Bump the Blowhard

Never pick a fight with some one who buys ink by the barrel.

   A popular TV news anchor, Jorge Ramos of Univision, was tossed out of a news conference with GOP candidate Donald J. Trump when he tried to ask questions about the candidate's immigration statements.
   Trump's response: "Sit down. Sit down. You weren't called on. Go back to Univision."
   In fairness, it must be said that Ramos was allowed to return, and there was then a strong encounter between the two. Nevertheless, to evict a prominent journalist from a public setting while cameras are rolling can only come back to haunt.
   I saw the NBC coverage of the Trump-Ramos duel, and thought they were bending over backwards to be "neutral." I saw a longer clip last night on CNN, which was more informative. I can only guess what Univision will be doing. Should the rest of the press corps have left in a protest of Trump's treatment of the news anchor? A mass walkout like that is not likely until and unless the candidate really goes around the bend.
    Attacking the media suits his purpose, and as long as reporters provide him with a forum, he'll use it. Besides, a mass walkout would only "prove" his point that the media "don't like him," and aren't "fair," which will play well with his base of followers, and there are many of them. He attracts a crowd, no question, and he's more interesting to listen to than the other candidates, whether you support his "positions" or not. All this, especially the large crowds he attracts, make him hard to ignore. Again, ignoring him only feeds his ego and "supports" his contention that the media are "unfair."
   His treatment of Ramos only worsens his relationship with potential Latino voters, and echoes his attack on Megyn Kelly after the Fox News anchor questioned the candidate about his attitudes and comments on women. Trump then complained that Kelly's question meant she was not "being nice," that she was "not fair," and that "you see her bleeding from her ... wherever."
   Childish, of course. All of this is the behavior of a petulant bully who doesn't get his own way. At the same time, ignoring him can be counterproductive, since it not only supports his arguments to his most ardent followers, but also fails to warn the wider public of the danger he poses. And that, I believe is more important. It's a reporter's job to remain neutral and record what is said.
  The real power is the pen. Besides, the columnists and 
commentators have the duty and obligation to criticize.