thebulwark--2020-10-05--The Truth About Trump’s COVID Test Timeline

Among the subplots and grotesqueries of President Trump ’ s response to COVID-19 outbreak in the White House is : When did Trump know he was sick ?
COVID-19 is a highly contagious pathogen .
Once possible exposure is identified best practices for containment are quarantine for those exposed ; isolation for those infected ; and a strict regime of social distancing and and use of PPE for those in the immediate community , so as to make accidental transmission difficult and stop the virus from jumping to another community .
The White House seems to have taken none of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the White House claims to have in place existed as a tool to ensure swift action if someone was exposed and asymptomatic also seems not to have worked .
Why is that ?
The president ’ s doctors and White House spokespeople have refused to answer questions about the results of tests that supposedly took place between exposure to the virus and Thursday ’ s announcement that the president had been infected .
Earlier today , Dr. Sean Conley laughed when asked and said , “ everybody wants that.
” If “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that is easy to provide and which would reassure the country about the system in place to protect the president and his executive office , then there ’ s no good reason for the White House not to release it .
Unless the truth turns out to be problematic .
I ’ ve spoken to multiple doctors who have either treated COVID-19 patients or have a specialty in immunology or epidemiology .
To a person the simple fact that this outbreak proceeded as it did signaled that the White House was not following @ @ @ @ @ @ @ own administration .
The full extent of the White House ’ s irresponsibility is not clear because their lies and dissembling have left us with a muddied timeline that contains few solid fence posts .
But from what we do know—or think we know—the fact pattern suggests gross negligence in managing the virus .
• On October 1 the president traveled from Washington to New Jersey after being informed that those in his traveling party had been exposed through a close aide ( Hope Hicks ) who had tested positive before they left @ @ @ @ @ @ @ held multiple indoor maskless receptions ( with buffet ! )
involving hundreds of people .
• Later that night Trump went on Fox News and claimed he did not know whether or not he had tested positive for COVID-19—even though the Wall Street Journal reported that he had received a positive test earlier in the day .
But all of that is just a start .
Below is a look at the timeline of what we know—and what we don ’ t know .
• On October 4 , Maggie Haberman reported that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ staff had tested positive “ weeks ago.
” It remains unclear when that really was , what their jobs are , and if they had any exposure to the president ’ s inner circle .
• The White House hosts multiple receptions and a press event announcing their new Supreme Court nominee , Amy Coney Barrett .
Among the attendees who would test positive for COVID in the days following it : POTUS , FLOTUS , Sen. Thom Tillis , Kellyanne Conway , Sen. Mike Lee , and Notre Dame president Fr .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ press conference with Vice President Mike Pence in which the two men are unusually distant from one another .
This could have been done for any number of reasons but it was unusual and it came two days after we now know for certain that Trump had been exposed to the virus .
• Trump departed for the debate site at 8:35 p.m. • Trump did not take a COVID test on site in Cleveland before the debate , according to Chris Wallace citing a lack of time .
• The White House @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a COVID-19 test on Monday , September 28 .
• The White House refuses to say whether he took a test earlier in the day on Tuesday , September 29 .
• Cleveland Clinic released a statement saying only that the Trump campaign had to certify that everyone traveling to the debate had tested negative in the 72 hours before debate .
This was based on the “ honor system , ” per Chris Wallace .
• All of which raises three questions : • Did Trump provide a negative test to debate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of a negative result ?
• If so , on what date was the supposed negative test performed ?
• And were any tests performed on the president on subsequent dates that were not reported ?
• Later in the evening Hope Hicks begins to exhibit COVID-19 symptoms around the time of the president ’ s very socially un-distant rally in Duluth .
She is said to be put in “ isolation ” on the plane flight home to Washington , meaning the White House had good reason to believe the president and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ • The White House refuses to say whether President Trump took a COVID-19 test on Wednesday , September 30 .
• • Morning : Hope Hicks receives a positive test result .
• Note : Chief of Staff Mark Meadows lies about when the White House knew about Hicks , claiming that they heard about her test “ as Marine One was taking off.
” This appears to be false .
• 1:00 p.m. : Marine One takes off for New Jersey .
• 6:00 p.m. : Jennifer Jacobs breaks the news publicly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ • Note : There is no reason to believe the White House was going to acknowledge that Hicks had contracted the virus had Jacobs not broken the story .
They had a full schedule of events for the following day that were not cancelled until much later .
• Time Unknown : Trump takes a rapid test that comes back positive at some point in the evening after the New Jersey events , but before 9:00 p.m. • Kayleigh Mcenany will later say that this was the “ first positive test ” Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump calls into Sean Hannity ’ s show and says he does not know the results of his test yet .
• He also claims to have just heard about Hicks .
• Both of these statements were lies .
• 1:00 a.m. : Trump tweets that he and Melania are positive for COVID-19 .
• Later in the Morning : Trump begins to experience relatively severe symptoms , including fever and low oxygen levels .
• 6:16 p.m. : Trump is airlifted to Walter Reed and admitted to the hospital .
• @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conference of the day , Dr. Sean Conley says Trump is “ 72 hours into diagnosis ” and that “ 48 hours ago the president received a special antibody therapy.
” • If true , this would have meant that Trump had been diagnosed on the morning of Wednesday , September 30 .
And was being treated on the morning of Thursday , October 1—just as Hope Hicks was getting her test results .
Both of these conflict with the White House ’ s timeline .
• The White House later corrected Conley @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Conley had said “ 72 hours ” he meant “ day three.
