[New York Diary] "You Shouldn't Be Covering Me"... The Chilling Words of Trump

Yoonjoo Hwang, Asia Business Daily New York Correspondent

"I'm surprised that CNN is covering me here. You shouldn't be here. You shouldn't be reporting on me."

On the morning of the 22nd (local time) at the United Nations headquarters in New York, U.S. President Donald Trump stopped in front of reporters as he entered the building for his speech to the UN General Assembly. When Kaitlan Collins, CNN's Chief White House Correspondent, asked him about the Iran war, President Trump's initial response was not an answer to the question. Instead, he reacted sharply and expressed clear displeasure.

Of course, the president is not obliged to answer a reporter's question. He can argue that a question is unfair, or, if a report is inaccurate, point out what is wrong with it. However, saying "You shouldn't report on me" is an entirely different matter.

Recently, President Trump banned CNN, MSNNow, and Politico from the White House press briefing room. He claimed these media outlets report "fabrications and lies" about him. In response, the news organizations have filed lawsuits, arguing that restricting press access based on coverage violates the First Amendment.

In addition, the White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA) released a statement on the 19th, noting, "A standard that allows a media outlet to be excluded for its coverage could be applied to any news organization in the future," and stressing, "The government cannot strip away access simply because it does not like specific coverage."

Since taking office, President Trump has repeatedly attacked critical coverage of him as "fake news." In doing so, he has replaced a discussion of right and wrong with personal preferences. Rather than whether something is true or false, the first consideration has become, "Are you with me or not?" As the standards for judgment have become shaken, opinions different from his are no longer rebutted or reasoned with, but are instead treated as something to be eliminated.

When the voices of the world are divided into 'us' and 'them', everyone not on your side inevitably becomes an enemy. The political process slipping into extremes is not much different. Rather than criticizing opposing arguments for being wrong, you seek to revoke their right to speak and view their very existence as something to be removed, making compromise impossible.

As a result, there is no room to try to persuade others, and even the exhausting process of arguing is disregarded, so the language itself inevitably becomes more combative. Earlier this month, President Trump called the press who reported on depleted weapons stockpiles during the Iran conflict "treasonous trash." And in July, when New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman questioned his health, he called her "Maggot Hegerman," showing no attempt to hide his hostility.

The words President Trump uttered to the CNN reporter, "You shouldn't be here," carry the same chilling implications. It reflects an intention to erase voices he does not want to hear. There is reason to question whether refusing to communicate with critics aligns with the principles of democracy.

This has now become clear.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.