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Anton Jaeger says Trump weighs decisions by 24-hour media impact

The Ezra Klein Show · What ‘Hyperpolitics’ Explains About This Era | The Ezra Klein Show · September 8, 2026
Anton Jaeger says Trump weighs decisions by 24-hour media impact
The Ezra Klein Show
The Ezra Klein Show
What ‘Hyperpolitics’ Explains About This Era | The Ezra Klein Show
""there's one thing that really stands out, and that is it short-termism, or or the fact that there's no thinking beyond the 24-hour news cycle. In fact, a lot of political decisions seem to be informed by the presumed effects those decisions will have on a media cycle and on its perceived popularity.""
Historian Anton Jaeger argues Donald Trump’s governing style is marked by short-termism, with decisions judged largely by their effect on the next news cycle and perceived popularity. He adds that advisers may feed ideas in, but he sees Trump selecting proposals mainly for media impact. Jaeger frames this as partly an institutional problem within the GOP, not only a matter of personality.
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The Ezra Klein Show
The Ezra Klein Show

What ‘Hyperpolitics’ Explains About This Era | The Ezra Klein Show

September 8, 2026 · 1h 7m · 2 Egleze moments
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