” • And that when Conley said Trump had begun treatment “ 48 hours earlier ” he meant it as “ day two ” of the virus or more colloquially , “ yesterday ” —in other words , Friday .
• I have never heard someone use the phrase “ 48 hours ago ” to describe something that happened “ yesterday.
” But that is what the White House is claiming Conley meant .
• This White House statement also misspelled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on .
• Also , Conley came out to give a second press conference on Saturday .
• Sean Conely gives a third press conference in which he is asked about his conflicting statements .
• He responds : “ I was trying to reflect the upbeat attitude that the team , the president in his course of illness has had .
I didn ’ t want to give any information that might steer the course of illness in another direction , and in doing so it came off that we ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gives a fourth press conference in which he refuses to disclose the date of the presidents last negative COVID test or give any information on tests prior to Thursday , October 1 .
“ I don ’ t want to go backwards .
Everyone wants that , ” he added .
So in summary , here is what we know about the timeline of President Trump ’ s infection : • Trump tested negative at some point between Saturday , September 26 and Monday , September 28 , if the “ certified ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was accurate .
• We have no idea if he was tested on any other days during the period between September 26 and October 1 .
If he was tested on any of those other days , we have no idea what the results were .
• Trump ’ s doctors initially said that his first positive test was on Wednesday , September 30 , but then corrected this claim in a bizarre manner .
• The White House claims that Trump is tested daily but explicitly said they will not give a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ • The White House also will not release the number or timing of other staffers who contracted the virus .
Finally , here is what doctors say about how these tests usually work : • “ If Trump really was getting daily negative tests and was testing negative , how did he suddenly have such a high viral load by Thursday that he would have a fever and on Friday he was so ill that he was needing oxygen and experimental therapies .
.
.
.
Average time to having severe symptoms requiring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” —Dr .
Leana Wen • Dr. Carl Bergstrom says there is usually a 2 to 3 day presymptomatic period in which a patient would test positive .
If you believe the White House timeline , then President Trump was experiencing relatively severe symptoms within hours of his positive test .
• An infectious disease expert I spoke to said there must have been “ lack of adherence to existing protocols ” regarding testing and that the first positive test would likely have been earlier than just 12 hours before the president needed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ White House was truly testing the president on a daily basis .
At minimum we know that President Trump : • Was aware he had been exposed to the virus no later than September 30 ( because of the isolation of Hope Hicks aboard Air Force One ) .
• Exposed unknown hundreds in Washington and New Jersey to the virus after learning of Hicks ’ s positive test .
• Did not inform White House staff and institute recommended protocols .
• Lied about his COVID-19 status in a nationally televised interview @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are already inexcusable .
But the public deserves to know whether Trump ’ s negligence and lying goes even further .
The big questions are : Did Trump already know that he or a close staff member had COVID when he took the stage in Cleveland to debate Joe Biden ?
Did he lie to the Cleveland Clinic about whether or not he had been tested ?
Has he been lying about his daily testing regimen ?
We will update this timeline as more information becomes available .

Among the subplots and grotesqueries of President Trump’s response to COVID-19 outbreak in the White House is: When did Trump know he was sick?
COVID-19 is a highly contagious pathogen. Once possible exposure is identified best practices for containment are quarantine for those exposed; isolation for those infected; and a strict regime of social distancing and and use of PPE for those in the immediate community, so as to make accidental transmission difficult and stop the virus from jumping to another community.
The White House seems to have taken none of these actions.
The frequent testing regime that the White House claims to have in place existed as a tool to ensure swift action if someone was exposed and asymptomatic also seems not to have worked.
Why is that? The president’s doctors and White House spokespeople have refused to answer questions about the results of tests that supposedly took place between exposure to the virus and Thursday’s announcement that the president had been infected. Earlier today, Dr. Sean Conley laughed when asked and said, “everybody wants that.”
If “everyone wants” a piece of information that is easy to provide and which would reassure the country about the system in place to protect the president and his executive office, then there’s no good reason for the White House not to release it.
Unless the truth turns out to be problematic.
Podcast · August 15 2023 A.B. Stoddard: All the Ex-President’s Conspirators Donald Trump has been a low-rent mobster for his entire career, and now he’s getting…
I’ve spoken to multiple doctors who have either treated COVID-19 patients or have a specialty in immunology or epidemiology. To a person the simple fact that this outbreak proceeded as it did signaled that the White House was not following the basic protocols laid out by their own administration.
The full extent of the White House’s irresponsibility is not clear because their lies and dissembling have left us with a muddied timeline that contains few solid fence posts. But from what we do know—or think we know—the fact pattern suggests gross negligence in managing the virus.
Consider:
On October 1 the president traveled from Washington to New Jersey after being informed that those in his traveling party had been exposed through a close aide (Hope Hicks) who had tested positive before they left. Once in New Jersey he held multiple indoor maskless receptions (with buffet!) involving hundreds of people. Later that night Trump went on Fox News and claimed he did not know whether or not he had tested positive for COVID-19—even though the Wall Street Journal reported that he had received a positive test earlier in the day.
But all of that is just a start. Below is a look at the timeline of what we know—and what we don’t know.
The Timeline
“Weeks Ago”
On October 4, Maggie Haberman reported that two members of the White House residence staff had tested positive “weeks ago.” It remains unclear when that really was, what their jobs are, and if they had any exposure to the president’s inner circle.
On October 9, Maggie Haberman reported that two additional members of the White House residence staff had tested positive and that President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were aware.
