Whatever Mr. Trump did or didn’t achieve with Carrier, the real question was whether he would take steps to make a lasting difference.br Publicity stunts may generate a few days of favorable media coverage,br but they end up making America weaker, not stronger, because they show the world that we have a government that can’t follow through.br To achieve any lasting result, Mr. Trump would have to get involved on a sustained basis in Syria.br In fact, if last week’s action was the end of the story, the eventual effect maybr well be to strengthen the Assad regime — Look, they stood up to a superpower!br But no: The U. S. fired off some missiles, and once again Mr. Trump “became president.”br Aside from everything else, think about the incentives this creates.br One thing is certain: The media reaction to the Syria strike showed that many pundits and news organizations have learned nothing from past failures.