By Bob Giaquinto
At the Retired Men’s Association (RMA) of Greenwich’s meeting on Wednesday, September 7, Hollister Sturges of the RMA introduced Jonathan Lemire, an author, journalist and TV host, who talked about his latest book, The Big Lie: Election Chaos, Political Opportunism, and the State of American Politics after 2020. During Lemire’s talk, he traced the origins and persuasiveness of the disinformation that in his opinion has shaped our current politics and why such a sizable percentage of the American public is willing to believe it and what the consequences are.
Mr. Lemire worked for the Daily News for twelve years, then joined the Associated Press as a political reporter in July 2013, eventually covering Donald Trump‘s 2016 presidential campaign, including his 2015 Trump Tower speech and over 100 campaign rallies across the country. In January 2017, Lemire became the White House reporter covering all aspects of the Trump administration, national politics, and the federal government, while working between Washington DC and New York City. He presently covers the Biden administration. Jonathan has contributed to multiple MSNBC and NBC shows as a political analyst and is now the bureau chief of Politico and the host of the MSNBC 5 am morning news show, Way Too Early.
Jonathan Lemire’s talk lasted for over one hour. Hollister Sturges did a superb job asking Jonathan interesting questions before opening it up to the audience for their questions. According to Lemire, “The big lie” started in August 2016 with Donald Trump saying that the 2020 election was going to be rigged against him. Eventually he said he lost because of mail-in ballots. Mr. Lemire then stated that he wrote the book because it is an important story and that Trump has never been challenged previously. He stated that Trump knew that he had lost the day after the election, but went forward with his conspiracy theory anyway. According to Lemire, there was no evidence of fraud found in 63 of 64 lawsuits Trump’s team filed. This finding, he said, was confirmed by federal judges, local election officers and certified by VP Pence.
Some other points Lemire made in his book were that 35% to 40% of Americans agree with Trump; and polarization started long ago because many folks are not exposed to alternative points of view. Examples of this according to Lemire are ideological cable channels. On January 6th, Lemire stated that the Capitol was easily breached because the guardrails were off and many workers were out sick with covid. Trump received 20 times the media coverage of others because he was the more interesting story. The media was at fault because they often didn’t fact check, although Lemire said this is now improving.
To see the full presentation, go to https://greenwichrma.org/ and click on “Speakers.” Please note that the views expressed in this presentation are those of the speaker, Jonathan Lemire, and do not represent the views of the RMA.
The RMA’s next presentation will be by Page Knox, Ph.D., an adjunct professor in the Art History Department of Columbia University and a contractual lecturer and educator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, on “Winslow Homer: Crosscurrents. Dr. Knox will be discussing “Winslow Homer: Crosscurrents” a comprehensive exhibition featuring 88 oils and watercolors that was held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art this summer. Renowned for his powerful paintings of American life and scenery, Winslow Homer (1836–1910) remains one of America’s most consequential artists. This exhibition reconsiders Homer’s work through the lens of conflict, a theme that crosses his prolific career. Dr. Knox will discuss how a persistent fascination with struggle permeates his art—from emblematic images of the Civil War and Reconstruction that examine the effects of the conflict on the landscape, soldiers, and formerly enslaved people to dramatic scenes of rescue and hunting as well as monumental seascapes and dazzling tropical works painted throughout the Atlantic world. The centerpiece of the exhibition is Homer’s iconic The Gulf Stream, a painting that reveals his lifelong engagement with charged subjects of race, geopolitics, and the environment. This presentation will occur on Wednesday, September 21, at 11:00 a.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Greenwich as well as on webinar at: https://bit.ly/30lBj21. All those who attend this presentation at the Church must be vaccinated against Covid and have had a booster shot.
RMA speaker presentations are presented as a community service at no cost to in-person or Zoom attendees. The RMA does request that all eligible individuals consider becoming a member of our great organization, and thereby enjoy all the available fellowship, volunteer and community service opportunities that the RMA offers to its members. For further information, visit www.greenwichrma.org or contact Joe Mancinelli (mailto:jlmanc@optonline.net) or Peter Stern (mailto:members@greenwichrma.org).