September 26, Saturday
The White House hosts multiple receptions and a press event announcing their new Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett. Among the attendees who would test positive for COVID in the days following it: POTUS, FLOTUS, Sen. Thom Tillis, Kellyanne Conway, Sen. Mike Lee, and Notre Dame president Fr. John Jenkins.
September 27, Sunday
President Trump hosted Gold Star Families at the White House for an indoor, mask-less reception. In an interview on October 8th, Trump suggested that he may have contracted the virus from one of the families at the event.
September 28, Monday
Trump holds a press conference with Vice President Mike Pence in which the two men are unusually distant from one another. This could have been done for any number of reasons but it was unusual and it came two days after we now know for certain that Trump had been exposed to the virus.
September 29, Tuesday
Donald Trump debates Joe Biden in Cleveland.
Trump arrived in Cleveland at 4:55 p.m.
Trump departed for the debate site at 8:35 p.m.
Trump did not take a COVID test on site in Cleveland before the debate, according to Chris Wallace citing a lack of time. A rapid test takes about 15 minutes.
The White House refuses to say whether President Trump took a COVID-19 test on Monday, September 28.
The White House refuses to say whether he took a test earlier in the day on Tuesday, September 29.
Cleveland Clinic released a statement saying only that the Trump campaign had to certify that everyone traveling to the debate had tested negative in the 72 hours before debate. This was based on the “honor system,” per Chris Wallace.
All of which raises three questions: Did Trump provide a negative test to debate organizers, or simply report the existence of a negative result? If so, on what date was the supposed negative test performed? And were any tests performed on the president on subsequent dates that were not reported?
Update : In an interview with MSNBC on Friday, October 9th, White House spokesperson Brian Morgenstern refused to answer multiple questions about whether the president had complied with the Cleveland Clinic guidelines.
September 30, Wednesday
Trump holds a private indoor fundraising event in Minnesota at 6:00 p.m.
Later in the evening Hope Hicks begins to exhibit COVID-19 symptoms around the time of the president’s very socially un-distant rally in Duluth. She is said to be put in “isolation” on the plane flight home to Washington, meaning the White House had good reason to believe the president and those traveling with him were exposed.
Hope Hicks begins to exhibit COVID-19 symptoms around the time of the president’s very socially un-distant rally in Duluth. She is said to be put in “isolation” on the plane flight home to Washington, meaning the White House had good reason to believe the president and those traveling with him were exposed. The White House refuses to say whether President Trump took a COVID-19 test on Wednesday, September 30.
October 1, Thursday
Morning: Hope Hicks receives a positive test result. Note: Chief of Staff Mark Meadows lies about when the White House knew about Hicks, claiming that they heard about her test “as Marine One was taking off.” This appears to be false. 1:00 p.m.: Marine One takes off for New Jersey.
Late Afternoon: The president holds multiple indoor fundraiser events with buffet.
6:00 p.m.: Jennifer Jacobs breaks the news publicly that Hicks has tested positive.
Note: There is no reason to believe the White House was going to acknowledge that Hicks had contracted the virus had Jacobs not broken the story. They had a full schedule of events for the following day that were not cancelled until much later.
Time Unknown: Trump takes a rapid test that comes back positive at some point in the evening after the New Jersey events, but before 9:00 p.m. Kayleigh Mcenany will later say that this was the “first positive test” Trump had received.
Trump takes a rapid test that comes back positive at some point in the evening after the New Jersey events, but before 9:00 p.m.
9:00 p.m.: Trump calls into Sean Hannity’s show and says he does not know the results of his test yet. He also claims to have just heard about Hicks. Both of these statements were lies.
Trump calls into Sean Hannity’s show and says he does not know the results of his test yet.
October 2, Friday
1:00 a.m.: Trump tweets that he and Melania are positive for COVID-19.
Later in the Morning: Trump begins to experience relatively severe symptoms, including fever and low oxygen levels.
6:16 p.m.: Trump is airlifted to Walter Reed and admitted to the hospital.
October 3, Saturday
11:38 a.m .: In his first press conference of the day, Dr. Sean Conley says Trump is “72 hours into diagnosis” and that “48 hours ago the president received a special antibody therapy.” If true, this would have meant that Trump had been diagnosed on the morning of Wednesday, September 30. And was being treated on the morning of Thursday, October 1—just as Hope Hicks was getting her test results. Both of these conflict with the White House’s timeline. The White House later corrected Conley’s claims, insisting that when Conley had said “72 hours” he meant “day three.” And that when Conley said Trump had begun treatment “48 hours earlier” he meant it as “day two” of the virus or more colloquially, “yesterday”—in other words, Friday. I have never heard someone use the phrase “48 hours ago” to describe something that happened “yesterday.” But that is what the White House is claiming Conley meant. This White House statement also misspelled the name of the drug Trump was on. Also, Conley came out to give a second press conference on Saturday.
.: In his first press conference of the day, Dr. Sean Conley says Trump is “72 hours into diagnosis” and that “48 hours ago the president received a special antibody therapy.”
October 4, Sunday
Sean Conely gives a third press conference in which he is asked about his conflicting statements.
He responds: “I was trying to reflect the upbeat attitude that the team, the president in his course of illness has had. I didn’t want to give any information that might steer the course of illness in another direction, and in doing so it came off that we’re trying to hide something.”
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
October 5, Monday
Conley gives a fourth press conference in which he refuses to disclose the date of the presidents last negative COVID test or give any information on tests prior to Thursday, October 1. “I don’t want to go backwards. Everyone wants that,” he added.
Indeed.
