Media darling of NBC didn't show up at the Fox News debate and yet his presence was felt and discussed in his absence. As Trump predicted, the ratings were low in his absence even though the debate incorporated discussion of his proposed policies. But as *I* predicted, there was nothing new about what was discussed; we've all heard it all before, and wouldn't have missed a thing if we ourselves hadn't tuned in. We know the talking points forward & backward, we're familiar with the crusade against Planned Parenthood, now quite thoroughly debunked by high court, and although it's a predictable applause line for the people who will still do anything, including fabricate stuff, to shut it down, in terms of size compared to the voting public, it's still a peanut gallery.
The results are in: Trump is NBC's ticket for trumping Fox.
And whereas Trump has been the consistent GOP leading candidate, imagine what that says about the GOP rank & file.
Now let's examine Fox owner, Rupert Murdoch, who has been on a media buying spree but targeting media with long standing authoritative reputations. He's obviously not happy with the reputation Fox gives him and thinks he can buy credibility by buying the likes of Wall Street Journal and National Geographic. Sorry, Rupe, but credibility of reputation is earned, not bought. The second that you purchase an entity with a high reputation, the reputation takes a nosedive, and your credibility remains in the toilet.
At this point we arrive at the problem with Mehgan Kelly, and there is one, and we saw it last night: she makes the debate all about her, not the candidates. That wasn't what Trump conveyed when he complained, though, and the opening remark with a string of ad hominems concluded by the statement that the Trump segment was now over, stuck. It's true. Nothing gets a point across better than one that's based on truth, although the truth must be stated with illustration to get across. That one was. If Trump was able to convey an actual problem with Mehgan Kelly, he would have conveyed his point, and he didn't.
The GOP's Ethanol Fissure: This is essentially a Friday UPDATE because Ted Cruz makes it his Iowa issue right now. The GOP was massively against the idea of blending ethanol to gasoline to begin with, and an effective tactic in any red state, including Oklahoma, is for a gas station to put NO ETHANOL in huge letters, and/or 100% GASOLINE on its outdoor signage. Ethanol is not only an admission of air quality issues which the GOP has traditionally denied, and tied into the climate change issue, which the GOP currently denies. But to succeed in Iowa, the GOP is required to say good things about federal subsidies and enforcement of blending ethanol in gasoline AND take a stand against that federal "blend wall". Welcome to liberalism, Iowa GOP. And to any member of the GOP that panders to Iowa.
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Monday mini-UPDATE, Iowa Caucus Edition: By golly, I heard Trump bring up the ethanol vs conservatives issue today. When the man's right, he's right!
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