Donald Trump landed his first major newspaper endorsement late Saturday, with the Las Vegas-Review Journal throwing its support behind the GOP presidential nominee. "History tells us that agents for reform often generate fear and alarm among those intent on preserving their cushy sinecures," the paper said in its editorial.
"It's hardly a shock, then, that the 2016 campaign has produced a barrage of unceasing vitriol directed toward Mr. Trump. But let us not be distracted by the social media sideshows and carnival clatter. Substantive issues are in play this November," it stated.
Trump had been endorsed by a few smaller papers, but the Review-Journal represented his first endorsement from a major newspaper, most of which have backed his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, or simply opposed the real estate tycoon.
Dozens of major newspapers have endorsed Clinton, while several also backed Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson, leaving Trump as the only major-party candidate without a major paper endorsement until Saturday.
In its endorsement Saturday, the paper owned by casino magnate and GOP mega-donor Sheldon Adelson argued that Clinton would "cuddle up to the ways and perks of Washington like she would to a cozy old blanket."
"Mr. Trump instead brings a corporate sensibility and a steadfast determination to an ossified Beltway culture," the editorial stated, praising Trump's push for lower taxes and a simplified tax code.
"Make no mistake, a Hillary Clinton administration would indulge the worst instincts of the authoritarian left and continue to swell the bloated regulatory state while running the nation deeper into the red in pursuit of 'free' college and health care," it argued.
Trump called the newspaper a "good paper" when giving a shout out to Adelson during a speech in Nevada in October.
The paper acknowledged Saturday that "Trump's impulsiveness and overheated rhetoric alienate many voters" and that he "represents neither the danger his critics claim nor the magic elixir many of his supporters crave."
"But he promises to be a source of disruption and discomfort to the privileged, back-scratching political elites for whom the nation's strength and solvency have become subservient to power's pursuit and preservation," it said.