So in summary, here is what we know about the timeline of President Trump’s infection:
Trump tested negative at some point between Saturday, September 26 and Monday, September 28, if the “certified” statement they gave to the Cleveland Clinic was accurate. We have no idea if he was tested on any other days during the period between September 26 and October 1. If he was tested on any of those other days, we have no idea what the results were. Trump’s doctors initially said that his first positive test was on Wednesday, September 30, but then corrected this claim in a bizarre manner. The White House claims that Trump is tested daily but explicitly said they will not give a read out of his past tests. The White House also will not release the number or timing of other staffers who contracted the virus.
Finally, here is what doctors say about how these tests usually work:
“If Trump really was getting daily negative tests and was testing negative, how did he suddenly have such a high viral load by Thursday that he would have a fever and on Friday he was so ill that he was needing oxygen and experimental therapies. . . . Average time to having severe symptoms requiring ICU care is 10 to 12 days.” —Dr. Leana Wen Dr. Carl Bergstrom says there is usually a 2 to 3 day presymptomatic period in which a patient would test positive. If you believe the White House timeline, then President Trump was experiencing relatively severe symptoms within hours of his positive test. An infectious disease expert I spoke to said there must have been “lack of adherence to existing protocols” regarding testing and that the first positive test would likely have been earlier than just 12 hours before the president needed to receive oxygen — especially if the White House was truly testing the president on a daily basis.
At minimum we know that President Trump:
Held a non-essential indoor gathering on September 26 for Judge Barrett.
Was aware he had been exposed to the virus no later than September 30 (because of the isolation of Hope Hicks aboard Air Force One).
Exposed unknown hundreds in Washington and New Jersey to the virus after learning of Hicks’s positive test.
Did not inform White House staff and institute recommended protocols.
Lied about his COVID-19 status in a nationally televised interview.
Given these facts, his actions are already inexcusable.
But the public deserves to know whether Trump’s negligence and lying goes even further.
The big questions are: Did Trump already know that he or a close staff member had COVID when he took the stage in Cleveland to debate Joe Biden? Did he lie to the Cleveland Clinic about whether or not he had been tested? Has he been lying about his daily testing regimen?
America deserves answers.
We will update this timeline as more information becomes available.
Update: Friday October 9th, 11:30 A.M. – This article has been updated to include a White House spokesperson’s refusal to answer whether Trump complied with the Cleveland Clinic testing guidelines, the news about two more WH residence staff previously contracting the virus, and the president’s suggestion he may have contracted the virus from Gold Star families.


thebulwark--2020-10-05--The Transformation of Mike Pompeo

The Transformation of Mike Pompeo

By the time of Mike Pompeo ’ s keynote speech for the Florida Family Policy Council ’ s anniversary gala this past weekend—a talk switched at the last minute to be delivered via video screen , replacing a promised “ personal visit ” from Pompeo with guests who had paid $ 10,000 as table sponsors—he had traveled a long road from graduating first in his class at West Point to grubbing .
As one does in the inner circle of Donald Trump .
The selling of access by the secretary of state , even if he doesn ’ t pocket @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and/or legal guidelines , so the original plans for this event , before Pompeo decided to speak remotely , are troubling .
In August , Pompeo broke State Department rules in a speech to the Republican National Convention , from Israel no less , addressing two political audiences wrapped in one—and on the taxpayer dime .
But Pompeo doesn ’ t care .
He ’ s trying to get out in front of the 2024 field , since the GOP primary campaign could kick off just weeks from now if Trump loses .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a hurry .
Last month , he gave a speech in Wisconsin , another key battleground state , to the legislature .
A spokesman said he was delivering “ an important policy speech to the Wisconsin State Senate on why state legislators across our country must be vigilant against the Chinese Communist Party ’ s malign influence at the subnational level.
” Don ’ t look to find him lecturing legislators in non-swing states on the dangers of China , of course .
The hallmark of the transformation to Trumpkin is a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shame , then both are replaced by an insatiable hunger for dollars , access , or influence .
Rick Wilson has abbreviated the process for us as “ Everything Trump Touches Dies , ” but those who don ’ t part with their shame shrivel up and disappear before enjoying the party favors .
Not Pompeo .
At West Point he pledged that “ a cadet will not lie , cheat or steal , nor tolerate those who do.
” The “ spirit of the code ” is that the cadet “ is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Not only has Pompeo tolerated lying , cheating , and likely plenty of stealing , but last week he even appears to have lied about the Pope .
On Thursday he gave a questionable answer about why the Pope didn ’ t meet with him at the Vatican .
He told Fox News that the Pope was busy and often doesn ’ t meet with foreign ministers but he hopes to meet with him next year .
Cardinal Pietro Parolin , the Vatican secretary of state , said that Pompeo had asked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said clearly that political figures are not received in election periods.
” Lying about the Pope doesn ’ t bring in more campaign dollars but it ’ s part of the emerging picture of a changed Pompeo .
With each new investigation or tacky revelation , Pompeo seems to be digging in with defiance .
He has so sullied himself that he is liberated—he has gone full gangster .
Generally though , self-dealing is the through line .
Pompeo is under several investigations for allegedly using taxpayer dollars for personal gain .
He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the State Department—began hosting his “ Madison dinners ” again .
These salon evenings are gatherings of fat cats who don ’ t come from the foreign policy world .
This month several of the dinners will take place at Blair House—that is , indoors during a pandemic , CDC guidelines be damned .
One official told Politico : “ dozens of department employees who support these dinners , from security officers to catering staff who prepare the food , facilities management and protocol staff , do not have the option to work @ @ @ @ @ @ @ assignment.
