Trump symptom of bigger problem

So the president came to New Mexico. What’s the big deal?

He’s so predictably unpredictable these days that it’s starting to get boring. For the casual critic who takes no solace in The Traveling Trump Show, he’s not nearly as outlandish as he used to be.

Back when every insensitive, hateful, xenophobic, racist, nasty, fake word he uttered offended America at the core of our values, at least he kept our attention. But last week, when he came to Rio Rancho, I for one barely noticed or cared.

The closest to caring, I suppose, was when I thought about the local fans who might travel to Rio Rancho just for the show — I could have “localized” the state story by interviewing them (as some other newspapers did). But I already have more local stories here than I can get to, so I didn’t.

Trump may be the leader of a dysfunctional Washington, but here in Santa Rosa we have our own dysfunction taking place at city hall, and that’s “entertaining” enough.

That’s the thing about politics and politicians — it’s all local. I’m fairly certain Trump will never make a stop in Santa Rosa, but I see his imprint here nevertheless. He’s a symptom of a bigger problem in which misinformation is undermining the democratic process. For democracy to work for the good of the people, it needs a well-informed citizenry, and we’re losing that.

I blame the media and We The People for that. Yep, we’re in this together.

Nowadays, our lives are saturated with media, and it’s hard to tell sometimes what’s real and what’s not. A lot of media outlets have become more concerned with the size of their audience than the accuracy of their coverage, and they do a tremendous disservice to our nation as a result.

But that doesn’t mean the citizenry can’t tell the difference between truth and fiction. With a little bit of homework, we can.

To be truly informed, not brainwashed, you need to consider the source of your information. Facebook is not a news organization but that’s where most Americans are getting their news these days. Fox has turned itself into Trump’s propaganda arm, but it’s the most popular cable news outlet there is. Then there are other Trump apologists like Rush Limbaugh, who has been wrong so many times it’s a wonder anyone even takes him seriously.

And let’s not forget the Russians, who showed us in 2016 just how effective they can be with misinformation campaigns.

Of course, I’m preaching to the choir. By reading this column, and the newspaper in which it’s published, you’re part of an America that still picks up the printed words and absorbs its linear thought process (a basis for logical thinking).

But I’m digressing from my larger point, which is this: Americans shouldn’t just vote, they should do their homework before voting, using credible sources as the basis for their conclusions.

Sorry, Trump supporters, but that means you need to own up to the fact that you’re being played by a compulsive liar. Trump fabricates the truth regularly, and you’re lapping it up as if facts don’t matter to you anymore. That’s bad citizenship.

So there, I just disclosed my bias. I’m on a search for the truth and I won’t give “fair and balanced” treatment to misinformation.

Tom McDonald is editor of the New Mexico Community News Exchange. Contact him at:

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