Gannett Now Imposing Litmus Test On Republicans: Disavow Trump Or We Will Destroy You

If you happened to check out the news pages of the Gannett-owned Cincinnati Enquirer in the lead-up to the Ohio presidential primary, you were treated to daily doses of anti-Trump rhetoric from the newspaper whose editorial opinions and news content are dictated by its masters in Langley, Virginia, who created the newspaper chain to buy up conservative, family-run newspapers in key red states to fundamentally alter the news message readers were receiving. We've seen this play out locally the entire past year in the Gannett-owned Indianapolis Star where any one of religious faith is mocked and ridiculed if they dare speak the words "religious freedom," which Gannett tells you is code for bigotry.

Days before the Ohio primary, the Cincinnati Enquirer viciously went after the Democratic sheriff of Hamilton County, Ohio because he attended a Trump rally. Sheriff Jim Neill had so much vitriolic anger directed at him he had to issue a public apology for going to the Trump rally. "It was selfish on my part because I didn�t take into consideration the other candidates on the Democratic ballot that are going to be running with me because this could not just impact my votes, but it could impact the votes on anyone on the Democratic ballot. I want to apologize for my actions," said Neil. "I�ve been a police officer since 1981. I was elected as sheriff in 2012. I�m still performing as a peace officer. I�m not comfortable in the skin of a politician. What you get with Jim Neil is what you get. I�m a public servant� public safety is my priority." "Neil repeatedly said Monday he attended the Trump rally to show appreciation for Trump's support of law enforcement."

The Star's political Matthew Tully doesn't let a day go by that he doesn't utter anti-Trump statements. The Star's editorial manager Tim Swarens, who is nothing but a vicious attack-dog bully when it comes to imposing The Star's agenda on political and business leaders, has now stepped into the act, even though Indiana's primary is still many weeks off. He's served notice that the newspaper will go after any Republican politician in this state who doesn't publicly disavow Trump.

Donald Trump is coming.

Brace yourself, South Bend. Get ready, Terre Haute. (You can stand down, Bloomington, the People�s Republic is likely to remain a Trump-free zone.)

And awaken your conscience, Republican leaders in Indiana. It�s time to take a stand against the egocentric billionaire�s reckless campaign for the White House.

Will Indiana�s leading Republican candidates disavow the civic corrosion that is Trump�s campaign? Or will they silently share a ballot with Trump on May 3 and thereby tacitly endorse his ugly, dangerous tactics? . . . 

That means Mike Pence, Marlin Stutzman, Todd Young and other Republicans on the May ballot must decide: Do we, out of political expediency, welcome the man most likely to lead our party in November, or do we defend the values we�ve long claimed to hold? 

Because there�s no middle ground on Trump . . . 

Just who the hell do they think they are to have the right to dictate to people who they must support for president? Here's some news for Republican politicians. If you allow yourself to be bullied by these outsider eggheads who've taken control of our local newspaper, then you're not worthy of the support of the people of the political party whose principles you profess to support. You don't have to support Trump, but they're asking you to do more. They're telling you that you must take a public oath to disavow Trump and his campaign in its entirety or you will be smeared by these nasty, ugly people who run this local newspaper.

What people should really be asking themselves is why this newspaper for which Swarens works is so worked up about Trump when it is a co-conspirator in enabling corrupt political insiders to rob taxpayers blind to finance their personal business empires through its support of every s_ _ _ sandwhich they serve up to us. Why does this newspaper have so much contempt for working class people who can't get ahead in this economy? Why does this newspaper devote so much of its content to promoting alcohol consumption and rubbing the posh homes of the wealthy in our faces? Why does its social agenda for accepting every alternative lifestyle always trump stories of income inequality?

No individual or institution has been more responsible for civic corrosion in this city and state than when the Gannett newspaper chain came to town, drove off all of the newspaper's best reporters and editorial writers and dumbed the newspaper down to the point it's just a shadow of its former place as a watchdog and protector of civic virtue. You'll never read an editorial or news story calling out the newspaper's favorite liberal politicians who use social media daily to viciously and personally attack anyone who disagrees with their viewpoint and who urge supporters to engage in violence against their political enemies. And just what is it about Trump that scares your elitists masters in Langley so much to take this extraordinary step? We haven't seen your newspaper calling for the resignation of the school superintendent for one of the state's largest school districts right here in Indianapolis who let six days go by in defiance of state law before reporting the sexual abuse of students at his school. Your newspaper is the last place to which any self-respecting politician should be looking for approval. Tell them to Trump Off.

UPDATE: Since Gannett is such a big fan of Gov. John Kasich, I thought I would share this video of him telling a group of Ohio state workers what an idiot a police officer was for pulling him over and ticketing him for failing to yield when he passed a police officer stopped along the interstate highway with a motorist.