UNFAIR: New York Times Calls John Fredericks a Trump Toady

Commentary: PAUL GOLDMAN

The Times finds fault with John as a journalist. But that’s not fair, John is a talk show call-in Host. He’s not pitching himself as Edward R. Murrow. NYT is upset with what they thought was Fredericks softball interview with Trump. I disagree. John did what he could to get Trump to make news on his show. Trump didn’t bite. Not John’s fault. 95% of John’s listeners are pro-Trump. What did NYT expect?

THE NEW YORK TIMES:

When Will Trump Answer the Big 2024 Question?

The field of would-be Republican candidates remains frozen while the former president decides his next moves.

Last week, during a 51-minute interview on “The John Fredericks Show,” a radio program syndicated across Virginia, former President Donald J. Trump dodged a half-dozen opportunities to say whether he is planning to run for president once again in 2024.

Mr. Fredericks, who alongside his radio gig also served as a chairman of Mr. Trump’s campaigns in Virginia, began questions with “If you’re inaugurated as president again in 2025,” and “I think you’re going to run and win in 2024.” He asked, “How many seats do the Republicans have to win in 2022 to inspire you to run in 2024?”

Hard-hitting journalism this was not.

Still, it did cut to the heart of the biggest question in Republican politics: When will Mr. Trump announce his plans for 2024?

For months the best working theory had been that he would wait as long as possible, both to freeze the rest of the potential 2024 Republican field and to keep as much attention as possible on himself, his endorsements, and political proclamations.

Read the full article from The New York Times.