Lesley Stahl’s damning Trump anecdote goes viral, but did it actually happen?

Journalists are often told that, “If your mother says she loves you, check it out.”

Members of the press would do well to take this advice seriously, especially as our industry is deeply distrusted by the public.

That is, reporters would be wise to do the opposite of what so many did this week after CBS News’s Leslie Stahl revealed a supposedly shocking anecdote about President Trump.

In an interview Monday with PBS’s Judy Woodruff, Stahl claimed she asked the president in a “semiprivate” meeting in November 2016 why he attacks the press.

“I said, ‘You know, that is getting tired. Why are you doing this? You’re doing it over and over and it’s boring and it’s time to end that. You know, you’ve won the nomination. Why do you keep hammering at this?'” she started.

“You know why I do it?” Trump responded, according to the "60 Minutes" host. “I do it to discredit you all and demean you all, so when you write negative stories about me no one will believe you.”

If Trump said this, there’s no defending it. It’d be a despicable act of manipulation. If Trump said this, it would show just how cynical he really is.

But that’s a big “if.” Do we have any reasons not to believe it? Sure. For example, why is she only telling this story now, 17 months after the conversation allegedly took place? And does she have the rest of this interview?

Can she authenticate any of this story? It’s not that far-fetched a thing for Trump to say (well, the “demean” part is a bit much), but we need something more than hearsay for a claim of this size.

At least, you’d hope reporters would ask for some sort of proof. Many didn’t Tuesday.

“This is terrifying,” said NBC News affiliate reporter William Pitts.

“Trump tells [Lesley Stahl] he demeans the press so no one will believe negative stories about him. Well, alrighty then,” said CNBC’s Christina Wilkie.

Upworthy’s Parker Molloy added, “It’s obvious this is what he’s doing, but still kind of amazing that he’d say it out loud.”

The Intercept Managing Editor Charlotte Greensit added, “This is what it ALL boils down to with this President.”

To be fair, not everyone in the news media took her story at face value, but the skeptics were in the minority as far as public comments are concerned.

All too often, it seems that members of the press are happy to accept whatever they hear so long as it reflects poorly on a given target. They’re even happier to make the claim go viral.

It doesn’t matter if the claim has been vetted or not. It doesn’t even matter if the claim raises more questions about the storyteller. All that matters is that it does the intended damage.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/lesley-stahls-damning-trump-anecdote-goes-viral-but-did-it-actually-happen

Senators warn Trump: Don't give China ‘access to US-made military technologies’

China must not be granted “access to U.S.-made military technologies and advanced dual-use technologies” in exchange for better trade relations, more than two dozen senators warned President Trump’s economic team.

“We strongly support these critical negotiations to rebalance the U.S.-China economic relationship, but U.S. national security must remain the paramount consideration,” Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio wrote in a letter signed by 25 other lawmakers. “Therefore, we strongly urge you to reject any proposal by China to loosen existing restrictions on the export or other transfer of these sensitive U.S. technologies.”

“Any such move would bolster China’s aggressive military modernization and significantly undermine long-term U.S. national security interests,” the lawmakers continued.

The letter, which was also signed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., reflects broad congressional concern that Trump’s administration will make strategic mistakes in its trade discussions with China given Trump’s economic officials are reportedly divided about how to approach the high-stakes talks.

Trump’s team is split between free-trade advocates and protectionists. The free-traders, led by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, reportedly have considered making it easier for Chinese companies to purchase “militarily sensitive products,” according to the New York Times.

Congressional worries were exacerbated after Trump signaled he would reverse a ban imposed on Chinese tech company ZTE, which prohibited it from purchasing American software in response to a personal request from Chinese President Xi Jinping. ZTE was originally punished for defying U.S. sanctions on Iran, and American lawmakers believe it collaborates with Chinese intelligence officers.

“[ZTE] buys a large portion of its parts that make up these phones — that are sold all over the world — from American companies, so when you [sanction them] you’re really hurting American companies also,” Trump said at the White House Tuesday. “But, as a favor to [Xi], I am absolutely taking a look at it.”

Rubio and others are free traders, but they want the ban on ZTE to remain in place precisely because they’re buying American technology, which the senators regard as a national security threat due to the company's links to Chinese intelligence and history of helping rogue regimes defy U.S. sanctions.

“[W]e urge you not to compromise lawful U.S. enforcement actions against serial and pre-meditated violators of U.S. law, such as ZTE,” the senators wrote. “This is particularly critical when the violators are state-owned and -influenced, part and parcel of China’s policies and practices designed to strengthen its own national security innovation base, and essential tools of efforts to spread China’s influence in other countries that pose national security threats to the United States."

"Export control and sanctions laws should not be negotiable, because fidelity to the rule of law is a key part of what distinguishes the U.S. from a country like China that is ruled by a Communist dictatorship,” they added.

>>1510644

Sauce: https:// www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense-national-security/senators-warn-trump-dont-give-china-access-to-us-made-military-technologies

>>1510681

While they are exposed at the same time, think President Xi Jinping, knows what they have been up to. I have a feeling he does and he's already informed those in the need to know camp.

>>1510833

I think this is more of a thing where they are trying to cover their own tracks, wouldn't want to be caught with their hands collectively in the proverbial cookie jar.