Trump will always seek to shape the narrative over his actions – we must not let him

Donald Trump will always defend his actions one way: “I have done nothing wrong.”

The president often won’t dispute the allegations against him. This time he has even gone as far as to release documents that he believes back up his conduct in relation to his call with Ukranian president Volodymyr Zelensky. The memo about that call is now a major part of the impeachment investigation against Trump.

America’s 45th president has the right to defend himself, but the media must be careful about how this is taken into account when addressing the issue at hand. The impeachment inquiry is a good example. From the texts presented to congress by Kurt Volker, the former US special representative for Ukraine negotiations, to the details of the call with Zelensky, some elements of the scandal are turning from opinion into fact.

The texts show that US officials had at least suggested to their Ukrainian counterparts that support from Washington may be dependent on Kiev’s help with “investigations”. With Trump also calling on Zelensky to contact attorney general William Barr and the president’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani during their July phone conversation, it is obvious that he is turning the powers of the state towards helping him out.

Trump may tweet that all he is interested in is weeding out corruption, but using the state resources to potentially seek help from a foreign power to investigate a political rival – Joe Biden – is against the rules. Trump may not pay a legal price if the House of Representatives votes for impeachment and a trial in the Senate, but Democrats want to make sure he pays a political one.

The president’s narrative is that this is all a “witch hunt” against him, and with it he is seeking to turn the investigation from deciding whether his conduct has passed the bar for wrongdoing, to whether it is wrong at all for a White House incumbent to seek help from a foreign country. All media should be wary of falling into that trap.

We are there to report on the facts of the inquiry as it carries on and its framing is clear. Changing the question is just what Trump wants. As always, he is trying to muddy the waters, tarring every politician with the same brush so his conduct looks ordinary. Trump may come out of this investigation with a clean slate, but it is the media’s job to make sure the case is heard clearly.

Yours,

Chris Stevenson

Acting deputy premium editor