Episode 2: February 2017: Trump and the media

The transcript of the episode

MODERATION: The second month: February 2017. In TV studios, at universities and in kitchens across the country, the questions that will shape Donald Trump’s time in office are already being discussed: Will he enrich himself while in office? Will he abandon global climate protection efforts that he himself does not believe in? How hard will he try to portray the media as his enemy while using them for his own ends?

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MODERATION: Question one: enrichment. Many fear that Trump will use his time in office to benefit himself and his companies financially. In order not to expose himself too much to this, Donald Trump is handing over control of his company to his sons: Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump. They would not consult with their father on day-to-day business matters. The companies are never run independently; according to Forbes magazine, they are expected to make $2.4 billion in sales during Trump’s presidency. The first major scandal occurs in the first full month in office. The Kuwaiti embassy is hosting an event at the Trump International Hotel in Washington. In the end, it pays the new president’s company between $40,000 and $60,000 for the event.

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MODERATION: Question two: dealing with the press. After the dispute over attendance at the inauguration, Trump is pushing ahead with his aggressive attacks on the media.

MODERATION: He excludes the New York Times, CNN, the BBC and some other media from press conferences in the White House. On February 17, he wrote on Twitter that the mass media were not his personal enemies. “The fake news media are enemies of the American people,” he ranted.

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MODERATION: And then there is the question of whether climate protection will suffer under Trump’s time in office. In any case, he has instructed the Department of Agriculture to use the word “extreme weather” instead of “climate change.” There will also be no more talk of “reducing greenhouse gases.” Instead, the focus will be on improving efficiency. Climate change will no longer be a priority for employees, they say.

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MODERATION: At the end of the month, Trump will explain two of his most important goals in a speech to the US Congress: one billion dollars for infrastructure projects and the repeal of Obamacare. Obamacare gave millions of Americans health insurance for the first time. However, it also required others to take out a policy. Trump will replace it with new health insurance rules. However, he will make little progress with these core projects next month.

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MODERATION: What Trump says about Trump in February – on February 27th in the TV show Fox and friends: