WH Correspondents' Dinner: When Domestic Terrorism Touches the Elite

The apparent assassination attempt on Trump administration officials at the White House Correspondents' Dinner has prompted media dialogue on political violence and the elite class across the spectrum.

Privileged Group: Brian Stelter of CNN Opinion (Left bias) chronicled his own experience from the dinner. Stelter said shootings in public places have become "all too ordinary" in American life. "Thousands of media and political elites have now gone through what countless millions of other Americans have experienced in their schools, offices, malls and churches," he added. Stelter noted how law enforcement agents rushed in to secure the room and that Americans who are involved in similar incidents don't usually have that same protection. He said he believes follow-up media coverage of the incident should "keep acknowledging" this reality and how "vulnerable" everyday Americans are in such situations.

Incited By Media Commentators: The Editors of National Review Opinion (Right) said, "American life has always had its share of fanatics who kill or try to kill politically prominent people," but that the "feverish opposition to Trump" has provided "a permission slip for sundry fanatics and losers to resort to political violence." The Editors criticized "the left" for making Trump out to be "another Hitler" and "disaffected acolyte" Tucker Carlson (Right) for implying Trump "might be the Antichrist." They added, "Perhaps this incident will lead the New York Times and others to conclude that the It Boy of left-winger influencers, Hasan Piker, a consistent advocate of political terrorism, isn't as fascinating and cute as they believe."

'Elite Overproduction': Oliver Bateman of UnHerd (Center) said it's "reflexive" to label the shooter, Cole Allen, as a "lone wolf," but urged that he should not be misconstrued as a "directionless lunatic." Bateman mentioned the "elite overproduction" theory from scientist Peter Turchin, who has argued that "when a society produces more credentialed aspirants than it has positions to absorb them, the surplus turns against the system." He noted that Allen was a highly educated liberal and compared him to Luigi Mangione and the current situation in the US to the late 1960s in Italy, which preceded decades of rampant political violence.

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