” At Pompeo ’ s side is his wife Susan who has commandeered a role in event planning .
Despite not being a government employee herself , Susan Pompeo is reportedly a source of intimidation of some department personnel .
Also involved is Brian Bulatao , a longtime friend of Pompeo ’ s .
Pompeo got Bulatao hired as chief of operations at the CIA and Bulatao followed him to the State Department where he is under secretary for management .
Douglas London , a former senior CIA operations officer who left @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was known within the agency for his focus on Pompeo ’ s political future .
“ It was clear from the counsel Brian offered at meetings prioritizing his boss ’ s image , and the issues which garnered his attention , that Brian ’ s interests were not supporting CIA ’ s mission , but in making Pompeo president , ” London said .
Pompeo hosted similar schmoozefests while at the CIA through an external advisory board .
Although the events did not violate any regulations , they were the subject of grousing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that Pompeo had held what were called “ senior leadership conferences ” but were really “ lavish ” dinners providing Pompeo with face-time with influential and wealthy business and political figures in ways that previous CIA directors had not .
Former CIA officials said that Pompeo had “ crossed a line.
” When State Department Inspector General Steve Linick investigated Pompeo ’ s misuse of department staff to perform errands for him and his wife , as well as his end run around Congress in approval of an arms deal with the United @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had Linick fired .
The House of Representatives—which is probing Pompeo ’ s “ transparently political misuse of department resources , ” like his RNC speech—is currently planning to hold Pompeo in contempt of Congress because of his defiance of subpoenas regarding the State Department ’ s role in a Senate Republican investigation into the Biden family .
The department , which has stonewalled Democratic investigators in the House , provided more than 16,000 pages to help Senate Republicans target Hunter Biden .
Staff for Pompeo told the House Foreign Affairs Committee last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with documents unless their committee also investigated Hunter Biden .
In Congress , Pompeo was a member of the Constitution Caucus .
He didn ’ t support Trump in 2016 , since he thought he was immoral .
Indeed , it was Pompeo ’ s concern about the Constitution that led him to speak out against Trump while supporting Sen. Marco Rubio .
“ We ’ ve spent seven and a half years with an authoritarian president who ignored our Constitution , ” Pompeo said of Obama in March 2016 , and warned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t need four more years of that.
” But surviving in Trump ’ s administration , let alone trying to win over Trump supporters and beat other Trumpkin contestants in a primary , requires not just violating one ’ s oath to the Constitution but a rejection of the system it constructs for checks and balances on power .
Impeachment revealed the depths of Pompeo ’ s complicity—although , in fairness to him , he was hardly alone .
The Ukraine scandal laid bare a government-wide conspiracy that also involved Vice President Mike @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Attorney General Bill Barr , and U.S. ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland ; they were involved in the cover-up of Trump ’ s clear abuse of power , extorting an allied nation by withholding security funds appropriated and approved by a separate and coequal branch of government .
Pompeo also knowingly allowed Rudy Giuliani to conduct a rogue national security and foreign policy outside the government apparatus—all with the aim of killing off Joe Biden ’ s presidential candidacy .
Giuliani ’ s campaign against Biden in Ukraine began in 2018 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Devin Nunes .
On trips to Europe , likely on the taxpayer dime , Nunes began pursuing information on Burisma , which had employed Hunter Biden , with the help of people like indicted Ukrainian businessman and Giuiliani crony Lev Parnas .
Pompeo allowed Giuliani to smear U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch and to get her fired , never publicly disagreeing or defending her .
Yovanovitch testified that Pompeo had been aware of the Giuliani-led operation in Ukraine since 2018 .
Throughout , Pompeo continued to spew Russian disinformation that the FBI @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that it was Ukraine , not Russia , that had interfered in the 2016 election .
When he blew up in an interview about it last winter , Pompeo barked at NPR reporter Mary Louise Kelly : “ Do you think Americans care about ( f-word ) Ukraine ?
” It ’ s easy to imagine this is what Pompeo himself believes : that abuse of power doesn ’ t matter .
It ’ s becoming harder to imagine that Pompeo once was , politically speaking , a choirboy .
After West Point @ @ @ @ @ @ @ became a businessman and went on to Congress with a hefty resume , a sharp mind , and zero taint .
From what seemed a life of purpose and patriotism , Pompeo had the promise and the pedigree to stand out as a leader .
Pompeo wasn ’ t another Nunes ; he had too much to lose .
That man is gone .

By the time of Mike Pompeo’s keynote speech for the Florida Family Policy Council’s anniversary gala this past weekend—a talk switched at the last minute to be delivered via video screen, replacing a promised “personal visit” from Pompeo with guests who had paid $10,000 as table sponsors—he had traveled a long road from graduating first in his class at West Point to grubbing. As one does in the inner circle of Donald Trump.
The selling of access by the secretary of state, even if he doesn’t pocket the money, still likely violates ethical and/or legal guidelines, so the original plans for this event, before Pompeo decided to speak remotely, are troubling.
In August, Pompeo broke State Department rules in a speech to the Republican National Convention, from Israel no less, addressing two political audiences wrapped in one—and on the taxpayer dime.
But Pompeo doesn’t care. He’s trying to get out in front of the 2024 field, since the GOP primary campaign could kick off just weeks from now if Trump loses. Our secretary of state is a man in a hurry.
