Was Maddow’s Release of Trump’s Tax Return a Dud?
Anti-Climactic, or the Start of an Even Bigger Story?
Many people on the left and the right are attacking Rachel Maddow after she revealed Donald Trump’s tax return. There was no big ad campaign in the days leading up to the scoop, not a lot of hype, just a tweet (and a poorly worded one at that) about 90 minutes before showtime. She followed it up with this:
What we’ve got is from 2005… the President’s 1040 form… details to come tonight 9PM ET, MSNBC.
— Rachel Maddow MSNBC (@maddow) March 15, 2017
Sure, it was anti-climactic. There was no huge explosive revelation. He’s not going to jail as a result.
Some people say they felt cheated. Like this Fox News reporter:
.@CarleyShimkus on Maddow’s tax tease: “People feel really let down and sort of misled by the tease in the tweet.” pic.twitter.com/ub1DXemwRn
— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 15, 2017
Or Fox News pundit Sean Hannity, who spent 18 months working to get Trump elected.
Hannity: Rachel Maddow is Part of NBC’s “Corporate Jihad” Against Donald Trump….MSM: Not Press, But Propagandists pic.twitter.com/AigTLHeqUS
— John Betts (@JohnFromCranber) March 15, 2017
But as Washington Post columnist Jonathan Capehart tweeted, journalism, actual, good journalism, takes time – and Watergate wasn’t laid out in a day.
Too many of y’all are acting like Watergate was one big reveal. It took months of rigorous and boring reporting. Journalism takes time.
— Jonathan Capehart (@CapehartJ) March 15, 2017
Americans, who elected a reality TV show host (and serial liar) as president, really need to learn some patience.Â
Slate’s television critic, Willa Paskin, apparently is now a Woodward and Bernstein-level investigative reporter willing to totally slam Maddow. “Rachel Maddow Turned a Scoop on Donald Trump’s Taxes Into a Cynical, Self-Defeating Spectacle,” was the piece she wrote. Thanks, but I’ll form my own opinion after reading what political journalists and legal experts, not TV critics, have to say.Â
Meanwhile, Seth Abramson, a professor, attorney, journalist, and author, took to Twitter after Maddow’s show to offer up a list of why the story is incredibly important.
He says we learned a lot, including that Trump lied when he said he could not release his returns, and Maddow and Johnston’s willingness to publish the return will give other leakers courage that their efforts will be supported by the press. He also notes that Trump’s tax “reform” will benefit Trump the most.
Take a look:
(THREAD) Here is why tonight’s release of a portion of Trump’s tax returns actually _matters_. Don’t be fooled into thinking it a non-story. pic.twitter.com/eIhWnucthK
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 15, 2017
2) We now know that, whensoever the WH should consider itself under threat of imminent release of Trump tax info, it will release that info.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 15, 2017
4) Maddow’s handling of Trump’s ’05 1040 confirms that reporters are willing to receive Trump tax info & publish it under the 1st Amendment.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 15, 2017
6) Given where the housing market was in ’05, Trump making “only” $150 MILLION in that year (gross) belies his claim he’s worth $10 BILLION.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 15, 2017
8) Given that Trump paid 600%+ more in AMT than he did in “regular” taxes, his tax policy of abolishing the AMT is revealed as self-serving.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 15, 2017
What else did we learn? Contrary to what Trump hacks like Matt Schlapp and David Urban try to make people believe, the American people have incredible interest in seeing what’s in Trump’s taxes.
He should release them. At once.
RELATED:
Hours After White House Confirms Tax Return Authenticity Trump Calls Story ‘FAKE NEWS!’
Trump White House and Trump Jr. Lash Out at MSNBC’s ‘Desperate’ Rachel Maddow
As Maddow Reveals Donald Trump’s Tax Return Speculation Grows He Released It Himself
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Image: Screenshot via MSNBC
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