POLITICS + GOVERNMENT
Inside Sources: Talking with Bob Woodward
Sep 15, 2020, 4:36 PM
FILE - In this Sunday, June 14, 2020 file photo, President Donald Trump gives a thumbs-up while walking across the tarmac as he boards Air Force One at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, N.J. Trump is returning to Washington. A far-right Norwegian lawmaker says he has nominated President Donald Trump for the Nobel Prize 2021 for his efforts to reach a peace agreement in the Middle East. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
(AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
SALT LAKE CITY — In a region where there have been centuries of hate, Israel signed a historic peace treaty with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain at the White House Tuesday on the International Day of Democracy.
On the subject of hate, last year Bob Woodward, legendary journalist, and author of a new book about President Donald Trump called “Rage,” talked to Boyd Matheson, opinion editor at Deseret News, about the last speech President Richard Nixon gave to his staff upon his resignation:
“Always remember, others may hate you, but those who hate you don’t win unless you hate them, and then you destroy yourself.”
― Richard Nixon
“Think of the wisdom at that moment that Nixon had,” Woodward said. “He realized that the hating, which was in many ways the piston of his administration — the hating destroyed him, not his opponents.
“And in the moment, you see a kind of self-understanding that we don’t necessarily associate with Nixon. But also we see, not just a political lesson, but a wonderful lesson for all of us, everyone. Hating, in the end, doesn’t destroy your enemy. It is the hating that destroys you,” Woodward said.
A threat to democracy and freedom
Boyd and Bob Woodward also discussed “instant certainty,” which is immediately communicating our thoughts about being right.
But, as Boyd points out, what we thought initially was true often turns out later not to be so.
“What we really think are the facts may not be the facts. There may be much more to the story,” said Boyd.
What is the role of instant certainty and how is that a threat to our freedom and democracy, Boyd asked Woodward.
“That is a great term, ‘instant certainty,'” Woodward said. “And what happens, particularly on cable television — both sides — left, right with Fox News. People are so, ‘This is the way it is. There is no alternative. There is not another side.'”
Boyd stressed that “instant certainty” is a threat to getting at the facts and a threat to building trust.
Inside Sources with Boyd Matheson can be heard weekdays from 11:00 a.m to 12:00 p.m. on KSL NewsRadio. Users can find the show on the KSL NewsRadio website and app.
