If someone in your family is an alcoholic, you don’t offer them a glass of wine at a family gathering. If someone’s been stealing from you so they can sell your stuff and buy meth, you don’t give them money to buy a meal and try to get their head straight. If you do give that family member wine, you can’t get pissed at them when they get drunk and refer to you as your mom and dad’s biggest mistake. If you give the meth addict money, you can’t get pissed when you find them ripping the 72-inch plasma off the wall and trying to haul it off to the pawn shop before going over to Bubba’s.

If you give Donald Trump the attention he craves, you can’t get pissed when you get played by him.

The media was outraged that Trump called a press conference ostensibly to talk about birtherism, only make a short statement on it and then promote the hell out of his new D.C. hotel. They were so outraged that they actually began pulling and removing any footage of the hotel. Their BIG STORY, Trump and Birtherism, was a statement. “I think Obama’s an American citizen.” That was all they got. The rest of the time was useless. He played them like a fool, and they fell for it hook, line, and sinker.

Anyone who has been paying attention knows that Donald Trump thrives on media attention, whether it is good (sometimes), bad (a lot of the time), or indifferent (none of the time). He demands the spotlight, and goes out to forcibly take it. He says and does outrageous things in order to get that media attention. Lately, the focus has been on Hillary. Trump has been off the air much more than he’s been on it. Hillary’s polling has taken a nosedive because of it.

But, we were at the tail end of that cycle, so Trump gathered the media together, and they, looking for anything to help take the light off Hillary, just knew that birtherism was their in. Trump led them along like the meth head that says “Come on, man. Just one more fix and I swear to God I’ll go clean.”

I feel absolutely zero sympathy for them. The media was livid, and in a world where they didn’t rush out to give Trump whatever media attention he sought, I might be sympathetic to them. But, they earned this. The best part is that we know, without a doubt, that they’ll fall for it again.

They’ll fall for it every time. Trump is everything they think they want in a political story: a Republican who constantly says crazy things, has crazy followers, and opposes a Clinton. That’s their freaking Holy Grail of political coverage. And, for all the faults Trump has, he plays them like a damn fiddle each time he wants attention. I can’t be mad at him. I won’t be mad at him.

If the media wants to be pissed, let them be pissed. But they gave Dr. Oz’s show a ton of free coverage, and nothing was revealed. They gave Trump’s new hotel a bunch of free advertising, and nothing major happened. Trump can come out today and say “I want to discuss my relationship with my daughter,” and the media will fall over themselves racing to the stage, only for Trump to announce she’s a wonderful girl with a big heart before walking off the stage.

Love him or hate him, respect the troll game.