America Deserves Bigger Debates, Not Better Slogans

1858: American politicians Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas debating during an election campaign. In the first of the Lincoln-Douglas debates, Lincoln warned, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” MPI/Getty Images

Commentary

In issuing the executive order to defund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, President Donald Trump said that neither National Public Radio nor the Public Broadcasting Service “presents a fair, accurate, or unbiased portrayal of current events to taxpaying citizens.” He never questioned whether government-owned public broadcasting was a proper role for taxpayer-funded agencies. Instead, he chose to attack its prejudice.