The Trump Propaganda Network Is In Overdrive Mode On Character Assassination
It has always been Donald Trump’s stock in trade to use all means at his disposal to per-emptively and re-actively attack any individual that he perceives as an actual or potential threat to his interests. This goes all the way back in his personal history.
Most of the Trump behavior so characteristic of his verbal fusillades and tweets, have their origins in the mentoring of Trump by Roy Cohn. The infamous Roy Cohn, who served as “Tailgunner Joe” Senator Joseph McCarthy’s legal wingman in McCarthy’s infamous Army–McCarthy hearings of the mid ’50’s.
It is an interesting side note that Cohn, who associated suspected Communists with homosexual leanings and proclivities, himself was a gay man who died of AIDS in 1986.
But Cohn was Trump’s principal adviser and personal attorney in Trump’s transition from the mundane world of the family residential real estate business in Queens and Brooklyn – to the fast paced, high stakes, high visibility environment of Manhattan.
Trump decided to be a celebrity developer and Cohn took Trump under his wing, showing him Cohn’s connections – the New York / New Jersey crime syndicates and Cohn’s vicious, hardball style of destroying anything and anyone in the way. As the New York Times, described it,
Mr. Cohn’s influence on Mr. Trump is unmistakable. Mr. Trump’s wrecking ball of a presidential bid — the gleeful smearing of his opponents, the embracing of bluster as brand — has been a Roy Cohn number on a grand scale.
Trump’s present personal attorney, the grandstanding Marc Kasowitz is a pussy cat – a boy scout, compared to Roy Cohn. Trump himself?, not so much. Badmouthing, character assassinations and defamation of character are all devices in Trump’s toolbox. He uses them to gain advantage – and uses them when backed into a corner.
Trump, in just 5 months of his presidency, is backed into a corner. He’s now reaching into the desperation tray of the toolbox to claw back at the steady stream of incriminating developments unfolding. Trump is attacking Assistant Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
I am being investigated for firing the FBI Director by the man who told me to fire the FBI Director! Witch Hunt
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 16, 2017
The ‘logic’ here, on Trump’s part, is sort of a revision of the old bit of proverb, “for want of a nail”, but in this case, constructed in reverse fashion. This would be “for want of blind loyalty”.
For want of blind loyalty …
Jeff Sessions would not have recused himself and Trump would not have needed to fire FBI Director James Comey. If Trump had not needed to fire Comey, then Rod Rosenstein would not have been running the Justice Department concerning all things related to Russia.
If Rod Rosenstein had not wound up running the Justice Department, he would not have written an insufficient dismissal memorandum, and the Comey firing would not have raised any questions.
If the Comey firing had not raised questions, then Rod Rosenstein would not have subsequently appointed Robert Mueller as Special Counsel, Trump would not have been under investigation because Comey told him three times, he was not.
After three called balls in baseball, you get to take first base on your next check swing. Problem. Trump is not playing baseball and he has been batting all strikes. He wants to plant the “buck” on anyone and everyone’s desk except where Harry Truman required it be placed.
Trump makes the decision (of firing Comey), most likely against considerable warnings and advice to the contrary, without considering the ramifications and then casts the blame elsewhere.
Another glaring recent example of this is Trump having offloaded the unpopularity of “Trumpcare”. This is a piece of legislation that he personally twisted many GOP arms in the House of Representatives in order to celebrate the signing in the Rose Garden – where he called it a “great plan” and said it was “very, very, incredibly well-crafted.” He now throws those same members of Congress under the bus in a Senate meeting this week, saying that the O-Care replacement is “mean”.
Just for a moment, I’d like my faithful Trump boosters and cheerleaders to reflect on something. Have you not always expressed support for and advocated that people should accept accountability for their own problems and personally shoulder the responsibility of the consequences of bad decisions? How is it then, that you make – of all people, the President of the United States, the one exception to your general rule? I’m waiting…