Last month, he gave a speech in Wisconsin, another key battleground state, to the legislature. A spokesman said he was delivering “an important policy speech to the Wisconsin State Senate on why state legislators across our country must be vigilant against the Chinese Communist Party’s malign influence at the subnational level.” Don’t look to find him lecturing legislators in non-swing states on the dangers of China, of course.
The hallmark of the transformation to Trumpkin is a skin shedding—once integrity is gone so is shame, then both are replaced by an insatiable hunger for dollars, access, or influence. Rick Wilson has abbreviated the process for us as “Everything Trump Touches Dies,” but those who don’t part with their shame shrivel up and disappear before enjoying the party favors.
Not Pompeo. At West Point he pledged that “a cadet will not lie, cheat or steal, nor tolerate those who do.” The “spirit of the code” is that the cadet “is truthful, fair, respectful and responsible.” Not only has Pompeo tolerated lying, cheating, and likely plenty of stealing, but last week he even appears to have lied about the Pope.
On Thursday he gave a questionable answer about why the Pope didn’t meet with him at the Vatican. He told Fox News that the Pope was busy and often doesn’t meet with foreign ministers but he hopes to meet with him next year. Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, said that Pompeo had asked but that “the Pope had already said clearly that political figures are not received in election periods.”
Lying about the Pope doesn’t bring in more campaign dollars but it’s part of the emerging picture of a changed Pompeo. With each new investigation or tacky revelation, Pompeo seems to be digging in with defiance. He has so sullied himself that he is liberated—he has gone full gangster.
Podcast · August 15 2023 A.B. Stoddard: All the Ex-President’s Conspirators Donald Trump has been a low-rent mobster for his entire career, and now he’s getting…
Generally though, self-dealing is the through line.
Pompeo is under several investigations for allegedly using taxpayer dollars for personal gain. He recently—after they stirred scorn and controversy at the State Department—began hosting his “Madison dinners” again. These salon evenings are gatherings of fat cats who don’t come from the foreign policy world. This month several of the dinners will take place at Blair House—that is, indoors during a pandemic, CDC guidelines be damned. One official told Politico: “dozens of department employees who support these dinners, from security officers to catering staff who prepare the food, facilities management and protocol staff, do not have the option to work these events remotely or turn down an assignment.”
At Pompeo’s side is his wife Susan who has commandeered a role in event planning. Despite not being a government employee herself, Susan Pompeo is reportedly a source of intimidation of some department personnel. Also involved is Brian Bulatao, a longtime friend of Pompeo’s. Pompeo got Bulatao hired as chief of operations at the CIA and Bulatao followed him to the State Department where he is under secretary for management. Douglas London, a former senior CIA operations officer who left in 2019, told Politico that Bulatao was known within the agency for his focus on Pompeo’s political future. “It was clear from the counsel Brian offered at meetings prioritizing his boss’s image, and the issues which garnered his attention, that Brian’s interests were not supporting CIA’s mission, but in making Pompeo president,” London said.
Pompeo hosted similar schmoozefests while at the CIA through an external advisory board. Although the events did not violate any regulations, they were the subject of grousing from several former officials who told Politico that Pompeo had held what were called “senior leadership conferences” but were really “lavish” dinners providing Pompeo with face-time with influential and wealthy business and political figures in ways that previous CIA directors had not. Former CIA officials said that Pompeo had “crossed a line.”
When State Department Inspector General Steve Linick investigated Pompeo’s misuse of department staff to perform errands for him and his wife, as well as his end run around Congress in approval of an arms deal with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, Pompeo had Linick fired.
The House of Representatives—which is probing Pompeo’s “transparently political misuse of department resources,” like his RNC speech—is currently planning to hold Pompeo in contempt of Congress because of his defiance of subpoenas regarding the State Department’s role in a Senate Republican investigation into the Biden family. The department, which has stonewalled Democratic investigators in the House, provided more than 16,000 pages to help Senate Republicans target Hunter Biden. Staff for Pompeo told the House Foreign Affairs Committee last month that the department would not comply with documents unless their committee also investigated Hunter Biden.
In Congress, Pompeo was a member of the Constitution Caucus. He didn’t support Trump in 2016, since he thought he was immoral. Indeed, it was Pompeo’s concern about the Constitution that led him to speak out against Trump while supporting Sen. Marco Rubio.
“We’ve spent seven and a half years with an authoritarian president who ignored our Constitution,” Pompeo said of Obama in March 2016, and warned of Trump: “We don’t need four more years of that.”
But surviving in Trump’s administration, let alone trying to win over Trump supporters and beat other Trumpkin contestants in a primary, requires not just violating one’s oath to the Constitution but a rejection of the system it constructs for checks and balances on power. Impeachment revealed the depths of Pompeo’s complicity—although, in fairness to him, he was hardly alone. The Ukraine scandal laid bare a government-wide conspiracy that also involved Vice President Mike Pence, chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, Attorney General Bill Barr, and U.S. ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland; they were involved in the cover-up of Trump’s clear abuse of power, extorting an allied nation by withholding security funds appropriated and approved by a separate and coequal branch of government.
Pompeo also knowingly allowed Rudy Giuliani to conduct a rogue national security and foreign policy outside the government apparatus—all with the aim of killing off Joe Biden’s presidential candidacy. Giuliani’s campaign against Biden in Ukraine began in 2018 with the help of then-House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes. On trips to Europe, likely on the taxpayer dime, Nunes began pursuing information on Burisma, which had employed Hunter Biden, with the help of people like indicted Ukrainian businessman and Giuiliani crony Lev Parnas. Pompeo allowed Giuliani to smear U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch and to get her fired, never publicly disagreeing or defending her. Yovanovitch testified that Pompeo had been aware of the Giuliani-led operation in Ukraine since 2018. Throughout, Pompeo continued to spew Russian disinformation that the FBI warned Republicans not to repeat, claiming that it was Ukraine, not Russia, that had interfered in the 2016 election.
