Trump's Big CON: Stay Quit & Pledge Loyalty, Or Else, CONt.

UPDATE: The article was "updated with Bannon's comments Monday night" and renamed:

"Former chief White House strategist Steve Bannon picked up that argument Monday night during an appearance on Sean Hannity's TV show.

'It's totally unacceptable in a time of war,' Bannon said of Corker's comments. 'We have troops in Afghanistan. In the Northwest Pacific and Korea, we have a major problem that could be like World War I. In the South China Sea, in the Persian Gulf, we have American lives at risk every day.' . .

Bannon's argument is especially specious give we've had troops stationed overseas on a constant basis since World War II, and that we've been in tense situations with unpredictable enemies pretty much that whole time (think: Cold War, ISIS, etc.). He's basically suggesting it's really never okay to criticize a president. Yet that's exactly what Trump did for eight years under Obama."

Read the Washington Post, The Trump White House’s dangerously authoritarian response to criticism.

"President Trump, as the White House will often remind us, is a counterpuncher. You hit him; he hits back twice as hard. You bring a knife; he brings a bazooka.

But while the White House thinks Trump's counterpunching is only fair, this is not a two-way street. And yet again Monday, the White House made the case that it is simply not okay to criticize the president in the manner he goes after others.

After Trump attacked Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) over some veiled criticisms last week, Corker tweeted Sunday that the White House was an 'adult day-care center' and later suggested Trump's threats to foreign countries could lead to World War III. Appearing on 'Fox and Friends' on Monday morning, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway said that this was not okay.

Host Brian Kilmeade teed it up nicely, saying, 'What a demeaning tweet at the president.' . .


The subtext of all of this is: How dare you criticize the president? He is doing important things and speaking out against him only undermines his efforts to “\'Make America Great Again.'

Whatever you think of Trump, that's a very authoritarian argument to make. It suggests dissent is unhelpful. It suggests it's unpatriotic. And it's hardly the first time Conway and the White House have gone down this road. . .

[T]he White House still thinks it's above this kind of criticism. It still thinks the president should “not be questioned,” at least to the extent Corker did.

What's most notable here as that a lot of these criticisms pale in comparison to what Trump has said about his opponents. He has questioned the war hero status of John McCain. He has attacked a Gold Star family. He called his primary foe a liar — repeatedly. He called his Democratic opponent a criminal who should be jailed. And most importantly, he was one of the most vocal critics of the last president, even suggesting he was a fraud whose presidency was illegitimate.

All of that was okay, but suggesting President Trump is volatile and dangerous is not, apparently. . .

It's not only a double standard; it's a willful campaign to suggest that even criticisms that might be valid are beyond the pale if they undermine Trump. The White House isn't disputing the criticisms; it's suggesting they shouldn't be tolerated and aren't good for the country. That's a stunning posture for any White House to take."

Read the Washington Post, Kellyanne Conway and the White House’s very authoritarian attitude toward criticism.