What Really Happened in the Cheap Attacks on Donald Trump?
January 12, 2017

I use the word "cheap" because if the media reports gossip, innuendo and defamation without presenting evidence, that is cheap.

Is it not?

It is imperative that a free press be fair.  And giving any kind of exposure to allegations that smear a person is wrong.

It doesn't matter if those allegations are in a report or anywhere else.

If there is no back up - no facts to indicate the allegations may have some credibility - they should not be published.

I hope we all understand that.

Now, on to what happened to Donald Trump.

In September of 2015 someone hired a Washington political research firm -- Fusion GPS -- to dig up dirt on Mr. Trump.

Taking the money, the company began its sordid quest.

A few months later, some Democrats who supported Hillary Clinton also began to pay Fusion for dirt.

In June 2016 Fusion hired a retired British intelligence officer Christopher Steele to get that dirt.

Apparently Steele talked to some Russian operatives and began issuing a series of memos based on the gossip that he heard.

In August of 2016, ABC's Brian Ross reported yesterday, those salacious memos written by Steele had found their way to the FBI.

Then on Halloween, appropriately enough, a far-left magazine ran a story about the anti-Trump operation.

The national media did not pick it up to its credit.

One week ago, January 5th, President Obama was briefed on Russia's efforts to influence the U.S. Election and the anti-Trump garbage was included in that briefing.

Vice President Biden said today that the president questioned why the gossip was even included in the briefing.  He was not pleased.

That's to Mr. Obama's credit.

The next day, Donald Trump received the same intelligence from four senior U.S. intel chiefs.

That's when all hell broke lose.

Also receiving the information?  Eight Congress people - Paul Ryan, Nancy Pelosi, Mitch McConnell, Chuck Schemer, Devin Nunes, Adam Schiff, Richard Burr and Mark Warner.

A short time later, CNN received a leak that the salacious anti-Trump stuff was presented to Obama and Trump.

Then BuzzFeed printed the salacious stuff.

Now, a bunch of the allegations have already been discredited and none confirmed.

Yet some argue that the public should be allowed to see all the garbage even though it certainly hurts the Trump Administration and the president-elect.

So you, as an honest American, must decide.

Do you want salacious trash in the public square distributed by the media?

There are no rules anymore.  Allegations become convictions.  Gossip and innuendo become fact.

Standards on the Internet and for much of the establishment media are nonexistent.

Donald Trump has denied all accusations and is angry, as we saw yesterday.

But in the long run, it is America that should be angry because this kind of stuff is harming the fabric of our society, our political structure and our ability to evaluate information in a fair way.

Facts should be reported.  Baseless allegations should not unless credible evidence is presented.

Period.

And that's the memo.

Posted by Bill O'Reilly at 8:51 PM
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What Really Happened in the Cheap Attacks on Donald Trump?
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