When he blew up in an interview about it last winter, Pompeo barked at NPR reporter Mary Louise Kelly: “Do you think Americans care about (f-word) Ukraine?” It’s easy to imagine this is what Pompeo himself believes: that abuse of power doesn’t matter.
It’s becoming harder to imagine that Pompeo once was, politically speaking, a choirboy. After West Point he graduated from Harvard Law School, became a businessman and went on to Congress with a hefty resume, a sharp mind, and zero taint. From what seemed a life of purpose and patriotism, Pompeo had the promise and the pedigree to stand out as a leader. Pompeo wasn’t another Nunes; he had too much to lose.
That man is gone.


thebulwark--2020-10-05--The European Central Bank Can’t Save the European Economy by Itself

The recent announcement by Christine Lagarde , president of the European Central Bank ( ECB ) that she intends to have the bank adopt a new inflation target should draw attention to the weakness of the ECB having a single price inflation mandate .
Unlike the Federal Reserve , which has a dual price and employment mandate , the ECB has a single mandate to maintain price stability .
For many years now the ECB has defined price stability as inflation at “ close to but below 2 percent.
” Like the Fed , the ECB ’ s mandate does @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to avoid inflating asset prices , like houses and equities , or to refrain from distorting the flow of credit .
The single mandate led the ECB to too-tight monetary policy in past inflationary periods .
Now , at a time of deflation , the single mandate conversely risks contributing to the creation of unhealthy asset and credit price bubbles by having the ECB continue to disregard how its policies designed to avoid deflation might promote asset price inflation and credit misallocation .
Given the ECB ’ s single price stability mandate , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a change in the bank ’ s policy .
After all , in the wake of the pandemic , the Eurozone is already experiencing falling prices amid Europe ’ s worst recession in the past 90 years .
In the period ahead , that deflation could get worse considering the large gaps that are expected to persist in the Eurozone ’ s labor and product markets and the recent 10 percent appreciation of the Euro .
That deflation in turn could make the Eurozone ’ s public debt problem even more intractable .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the ECB to loosen its policy even further for an extended period of time to get inflation back to the ECB ’ s target , indicating that she would like to have the ECB follow the Fed by adjusting its inflation target .
Instead of simply aiming at the target , she would now like the ECB to tolerate a period of inflation above 2 percent to compensate for past periods of lower inflation .
Getting Eurozone inflation back to the ECB ’ s target will be difficult to say the least given @ @ @ @ @ @ @ finds itself .
With most Eurozone interest rates already negative , reducing these rates further into negative territory will be bad news for the Eurozone ’ s weak banking system .
Those banks , which are already contending with the fallout from the coronavirus recession , would likely be unable to pass on negative interest rates to their depositors .
Their profit margins would be squeezed just when they can least afford it .
Similarly , flooding the market with liquidity , which would seem to be the ECB ’ s only other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ risk once again contributing to asset price bubbles and the further misallocation of global credit .
As has been the case before , expanding the ECB ’ s already expansive bond buying program would contribute ( along with the Fed ) to a further rise in global equity and housing prices and the expanded flow of cheap credit to borrowers with questionable creditworthiness .
While this might allow the ECB to achieve its price inflation target in the short run , it would risk inflating asset and credit market bubbles , which would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ suggest that the ECB ’ s single-minded pursuit of its inflation objective could lead it to adopt policies that are unhealthy for the Eurozone ’ s longer-run economic development .
It would also suggest that the bank acting alone can not achieve its longer run price inflation objective .
Rather , if the ECB is to do so in a manner that promotes European long-run economic prosperity , it must be supported by an expansive budget policy of the Eurozone ’ s member countries .

The recent announcement by Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank (ECB) that she intends to have the bank adopt a new inflation target should draw attention to the weakness of the ECB having a single price inflation mandate.
Unlike the Federal Reserve, which has a dual price and employment mandate, the ECB has a single mandate to maintain price stability. For many years now the ECB has defined price stability as inflation at “close to but below 2 percent.” Like the Fed, the ECB’s mandate does not mention the need for the ECB to avoid inflating asset prices, like houses and equities, or to refrain from distorting the flow of credit.
The single mandate led the ECB to too-tight monetary policy in past inflationary periods. Now, at a time of deflation, the single mandate conversely risks contributing to the creation of unhealthy asset and credit price bubbles by having the ECB continue to disregard how its policies designed to avoid deflation might promote asset price inflation and credit misallocation.
Given the ECB’s single price stability mandate, it is understandable that Lagarde is seeking a change in the bank’s policy. After all, in the wake of the pandemic, the Eurozone is already experiencing falling prices amid Europe’s worst recession in the past 90 years. In the period ahead, that deflation could get worse considering the large gaps that are expected to persist in the Eurozone’s labor and product markets and the recent 10 percent appreciation of the Euro. That deflation in turn could make the Eurozone’s public debt problem even more intractable.
Lagarde is now intimating that she wants the ECB to loosen its policy even further for an extended period of time to get inflation back to the ECB’s target, indicating that she would like to have the ECB follow the Fed by adjusting its inflation target. Instead of simply aiming at the target, she would now like the ECB to tolerate a period of inflation above 2 percent to compensate for past periods of lower inflation.
