Media Struggles as Anti-Trump Narratives Repeatedly Fall Short

Once upon a time, we had Teflon John, referring to Gotti. Then came Teflon Ron, referencing Reagan.

Now, it’s time to welcome Teflon Don, a nod to Trump.

It’s unfortunate for the Democrats and their mainstream media allies that they can’t seem to uncover any criticism that resonates with the 45th and soon-to-be 47th president.

They say practice makes perfect, but that hardly applies to today’s Democrats, who have been attempting to tarnish Trump’s reputation for nearly a decade without much success.

They seem unable to discover anything that truly impacts American sentiment—aside from those who still hold faith in The New York Times and CNN—as worthy of outrage.

This predicament has left legacy media scrambling for a fresh negative narrative.

Here’s a glimpse of the falsehoods that have simply bounced off Trump’s shield:

Trump is a Kremlin agent (absolutely not).

Trump labeled neo-Nazis as fine people (which he did not).

Trump created cages for migrant children (that was actually Obama).

Trump’s own speech is blamed for two assassination attempts against him (seriously?).

Trump poses a threat to Our Democracy (that is until he secured the popular vote).

However, as Inauguration Day approaches, many of the allegations have taken a turn for the absurd.

For instance, the suggestion that Elon Musk is the shadow president controlling Trump.

Consider a CNN headline from December: “Trump bristles at Musk’s surging profile as Democrats capitalize on the president-elect’s vanity.”

For a spell, the left seemed to believe this would diminish Trump’s appeal—yet his approval remains at an all-time high.

By the way, no one governs Donald Trump. Do they not grasp that yet?

This week’s coverage of Jan. 6 was equally ridiculous.

Sunny Hostin from “The View,” which, astonishingly, falls under ABC’s news division, equated the 2021 Capitol riot to World War II and the Holocaust, historical events that collectively resulted in 85 million deaths, including hundreds of thousands of American soldiers.

Nevertheless, despite the media’s melodramatic round-the-clock coverage, Americans marked the fourth anniversary of Jan. 6 with overwhelming indifference.

According to a CNN poll, when asked to recall their most significant memory of Trump’s first term, merely 5% of Americans mentioned Jan. 6.

If you’re seeking a textbook example of “media disconnect,” this would surely qualify.

In recent days, Trump has floated the idea of purchasing Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark.

The rationale? Military strategy, of course, along with the opportunity to access the island’s vast oil, gas, and rare-earth mineral resources.

Currently, Greenlanders can’t reap the benefits due to drilling and mining bans. Consequently, 95% of Greenland’s economy relies on exports and subsidies from Denmark.

However, instead of evaluating this potential acquisition logically, the media rushed to their two favorite narratives: fear and exaggeration.

MSNBC’s Alex Wagner breathlessly claimed, “America will have to choose between supporting sovereignty and self-determination or endorsing imperial expansion.”

NBC News: “Greenlanders are concerned about landing on Trump’s shopping list.”

The New York Times: “Make Greenland Great Again’? No Thank You, Greenlanders Say.”

Not quite sure when Greenland was great, but alright.

Your point is evident. The legacy media response to Trump remains unchanged since 2015: Whatever Trump aims to do, concoct a narrative branding it as unpopular or radical, infuse it with terms like “imperial” and titles like “Emperor,” and watch the echo chamber amplify its effects.

Although this has yielded no results.

This coming Friday, barring intervention from the Supreme Court, Judge Juan Merchan is set to sentence Trump in the so-called hush-money case, a clear case of politically motivated lawfare.

The left would relish nothing more than repeating over and over in the days leading up to his second inauguration that Trump is the first convicted felon to occupy the presidency.

However, akin to his two (count them, two!) show-trial impeachments, most Americans will remain unfazed.

Why? Because the insults won’t lower their grocery or energy expenses.

They won’t eradicate violent crime in their neighborhoods.

They won’t prevent the largely preventable wildfires in California.

And they won’t secure the border or resolve chaos abroad.

This is why Trump triumphed in November—because Americans view him as the leader who can rectify this turmoil.

On January 20, Teflon Don will be back in the Oval Office.

Meanwhile, the media’s influence remains where it’s been for quite some time: in the gutter.

Joe Concha is the author of “Progressively Worse: Why Today’s Democrats Ain’t Your Daddy’s Donkeys.”