The Weekly Ringer

The University of Mary Washington Student Newspaper

Staff Ed: Trump video goes too far

2 min read

Lauren Brumfield | The Blue & Gray Press

By THE BLUE AND GRAY EDITORIAL BOARD

Last week, at a conference for President Trump’s supporters, a violent video of Trump’s face was photoshopped onto a scene from the film “Kingsman: The Secret Service” was shown.

Donald Trump Jr., Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Ron Desantis, the governor of Florida, were all in attendance at the conference, which was held at Trump National Doral Miami. American Priority, a pro-Trump group, hosted the event.

In the photoshopped video, Trump is shown shooting and stabbing journalists, other media members, his critics and his opponents in the upcoming presidential race. The video is full of internet memes compiled into one bloody and brutal depiction of a massacre.

Trump’s distaste for the news media has been explicit and evident throughout his presidency, with him going so far as to labeling the media as the “enemy of the people.” This disdain for the media is now evident in Trump supporters’ propaganda.

The video has since been denounced by Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a spokesman for the Trump campaign for presidency in 2020, and the organizer of the event where the video was shown. A full day after backlash to the video ensued, White House Press Secretary Stephanie
Grisham condemned the video, but the president has yet to offer commentary. Some view the video as an incitement of violence.

The staff of The Blue & Gray Press finds Trump’s silence on the video reprehensible. His demonization of the press and his calls to violence against critics are a grave danger to democracy. Under no circumstances should the video be normalized.