President Donald Trump’s war on the press

I’m offended by Newsday’s July 29 editorial, “Orwell redux.”

Orwellian tactics are afoot, but they are employed by leftist media, not President Donald Trump. This administration has a clearly stated agenda, something the Democratic Party lacks.

Our president is bringing manufacturing jobs back, reducing unemployment to its lowest level since 2000 and African-American unemployment to its lowest level since 1972, and increasing gross domestic product. However, good-news stories of his accomplishments are buried, or downplayed by many media sources seemingly determined to delegitimize every aspect of his presidency.

I don’t care about inauguration crowd size, but my intelligence is insulted by denigrating, misleading “news” stories. Too many in the media engage in activism, and their rhetoric breeds intolerance, not civil discourse. People who feed on anti-Trump rage have harassed and assaulted others over Make America Great Again hats. Republican congressmen were targeted for a massacre at a baseball field. Department of Homeland Security employees have been threatened. One staffer had a burned, decapitated animal left on his porch. Leaders of a pro-Trump organization were driven from a restaurant, screamed at and followed.

Those intolerant of dissent ultimately control our speech. That’s totalitarianism, fascism. That’s what threatens our nation’s freedoms, not President Trump!

Sandra Poplawski,East Northport

A letter writer is correct that “nearly all presidents exaggerate” [“Trump, the truth and the presidency,” Aug. 2]. But he doesn’t seem to understand the difference between exaggeration and outright lies. He mentioned Barack Obama’s comment that deficits were unpatriotic. Contrast that to President Donald Trump’s campaign criticism of Obama’s golf outings and his promise to stay in the White House and work. We see how quickly that promise was broken.

The reader wrote about an incident when Obama said police acted stupidly. That was an opinion shared by others. Contrast that to Trump’s statement to county sheriffs in 2017 that the murder rate was the highest in 47 years, when statistics showed a steady decline since 1995. The reader then cited Obama’s claims about the Affordable Care Act. I’m sure Obama believed people would be able to keep their doctors. Contrast that with Trump’s statement that the military hasn’t gotten a raise in 10 years. The Pentagon refuted that claim, saying soldiers had gotten annual raises for a decade.

But I agree when the reader wrote, “Our presidents need to remember they represent all Americans.” Trump has never even tried to represent anyone but those who support him. And has lied to the American people almost every day.

Scott Diamond,Levittown

Donald Trump was elected because people are fed up with drugs and crime, as well as with political corruption and how our government wastes taxpayers’ money.

We know Trump is not perfect, but he is doing what many Americans feel should have been done by past presidents of both parties.

Trump has called out the media, and rightfully so! Actions speak louder than words, and we have a president who is finally doing what’s right for the American people. It’s high time the news media grow up and get behind our president and act more patriotic!

Pete Zeccola,Garden City

After Ivanka Trump said the press was not “the enemy of the people” [“New attacks on ‘enemy of the people,’ ” News, Aug. 6], CNN correspondent Jim Acosta tried to bully White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders into saying the same thing herself, something she was uncomfortable doing. He persisted and then walked out. What he did was unconscionable, rude and unprofessional.

Sanders responded by reminding correspondents that their recent dinner featured a foul-mouthed female comedian who attacked her appearance and said she was a traitor to her gender. Although the White House Correspondents Association disavowed those comments, is it any wonder that the public holds these media representatives in such low esteem?

Isaac Blachor,Great Neck

While it is no secret to all who know me that I detest almost everything about our president, the only shining light in the Trump administration is press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. She is articulate, resilient and has more sass than the Energizer Bunny. Whether she agrees with the president or not, she is his mouthpiece and more than holds her own in the snake pit that is the White House press corps. I hope she continues to shine and persevere despite her feckless boss. She has a very bright future indeed.

Joel D. Reiter,Woodbury

Shakespeare wrote of a general named Macbeth who receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become king of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the Scottish throne for himself.

A contemporary version might read: a TV personality receives a prophecy from a group of witches that one day he will become president of the United States. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his ego, Donald Trump murders the king’s English and takes the presidency for himself.

And now a knave named Robert Mueller is hunting for the witches who initiated the toil and trouble, of which the first is now on trial.

Bill Domjan,Melville