Abraham Lincoln once said, “You can please some of the people some of the time, some of the people all of the time, but you can never please all of the people all of the time.” In my case, some readers e-mail asking how do I do it every week, while others ask why I bother. (Ouch.)
On Monday, I had my column ready. On Tuesday it became irrelevant. That's when Donald Trump was directly implicated in serious crimes. (Meanwhile, he recently bragged he was more popular than Lincoln even though there was no political polling in the 1860's.)
Trump's former National Security Adviser (Flynn); his Campaign Manager (Manafort); his Assistant Campaign Manger (Gates); and his personal attorney (Cohen) pleaded or were found guilty of felonies. (Michael Cohen once said he'd “take a bullet” for Trump. Now he's ready to fire one.)
What happened to “I hire only the best people?” And, if all four are guilty, what are the odds that Trump is innocent? (On Tuesday, Stormy Daniels tweeted triumphantly, “How do ya like me now?”)
Manafort was found guilty of 8 felonies and, dramatically incriminating Trump, Cohen pleaded guilty to 8 felonies. The combination has left Trump behind the 8-ball. (Sorry about that.)
And yet at a W. Virginia rally, Trump supporters chanted “Drain the swamp.” Given Trump and his scandal-plagued cabinet, he is the swamp. The near-rabid audience also chanted “Lock her up,” which is likely what's going to happen to Cohen, Manafort and Gates.
On Sunday, Trump's tweet compared Special Counsel, Robert Mueller (described as a “silent assassin in a submarine powered by facts) to the late disgraced U.S. Senator Joe McCarthy. Trump's tweet couldn't be further from the truth. Then again, Rudy Giuliani says, “Truth isn't truth,” and Trump says, “Don't believe what you read and see because it's not happening.” (George Orwell must be spinning in his grave.)
Sadly, we've become inured to lies and hate. The day after the 2016 election, former KKK Grand Wizard, David Duke, warned Trump, “Don't ever forget who got you elected. “ Clearly, he hasn't. Emboldened, the Klan don't need to wear sheets anymore and White Nationalists proudly climb out from under their rocks.
The “Bully in Chief,” Trump, has caused me to recall when I was bullied in the 2nd grade. Being the shortest boy in class I was occasionally teased, “How does it feel to be shorter than the girls?”
My father explained that bullies don't like themselves. He told me to tell the bullies “I know you are but what am I?” or, “I'm rubber and you're glue, whatever you say bounces off me and sticks to you.”
In psychology, “projection,” simply put, is projecting your behavior and impulses onto someone else. For example, when Trump calls Hilary “crooked,” frankly, who is more crooked than Trump? Or, when he called Ted Cruz “lyin' Ted,” who lies more than Trump? If he was at 7 a day, since Cohen and Manafort, that number is growing. He calls it “truthful hyperbole,” but Trump has been lying his whole life.
During Vietnam, Trump received 5 deferments, one due to a “bone spur.” (So painful he couldn't remember which foot.) Trump even lied about Dr. Bornstein's absurd “extraordinary health” letter bragged about. (Even though he's borderline obese and I'm not so sure about the “borderline.”)
It turns out Trump dictated that letter and probably faked the bone spur letter. That might explain why he felt compelled to say of John McCain, “I prefer my heroes not captured.” (And Donald, we prefer presidents who tell the truth.)
As for Joe McCarthy, Trump is disturbingly like him. After the 1954 GOP Senate censure, McCarthy drank himself to death at age 49. (Unfortunately, Trump doesn't drink, he tweets.)
McCarthy's “hatchet man” was an unscrupulous attorney, the late Roy Cohn. He later became Trump's mentor encouraging him to “deny everything.” Eventually disbarred, Cohn is still universally hated though he taught Trump well.
Meanwhile, the first two Congressmen to endorse Trump in 2016, are in hot water. Really hot. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.) was indicted for allegations of insider trading (using his cellphone to do so while on the White House lawn) and Hunter Duncan (R-CA) and his wife allegedly used $250k in campaign donations as their personal overdraft.
How about this? While Melania was speaking at the Anti-Cyberbullying Summit last week, Trump was busy cyberbullying. Fittingly, someone tweeted “Melania speaking about cyberbullying reminds me of Eva Braun decrying anti-Semitism.”
It's becoming clear Trump became president via two criminal conspiracies: the Russians hacking DNC emails and he and Cohen illegally silencing a porn star and a Playboy bunny.
With my father's advice and my 2nd grade humor, I got the bullies to go away. I wish it were that easy with Donald Trump. #November 6!
Jack is at facebook.com/jackneworth, twitter.com/jackneworth and jackdailypress@aol.com
