Bush is famously remembered for telling reporters, “Don’t print what he (Mayor Daley) said. Print what he meant.”
In that spirit, my hands-down winner of this year’s Earl award goes to journalist Salena Zito. While covering Donald Trump’s presidential campaign for The Atlantic in September, she wrote what I believe is the most pithy, profound and requoted explanation of the many who have tried to explain the president-elect’s surprising success:
“The press takes him literally, but not seriously,” she wrote; “his supporters take him seriously, but not literally.”
Or as Corey Lewandowski, Trump’s former campaign manager, told journalists in December, “This is the problem with the media. You guys took everything that Donald Trump said so literally. The American people didn’t. They understood it.”
That sounded at first like spin-doctor hubris to my journalism-school-trained ears. But then I thought back to other politicians I have known and covered. Regardless of political party, some pols master the knack of connecting too well with their audiences for anything as inconsequential as facts, logic or proper syntax to get in the way of their message.
Even Trump’s new friendly enemy, President Barack Obama, stretched the truth when he repeatedly promised during the 2012 campaign trail that under his Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare, that “If you like your health-care plan, you can keep your health-care plan.” Adding a proper qualifier such as, “if you meet the law’s criteria” would have been more accurate but less exciting. Zito might say Obama’s supporters took him seriously, if not quite literally.
Considering the endless stream of quotes that Trump offered up, it is not surprising that one topped this year’s list of notable quotables compiled by Fred Shapiro, the associate director for collections at Yale Law School’s library.
The winner: "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody," said Trump at a campaign rally in Iowa, "and I wouldn't lose any voters."
That jaw-dropper edged out first lady Michelle Obama's memorable line to the Democratic National Convention, "When they go low, we go high." But Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton lost the election anyway.
Clinton took third-place honors for saying at a September fundraiser in New York, "You could put half of Trump's supporters into what I call the 'basket of deplorables.'"
Shapiro makes good lists, but his Top 10 missed my favorites in the following categories that I created:
You first, Mr. President-elect?
“Now it’s time for America to bind the wounds of division. (We) have to get together. To all Republicans and Democrats and independents across this nation, I say it is time for us to come together as one united people.”
— Donald Trump, of all people, in his election night victory speech.
Bittersweet
“Do you know how thoroughly distrusted you are, mainstream media? Well, he is now … We the People’s nominee. So, suck it up, cupcake!”
— Sarah Palin, at a Trump rally in San Diego, to the “sheep in the media.”
At least she called us cupcakes. Sweet.
Happy New Year — and you can quote me!
About the Author