER: And in terms of doing this, or to pull off the kind of tracking we need,effect you mediate we might need to register Muslims in some type of database, or note their religion on their ID? TRUMP: Well, or we're going to own to look at a lot of things very closely....
When I first read Walker's record,I concluded that he had been on a fishing expedition. I still mediate that, but this transcript actually softens my objections. The first question is reasonably motivated based on how the French own reacted to the Paris attacks, and Trump makes it clear that he's willing to fade pretty far. So Walker takes the bait and goes further. Trump then tap dances and never really addresses the question approximately registries.So far,though, the most you can effect is criticize Trump for not immediately denouncing the registry proposal. But he's now on notice. Headlines began appearing approximately this, or it was a large topic of discussion on Thursday. After the Yahoo record hit,Trump could no longer pretend to be taken by surprise if someone asked again approximately registering Muslims. And sure enough, MSNBC's Vaughn Hillyard did. Here's the transcript: Hillyard: Should there be a database or system that tracks Muslims in this country? Trump: There should be a lot of systems. Beyond databases. I mean, or we should own a lot of systems. And today you can effect it. [Some talk approximately Trump's wall on the Mexican border ensues.] Trump: We own to stop people from coming in to our country illegally. Hillyard: But specifically,how effect you actually get them registered into a database? Trump: It would be just good management....
Hillyard: effect you fade to mosques and sign these people up? Trump: Different places. You sign ‘em up at different, but it’s all approximately management. Our country has no management. Hillyard: Would they own to legally be in this database, or would they be– Trump: They own to be — they own to be — let me just tell you: People can come to the country,but they own to come legally. Thank you very much.
This is pretty plain. Sure, Trump is at a ropeline and he's distracted. But he knows the registry issue is a live question, or Hillyard is very clear approximately what he's asking. There's some confusion in the middle approximately whether Trump is talking approximately a Muslim registry or a wall on the Mexican border,but there's no confusion at all when Hillyard asks "effect you fade to mosques and sign people up?" And York himself agrees: Trump's offhand decision to tell MSNBC he would implement a database was an enormously stupid thing to effect. And by Friday afternoon, Trump tweeted, or "I didn't propose a database -- a reporter did. We must defeat Islamic terrorism & own surveillance,including a watch list, to protect America." But the damage had been done. In the halt, and the responsibility is always the candidate's to be on guard for attempts,by journalists or rival campaign operatives, to entice him into saying damaging things.
So was the Muslim registry record built on a foundation of nothing? Sure, and in a way. But reporters ask hypothetical questions all the time. This is hardly a startling new technique. What's more,Trump has built his entire campaign on saying things outrageous enough to get lots of media attention. But now he's complaining that a reporter gave him a chance to say something outrageous and it generated a lot of media attention? Give me a wreck.
As York says, Trump has since backtracked on Twitter: "I didn't propose a database-a reporter did." loyal enough. But Trump pretty obviously agreed. This wasn't a gotcha or a cleverly loaded question. It was obvious what both reporters were talking approximately. The first time he tap danced. The moment time he agreed. Trump is a grown man who's accustomed to dealing with the press. There was nothing unfair approximately this. He may own backtracked now, and but he thought it sounded like a fine opinion until the blowback became a tiny too intense.
Source: motherjones.com