"THE VENEER OF TRUTH"
Do you know who Lawrence O’Donnell is? For nearly 14 years, he’s been a prominent voice on late-night MSNBC with his show, "The Last Word." Before that, he brought his political savvy to "The West Wing" as a producer, writer, and actor, drawing from his experience as an aide to the esteemed Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan and as staff director for two key U.S. Senate committees. He also calls Santa Monica home.
Last Thursday night, O’Donnell delivered a fiery rant that was as spot-on as it was powerful. He took aim at the media, including his own network, for even airing the event. It was as angry as I’ve ever seen him. The target of his ire? A so-called "press conference" that Trump held the day before at Mar-a-Lago, an event that was nothing more than an hour-long spectacle. O’Donnell noted that the small group of "reporters"—handpicked, no doubt—failed to challenge a single one of Trump’s many outrageous lies. NPR counted 162 falsehoods in just 64 minutes.
Trump warned that the country is in "the most dangerous position it’s ever been in economically." Someone should remind him about the Great Depression because every economic indicator shows the U.S. at the top among world economies today. He bemoaned the lack of domestic oil production and promised to "drill, baby, drill!"—yet the U.S. is currently the world’s leading oil producer. He claimed nobody in the U.S. wants abortion to be legal, that we’re on the brink of WWIII, that violent crime is skyrocketing, and, of course, that his crowds are the largest ever. He even claimed his January 6th crowd was bigger than the one for MLK Jr.’s "I Have a Dream" speech, which drew over a million people. What’s new? This is the man who told over 30,000 lies while in the White House.
The press conference was a farce. There were no microphones in the "press" section, so viewers couldn’t hear the questions. Some broadcasters added subtitles, but it was still a ridiculous setup. Trump was free to say whatever he wanted, often completely off-topic. When he insulted Kamala Harris, claiming she was too stupid to hold a press conference, no one pointed out that she has degrees from Howard University and UC Hastings School of Law. Trump, who has a BS in Economics, famously sued to keep his grades secret. He claimed Harris’s crowds were small—"1,200, maybe 1,500"—but no one corrected him to say it was actually 12,000 or 15,000. He even suggested her crowd photos were enhanced with AI, a claim that has been thoroughly debunked.
HE DID NOT ANSWER A SINGLE QUESTION
O’Donnell emphasized it three times: "Not one. In the entire hour." He pointed out that reporters still don’t grasp that whatever Donald Trump says in response to a question isn’t actually an answer. Yet, there’s no pushback, no accountability. Trump speaks, and they broadcast it without question. Meanwhile, not a single network aired Harris’s crucial speech in Michigan — only O’Donnell aired it, at the end of his show.
Too often, people stay silent when confronted with blatant falsehoods. But the press, of all people, should never have that mindset. Failing to challenge lies is a dereliction of their primary duty. O’Donnell didn’t hold back, using the previous day’s events in Florida to deliver a scathing indictment of the media, accusing them of being complicit in Trump’s dishonesty.
Sure, Trump would hurl insults at anyone who dared to confront him—he’s got the microphone, after all, and they don’t. That’s classic bully behavior. But the only way to beat a bully is to stand up to them. O’Donnell’s show last Thursday was the best I’ve seen. The most impactful statement came from a guest: "When you don’t push back on lies, it gives them the veneer of truth." And that brings us back to—
"RETIRED FORMER MAYOR" KEVIN MCKEOWN
And anyone else here publicly spreading lies and distortion. I don’t have the eloquence, or even the righteous anger of Lawrence O’Donnell – maybe he’ll invite me over to his SM pad for some tutoring – but it’s the same principle. Let lies stand without challenge, and they take on the veneer of truth.
McKeown has been very active lately with a few letters to the editor that are laced with quite a few distortions and downright untruths. He claims, incorrectly, that Brock and the rest of the City Council are responsible for unleashing unstoppable massive development on Santa Monica when it is the state who has changed the rules. He has tried to claim all the ills of the city are the fault of three Councilmembers he dislikes and it feels alot like electioneering to suddenly start criticizing those individuals during an election but perhaps the City would have more options for addressing resident concerns if we weren’t so bankrupt from a sexual predator who roamed unchecked for years during McKeown’s time on Council.
"The Brock Council does its best to operate out of sight." That’s quite an unsupported accusation. And – "the Brock Council"? I’m sure Brock wishes. Wonder why the "retired mayor" seems to have it in for the current mayor?
Charles Andrews has lived in Santa Monica for 38 years and wouldn’t live anywhere else in the world. Really. Send love and/or rebuke to him at therealmrmusic@gmail.com
