‘Media against Trump - trump card in his hands’

The majority of Americans don’t trust the media and don’t like them. Therefore the US media being so openly one-sided against President Trump is very good for him, said Lew Rockwell, chairman of the Ludwig von Mises Institute.

Protests have continued across the US for a third day over President Donald Trump's executive order that temporarily bars migrants from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering America.

The immigration freeze applies to Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen and will remain in force for 90 days. They were initially identified as "countries of concern" under the Obama administration.

Trump denied the immigration restrictions are a "Muslim ban" as many are claiming, and accused the media of false reporting.

RT: Despite protests, Trump shows no sign of changing his policy. Do you see these protests dying down soon?

Lew Rockwell: A lot of these kids are being paid by George Soros and similar people, and it’s openly being paid – this is not hidden. I must say there is a level of hysteria that I haven’t seen. I myself years ago was at anti-Vietnam demonstrations; people were not hysterical: they weren’t beating up people, there weren’t this type. If you see any of the demonstrations – these are the most hate-filled groups of people that one could possibly encounter, even though they are chanting about: “love, not hate” – for them it is “hate, hate, hate!”

They are also violent. The left has always been extremely violent since the days of the French revolution… That is concerning. I frankly don’t exactly know what they hope to achieve – Soros and the rest of the people, who are organizing this. It seems to me it bothers every normal person, closing up traffic and that sort of thing. These are not intended to persuade anyone, but rather to intimidate…

RT: There are some people who say that they are not particularly anti-Trump, but anti this policy he is putting in place.

LR: That may very well be the case, but, in my experience, there is virtually 100 percent overlap. So it is not only anti-Trump… But just the fact that they call it a “Muslim ban": it is not a Muslim ban. We know there are 50 majority Muslim countries in the world; that [ban] applies to seven. I don’t think by the way, that it is a tragic coincidence, but all these countries have been bombed either by Clinton, Bush, Obama, or all three of them. These people demonstrating – they couldn’t have cared less about that. This [ban] they freak out about – I don’t think it is about Muslims, I don’t think it is about immigration – it is about power, it is about control. These are the same people, who wanted to shut up anybody who doesn’t agree with their PC agenda…

RT: US mass media has been attacking Trump even before he was elected. What’s your take on that? Will it affect his Presidency somehow?

LR: First of all, having the media against him is one of the trump cards in his hand. It is very good for him, because Americans don’t by and large, by the vast majority, as a matter of fact, don’t trust the media, don’t like the media. So the fact that the media are so openly one-sided has hurt them, and I would say helped Trump. They are purveyors of fake news…

We need new media. Of course there are new media. There are new websites, and new publications, but they are not part of the ‘ancient’ old media. There is a replacement going on. The old media are worried about their futures. They see their TV ratings going down; their circulation of their publications going down. My guess is they know they are through. How long will this process take: five years – more, less? I don’t know. There is a new day coming in terms of media. It is a very good development for America and the whole world.