Robert Kagan, who resigned from his position [as editor at large at Washington Post] on Friday after more than two decades at the publication, told the Daily Beast that Trump’s meeting with executives of Bezos’ Blue Origin space company the same day th...

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

“'Trump waited to make sure that Bezos did what he said he was going to do, and then met with the Blue Origin people,' he said on Saturday. 'Which tells us that there was an actual deal made, meaning that Bezos communicated, or through his people, communicated directly with Trump, and they set up this quid pro quo.'”

#Trump #fascism #WashingtonPost #JeffBezos #EconomicElites #RobertKagan
/2

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

"It’s been suggested to me that Jeff Bezos’ decision here may be based on more than just fear. Perhaps carrots are operating in the background as well as sticks. I don’t know if that’s true. But I mention the possibility because I think it’s a critical driver of what I’ve called that climate of bewilderment. The choice has the whiff of decisions or deals made off stage, out of public view."

~ Josh Marshall

#Trump #fascism #WashingtonPost #JeffBezos #EconomicElites
/3

Trust, Bewilderment and Billionairedom: Understanding the Backlash Against Bezos

It’s part of the stock in trade of liberal American discourse: threatening or claiming to cancel a subscription to this or that once-revered journalistic…

TPM – Talking Points Memo (talkingpointsmemo.com)

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

"A lot of the country is convinced that a second Trump presidency will push America into the kind of elective autocracy we see in degraded democracies like Russia, Turkey and India. That brings with it the standard package of curtailments of press and other civic freedoms."

#Trump #fascism #WashingtonPost #JeffBezos #EconomicElites
/4

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

"But here we see billionaires, who own press operations as side businesses, out of their back pocket, as it were, seeming to decide that it’s easier to pull up stakes in advance, get out of the way of the freight train, lay down before Trump has even won the election."

#Trump #fascism #WashingtonPost #JeffBezos #EconomicElites
/5

[philip_cardella@historians.social]

@wdlindsy holy shit

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

"Of all the expectations I had for these final weeks of the election, canceling two of my newspaper subscriptions wasn’t one of them.

I’ve always believed newspapers are essential to our democracy."

~ Elliot Kirschner

#Trump #fascism #WashingtonPost #JeffBezos #LosAngelesTimes #PatrickSoonShiong #EconomicElites
/6

Canceled Subscriptions

In service of democracy

(elliotkirschner.substack.com)

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

"So, why did I cancel my subscriptions?

Because this wasn’t about an endorsement. It was about what it says of these papers’ owners—and a troubling trend among oligarchs more generally. From silent acquiescence to, in the case of Elon Musk, unhinged cheerleading, some of the most powerful people in the world are conspiring in complicity to undermine our country and our democracy."

#Trump #fascism #WashingtonPost #JeffBezos #LosAngelesTimes #PatrickSoonShiong #EconomicElites
/7

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

@philip_cardella Yep, selling us all out. For money and power. This is coming right from the horse's mouth, as in Robert Kagan, who has every reason to know what happened. Just like what Germany's top business leaders did as Hitler rose to power….

[philip_cardella@historians.social]

@wdlindsy yeah. If he feared Trump there's no need for a quid pro quo.

The stupidest thing is right now is the best time to attack Musk through the Democrats. SpaceX is a solid company that there's plenty of reason and precedent for it to be seized by the government and sold.

A Dem win would make this more likely.

But Bezos went to the man he thinks is easiest to control.

[piousunyn@universeodon.com]

@wdlindsy Tryin to get my spouse to quit Prime. Turns out may not be an opton. Same with Amazon.

[peachfront@toot.community]

@wdlindsy

it would be nice if law enforcement arrested the bribe givers & bribe takers once in a while

but i forgot the SCOTUS ruled that taking bribes is only a crime if a Democrat does it

[dalek_fan@paquita.masto.host]

@wdlindsy It has always been. The difference is that the US is able to pretend it isn't

[mgd1616@mastodon.social]

@wdlindsy
No way this guy should be anywhere near a position of power.
https://youtu.be/1946TRPdT8s

[tcatinreality@mastodon.social]

@wdlindsy
Bezos thinks Trump will stick to a deal?

He's got to be the dumbest billionaire on Earth then. Everyone knows, you get your money upfront from Trump

[compassionnow@mastodon.social]

@wdlindsy

[finitum@mastodon.social]

@wdlindsy cowardice, greedy. Richest men in the world, never enough. Tax every penny over a billion at 99%, there's no better way to end this distortion.

[noyes@mastodon.online]

@wdlindsy

Sounds like Bezos could use a stint in the clink for campaign finance violations given the clear quid pro quo nature of such an exchange.

[danadee@mstdn.social]

@wdlindsy Gonna wean myself off of AmazonBezos is a fascist asshole.

[jwd630@mastodon.social]

@wdlindsy Were I an anonymous source or would-be whistleblower, I would now wonder if divulging my information to Post journalists was wise. Does every significant story have to pass a Trump acceptability test? The journalist credentials of this formerly independent newspaper have all been sacrificed by Bezos’ obeisance and “I won’t cancel in support of them” can’t undo that. Jamal Khashoggi is weeping.

[iamdannyboling@mstdn.social]

@wdlindsy

Yes, exactly this. Are these newspapers, or are they just mouthpieces?