What next for Jon Sopel?

 

As discussed on the open thread, Jon Sopel has a piece in the Daily Telegraph today which ends:

But the real fragility of American democracy was properly on show in the weeks leading up to that day ["the storming of Congress by Trump supporters"]. There was a coup attempt which was thwarted, thanks to a few heroes acting on principle. But it was a close run thing.

Charlie has saved me the bother of critiquing this, writing:

Is Sopel being impartial there? Was there a coup attempt? Was it thwarted by a few heroes acting on principle? 

That’s the way the liberals view it, that’s clear but Sopel is getting into partisan politics by saying so.

******* 

The piece begins:

It’s been strange this past week. I have woken up alone. Sure, there has been birdsong outside my bedroom window, but no Donald Trump tweets to wake up to next to me. The alert I receive on my phone every time his thumbs get busy is redundant; the messages I receive at random times at all hours of the night, gone. It’s been the permanent accompaniment to my life – and virtually every other Washington journalist I know – these past four years. But no longer. Life seems a bit monochrome, to be honest. My bedroom feels empty.

I guessed he'd get withdrawals symptoms - though they've begun even earlier than I thought they would.

He's became absolutely addicted to the praise he gets from partisans on Twitter - and from many of his media colleagues - for his 'O.M.G.'-reactions to Donald Trump's tweets and his riffing off and being endlessly sarcastic, critical or appalled about them, and Donald Trump himself, in his TV and radio reports.

Four years of being endlessly nice and polite about the Biden administration won't be anywhere near so much fun for him. I suspect he'll be asking for a change of job before too long.