Trump’s CNN smackdown, and the parable of Archbishop Thomas Becket

President Trump reaffirmed his commitment to bloody-facelift level discourse on Sunday when he sent out the following tweet.

Yes, the president of the United States tweeted a video showing himself beating up crudely altered a CNN-human hybrid. Welcome to 2017.

Of course, the media reaction to Trump’s latest freakery was predictably hyperbolic.

CNN declared that the tweet “encourages violence against reporters.” CNN contributor Ana Navarro lost all composure when National Review’s Ramesh Ponnuru suggested Trump was being juvenile not malicious. Apparently ignoring the fact that the video was a wrestling clip, Carl Bernstein declared there is “nothing light-hearted about it.” (Perhaps he believes pro wrestling is real?) Poynter editor Ben Mullin tweeted, “Around the world, journalists are murdered with impunity on a regular basis. This isn’t funny.”

There’s a tedious self-regard to these wails. While journalists face great risks in nations like China (prison) and Mexico (execution), American journalists have things a lot easier. It’s true, we get emails from weirdos. And yes, stalkers are an issue for some female journalists. Still, killings like that involving Alison Parker and Adam Ward are rare. We also have greater freedom of speech than journalists in other western nations.

Yet that doesn’t excuse Trump’s tweet. Even if the president did not intend to incite violence (and I do not believe he did), his message dances on the precipice of unintended consequences.

The risk is that one of Trump’s supporters might construe his tweet in the vein of Thomas Becket, a 12th century archbishop of Canterbury and a political irritant to King Henry II of England. As the king grew more exasperated, he began to vent his anger against the archbishop. Ultimately, in 1170, the king made some variation of the remark, “Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?” The king did not seek Becket’s death, but four knights construed his words to that effect. They promptly traveled to Canterbury and murdered Becket.

It’s a parable for our times.

To be sure, the vast majority of Trump’s supporters will regard his tweet as amusing and the media’s reaction even more so. Others might wish ill to CNN, but will nevertheless remain constrained by the law.

Unfortunately, a few violent psychopaths or losers in search of purpose might see Trump’s tweet as a call to arms.

Trump should have known this.

But he doesn’t.

And that speaks to the central problem here and with this president.

Trump is simply immature. We gained another example of this on Saturday, when he spoke to supporters in Washington. Referencing the media, he stated, “I’m the president and they’re not.” Trump then grinned inanely. In that moment, I was struck by Trump’s similarity to a British middle schooler. His words are the instinctive play on a familiar British school ground insult, “I’m the king of the castle, and you’re the dirty rascal!”

This silliness explains why Trump ignores the consequences of his actions. It’s not because he’s immoral, it’s because he was never brought up properly. The only moral master he has ever cared about is that which stares back at him in the mirror. And Trump’s mirror is always kind to him.

That said, Trump should be wary. At this point, Trump’s presidential library will have just one exhibit. A gold-plated schoolyard.