Will The "Both Sides Brigade" Rescue Trump?

Writing in New York Magazine, Eric Levitz notes that some in the traditional media are beginning to call for "compromise" between the Dems and demagogue and corrupt con man Donald "Rump" Trump over his hostage-taking Government shutdown tactics. Acceding to Rump's petulant demand that he get $5.7 billion in taxpayer money for a wall that Mexico was going to pay for would incentivize him to do the same thing whenever he wasn't getting his way: successful hostage taking leads to more hostage taking. And it would be well for the "both sides brigade" to remember that Rump himself owned the shutdown and he can end it.

We're seeing trenchant stories of Federal workers and contractors barely holding on as they dip into retirement funds or sell belongings. The media is tempted to play this as the result of "both sides" not willing to compromise. But with a nod, Rump could signal human/turtle hybrid and despicable coward Sen. Mitch McConnell to bring the appropriations bills passed by the House up for a vote and open the Government, while debating border security separately. The media's not so stupid as to miss the obvious action required -- they're lazily slipping back into the "both sides" mode when they need to point to the clear (and self-identified) villain here: Rump.