For a man who has spent his entire life peeking out over the ledge of criminal liability, Trump is sure acting like an innocent angel, shocked that such an impossible charge could be made against him. He had to have known this was coming. He spent two years and hundreds of thousands of dollars, probably millions, keeping his records out of New York’s hands, going up to the SCOTUS twice. People don’t do that without a reason. He had to know that his records could well prove a crime.
It seems like he’s just furious that someone as “rich and powerful” as him is actually being held to account. That’s not fair, in Trump’s world. Maggie Haberman from the New York Times lets us know what her sources are saying:
“You’re going to continue to see the former president describe this as a ‘witch hunt’ and describe this as a partisan investigation. Part of that is going to be [Manhattan DA] Cy Vance. Part of that is going to be because of the attorney general Letitia James in New York, who is also working on this case with Vance. But in reality, Donald Trump is not somebody who has sought to be indicted. He is not somebody who thought it was a good thing.”
“There was some spin from one of his advisers earlier this week about how he was, quote-unquote, ‘thrilled.”
We confess, we passed on those reports earlier, stating that Trump believed that this would be “terrible for sleepy Joe” in 2024. If those reports are to be believed, Trump is acting as though “sleepy Joe” is behind all this. As laughable as that may seem, it’s entirely possible that Trump sees the president is as the almighty king who commands others to do his bidding. After all, Trump told DOJ to investigate other people. Trump might actually believe that Joe is behind the charges and it’s “Man against Man” in Trump’s world. Pathetic.
But Haberman assures us this is not the case:
He’s not thrilled. I don’t think he’s throwing staplers, but he’s not happy. It’s not something he’s talking about constantly as fury, but this is not where they want to be, this is a totally new world for him. And I think that what you’ve seen with the former president and his advisers and of members of his family and his allies is they have conflated legal problems with public relations problems for so long that I think some are losing sight of the fact this is actually an indictment … the reality is Allen Weisselberg is facing potential jail time, and that can change things.”
Haberman is wrong, in our opinion. They are not “conflating” legal problems with public relations problems. The Trumps don’t differentiate between the two, so there’s no conflation to be had. This is not a “mix-up,” this is a steadfast belief, an ethos. Laws are for bad guys, mostly poor black guys that rob people or shoot people. The fact that a white-collar criminal can steal tens of millions isn’t really a “crime,” it’s a PR disaster and a direct result of “not being liked.” That is how the Trumps see the world.
Trump could do the same thing in Florida, cheat on tens of millions in taxes, but believe that it’s all fine because he has good PR in Florida. He is “liked” so it’s not an issue.
The Founders wanted a country based on laws, not “men.” Trump lives life based on “men,” with no laws or principles at play, ever. No wonder he’s so furious.
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