Trump doubles down against the embattled news media

After a brief call for more civility in response to the flurry of bombs sent to past and current Democratic leaders, President Donald Trump still clings to his campaign against the press as “the enemy of the people.”

His initial response Wednesday at the White House offered the minimum of what was necessary to say about the threats against presidential predecessors Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary, also targeted, and Barack Obama.

“In these times, we have to unify,” Mr. Trump said, “We have to come together and send on very clear, strong unmistakable message, that acts or threats of political violence of any kind have no place in the United States of America.”

The comment provided no evidence of Mr. Trump reaching out to either of the Clintons or Mr. Obama, or for that matter to the head or staff of CNN, the cable giant that also received one of at least 13 mailed bombs.

The same night, the president spoke at a campaign rally in Wisconsin for a Republican candidate in the approaching Nov. 6 midterm congressional elections, in which party control of the House and Senate is at stake. The question on many minds was whether Mr. Trump would follow his own counsel of civility at what by now had become an occasion for raucous crowd reaction to Mr. Trump’s own repeated taunts of the news media and Democrats.

It’s imperative to examine any political motivation that was involved in this event, which has exploded in the midst of the midterm congressional elections, and that may well determine the future course of the Trump agenda and administration.