Maureen Dowd: Patron Saint of Smug, Shallow Journalism – The American Spectator | USA News and PoliticsThe American Spectator

Writing is an art — but not all art is good. Some of it is downright awful.
This brings us to Maureen Dowd, who has perfected the formula for the lazy political column. Her writing leans on a handful of snide remarks, pop culture name-drops, and a profound sense of self-satisfaction. Over the past decade, she has become obsessed with Donald Trump, milking his presidencies for an endless stream of the same recycled, sarcastic drivel.
Her latest piece, “Trump is Rootin’ for Putin,” is a perfect example. As most sane Americans know, Dowd has always preferred cheap rhymes over cutting-edge analysis — but this op-ed might be her most cringeworthy effort yet. The piece reads less like the work of a veteran political columnist and more like a rejected title for an SNL cold open. It isn’t insightful; it’s just another installment in Dowd’s long-running performance of eye-rolling disdain for those who refuse to side with the left. The argument — if it can even be called that — boils down to a toddler-level worldview: Zelensky good. Putin bad. Trump bad. Trump speak Putin. Trump very bad. Trump + Putin = very, very bad.
No nuance, no context, no attempt to wrestle with the complexities of geopolitics or history. But this is how Maureen Dowd likes to operate.
The paradox of her career is worth highlighting. She is celebrated for her sharpness, yet her writing rarely, if ever, cuts deep. In “Bushworld: Enter at Your Own Risk,” she reduced George W. Bush’s presidency to a collection of anemic tales about his cowboy persona and Texas drawl. Although that was bad, her treatment of Barack Obama was considerably worse. In one of her more grotesque offerings, she excitedly compared him to Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice, fawning over his cool detachment as though she were a lovestruck debutante scribbling in her diary. Instead of examining Obama’s policies, his political maneuvering, or even his leadership style, she turned him into a romantic lead, reducing the presidency to the …