A mere six weeks into President Trump’s administration, the leftwing Politico had already begun to float the idea, in big headlines given prominent positioning on its home page, that 45-year-old Reince Priebus, the former (and very successful) head of the Republican National Committee and current White House Chief of Staff, was on his way out. Trump was going to fire Priebus. It was only a matter of time. Fer realzies.
The Politico onslaught began on March 5 (see timeline below) with the bombshell that the “knives are out for Reince.”
As the White House struggles to gain its footing almost two months into Donald Trump’s presidency, administration officials increasingly put the blame on one person: Reince Priebus.
In interviews, more than a dozen Trump aides, allies, and others close to the White House said Priebus, the 44-year-old chief of staff, was becoming a singular target of criticism within the White House.
Sounds ominous. And naturally, this report (like the six others that followed) spread through the rest of the fake news media like wildfire.
To fulfill the leftwing media’s agenda, this story — based on anonymous sources, naturally — fulfilled three goals.
1) Hanging Priebus’s scalp on the MSM’s trophy wall. This is the man, after all, who not only led the Republican Party to the kind of nationwide dominance unseen since the Democrats owned slaves, he was also a key player in Trump’s unexpected ascendency to the Oval Office, one of the media’s most humiliating moments; something they have still not recovered from.
2) The story hurt Trump’s burgeoning administration because it created a “chaos” narrative, the idea that Trump was in over his head. The media loves to use these narratives against Republicans while Democrats are never-ever-ever in disarray.
3) Publishing such things can — and this is always part of the media’s plan — become a self-fulfilling prophecy. These types of fake stories sow discord and suspicion within the White House; create the chaos the MSM so desperately wants to see because chaos means things are not getting done, which means Precious Barry’s legacy is safe.
After Politico‘s March 5 piece failed to manifest itself into reality, on June 5, the leftwing outlet attempted to wipe egg off its face with a story about “How Reince Priebus Hangs On.”
Then, on June 11, Politico went for it bigtime — deadlined itself. Reince had until July 4 to fix things or he was OUT. This was followed by a June 22 story about Priebus living on “thin ice” and a story the very next day about how Priebus is helpless to “save his job.”
Well, here we are on July 6, two days past the July 4 deadline, and Reince is not only still chief of staff, Trump is on a roll. CNN, the leftwing fake news network dedicated to spreading anti-Trump propaganda 24/7, is disintegrating before our very eyes, and as I write this, the President is already enjoying a wildly successful overseas trip, his second in a row.
Moreover, the repeal of ObamaCare appears more likely than not, which would not only cement Trump’s legacy (quite a feat less than a year in) but would be a major win for Priebus himself.
I should add that the leftwing Politico did, on numerous occasions, blow their prediction that the Republican House would not repeal ObamaCare.
As you peruse the stories below, keep in mind that these are just the Politico headlines predicting Reince’s firing. My guess is that there are countless occasions where Politico seeded other palace intrigue stories with asides about Reince’s imminent demise.
March 5: Knives are out for Reince
March 15: Trump floats the idea that Priebus may run a car company one day
March 26: Priebus: ‘I’m not in any trouble’
June 5: How Reince Priebus Hangs On
June 11: Trump gives Priebus until July 4th to clean up White House
June 22: Priebus, on thin ice in the West Wing, keeps close eye on RNC
June 23: Why Reince Priebus Can’t Save His Job
If past is prologue, Politico will never admit they got anything wrong, even though their original prediction is now nearly four months old. No, instead the left-wing outlet will keep running these stories until 2024. Then, after Reince leaves after two successful terms, Politico will declare victory: “Reince Out at White House.”
Hat tip: Paul Bedard at the Washington Examiner, who also points out how wrong the media has been about Press Secretary Sean Spicer’s imminent demise.
As we are learning more than ever this year, “getting it right” is no longer anything close to a priority in journalism.
Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC. Follow his Facebook page here.