Daytona 500 Versus the Oscar Moment: Trump Versus Obama and His Legacy
Maggie Haberman using her twitter account “@Maggie NYT,” may have just exhibited one of the worst cases of Trump Derangement Syndrome ever seen.
She decided to criticize President Trump for honoring NASCAR fans in his unique style.
She obviously was very angry and filled with snark when she critiqued President Trump for “using the official apparatus for what appears to be a political event.”
Setting aside that the Daytona 500 transcends politics to honor a great sport, Haberman created, to use that horrible overworked cliché, a teachable moment.
President Trump and First Lady Melania honored all Americans in a non-partisan moment with a great quote:
He called the tens of thousands of fans present at the racetrack “patriots,” adding that “NASCAR fans never forget that no matter who wins the race, what matters most is God, family and country.”
This engagement by President Trump at the Daytona 500 stands in stark contrast to the Harvey Weinstein inspired Michelle Obama moment at the Oscars.
I hope that Haberman and at least some of the New York Times Editors, can see the difference between the Daytona 500 event and an Oscar Moment when the Obama Administration was in power.
Oscars viewers were in for a surprise on Sunday night, when First Lady Michelle Obama appeared, via video from the White House, to announce the winner of the “best picture” award.
For those wondering, it was Harvey Weinstein‘s daughter’s idea.
And arranging it was quite the mission.
Academy president Hawk Koch told the Hollywood Reporter that the Weinstein’s daughter, Lily, proposed Obama’s appearance and the producers loved it.
But execution?
Wasn’t easy.
They really crossed a line with that Oscar PR stunt and I made that point shortly after the event.
Ed Timperlake — a former Marine fighter pilot who served as an assistant secretary in the Department of Veterans Affairs under President George H.W. Bush — told The Daily Caller in an interview Monday that using the military as “window dressing” for a commercial event almost certainly “crossed the line” into “statist propaganda.”
“I thought it was unseemly,” said Timperlake, recounting his reaction while watching the Oscars.
“I think the use of the service members crossed the line.”
“Putting her up on the stage to award an Oscar is fine. However, putting uniformed military behind her is coming up, maybe perhaps crossing the line where you’re using active duty military in their dress uniform as a prop … for commercial purposes,” Timperlake said.
The fact that Michelle Obama did not acknowledge the attending service members only serves to emphasize the criticism, Timperlake said.
“That means they were just there for show. It’s even worse. It takes it to a different level. She didn’t even justify [it],” he said. “They were just there for the visuals.”
This is but one example on why I hope President Trump will politically sweep the nation in November 2020.
And as a final note:
As a former Marine Fighter pilot all must pause to honor the Command Pilot and his flight crew of Air Force One with the best complement we have–your Daytona flyover arrival was S*** Hot!