Getting Eurozone inflation back to the ECB’s target will be difficult to say the least given the position in which the ECB now finds itself. With most Eurozone interest rates already negative, reducing these rates further into negative territory will be bad news for the Eurozone’s weak banking system. Those banks, which are already contending with the fallout from the coronavirus recession, would likely be unable to pass on negative interest rates to their depositors. Their profit margins would be squeezed just when they can least afford it.
Similarly, flooding the market with liquidity, which would seem to be the ECB’s only other policy option to produce inflation, would risk once again contributing to asset price bubbles and the further misallocation of global credit. As has been the case before, expanding the ECB’s already expansive bond buying program would contribute (along with the Fed) to a further rise in global equity and housing prices and the expanded flow of cheap credit to borrowers with questionable creditworthiness. While this might allow the ECB to achieve its price inflation target in the short run, it would risk inflating asset and credit market bubbles, which would inevitably burst.
All of this would suggest that the ECB’s single-minded pursuit of its inflation objective could lead it to adopt policies that are unhealthy for the Eurozone’s longer-run economic development. It would also suggest that the bank acting alone cannot achieve its longer run price inflation objective. Rather, if the ECB is to do so in a manner that promotes European long-run economic prosperity, it must be supported by an expansive budget policy of the Eurozone’s member countries.


thebulwark--2020-10-05--Trump’s Battle with COVID Can Bring Us Together

Sickness can be transformative .
A man suffers a heart attack and emerges more attuned to life ; a woman survives cancer committed to living every day to its fullest .
These truisms exist because they are true and most of us have seen it happen , either to friends , or family , or even to ourselves .
A medical crisis also has the power to remind us of our common humanity , our shared frailty , our inescapable mortality .
Differences that seemed so profound the day before often fade into the background when disease strikes .
There @ @ @ @ @ @ @ away when someone becomes seriously ill.
There ’ s a reason people say , “ I wouldn ’ t wish that on my worst enemy.
” Reflecting on my experiences in medical school a quarter century ago , I wrote , “ [ It ’ s ] remarkable how similar the concerns of people are .
The 30-year-old white executive diagnosed with Hodgkin ’ s disease , the black teen-ager with diabetes—their questions and needs can be indistinguishable .
What is wrong with me ?
Why is this happening ?
When am I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ don ’ t scare my mother .
A medical student is taught to observe and listen .
You become familiar with the feel of blood pulsing under the wrist and behind the knee , with the sound of air racing down the windpipe .
You learn how to tap out the borders of the liver and the lungs , to notice the tension of skin and the color of lips .
Companies are bought out by their competitors , district attorneys become defense lawyers , yet human life will always have value and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I was reminded of the transcendent power of illness to unite in a brief exchange with a colleague about one of the prominent Republicans who was recently diagnosed with COVID , a senator whose rabid embrace of Trumpism had profoundly dismayed my colleague .
“ Can ’ t imagine your schadenfreude level now , ” I told him after I heard about the senator ’ s diagnosis .
“ Actually no , ” he wrote back .
The senator , he explained simply , “ was once one of my best friends.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s crisis offers an opportunity for the nation to regain access to our best selves , our fellowship , and our community .
It could—it should—shock us out of our petty squabbles and humbly inspire us to see each other in a more generous and gracious light .
And it offers Donald Trump the same opportunity to emerge as a changed person .
Imagine if , having been confronted ( briefly , we all hope ) with a serious illness , the president were to transform into a wiser , more understanding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ together and help commit everyone to taking COVID seriously and seeing the pandemic as a shared challenge .
Of course , not everyone emerges from the crucible of sickness transformed .
Some people have a heart attack and keep gobbling up fried food and smoking a pack a day .
It may be that Trump and his most committed enablers learn nothing and continue to be the kind of people who mock others for taking COVID seriously .
Or mock others even for being ill .
But even if President Trump is not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the rest of us still can .
And for the rest of the country , the early signs are encouraging .
Shaken by the crisis , many of us are rediscovering , and taking comfort from our shared humanity , finding connection and accessing the empathy that had only recently seemed so elusive .
People seem to understand that they need not like the president in order to hope for his swift recovery .
They need not be voting for him in order to empathize with how scared he and his family must @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a hopeful sign that Trump ’ s opponent , Joe Biden , immediately pulled all negative advertising that attacked the president ’ s record and rushed to publicly offer his prayers for Trump .
This is the call of our shared humanity we should all heed .
The only upside of sickness is its power to transform our hearts .
America should not let this opportunity pass .

Sickness can be transformative. A man suffers a heart attack and emerges more attuned to life; a woman survives cancer committed to living every day to its fullest. These truisms exist because they are true and most of us have seen it happen, either to friends, or family, or even to ourselves.
A medical crisis also has the power to remind us of our common humanity, our shared frailty, our inescapable mortality. Differences that seemed so profound the day before often fade into the background when disease strikes. There is a reason that personal conflicts melt away when someone becomes seriously ill. There’s a reason people say, “I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy.”
Reflecting on my experiences in medical school a quarter century ago, I wrote,
“[It’s] remarkable how similar the concerns of people are. The 30-year-old white executive diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease, the black teen-ager with diabetes—their questions and needs can be indistinguishable. What is wrong with me? Why is this happening? When am I going to get better? Please, don’t scare my mother. A medical student is taught to observe and listen. You become familiar with the feel of blood pulsing under the wrist and behind the knee, with the sound of air racing down the windpipe. You learn how to tap out the borders of the liver and the lungs, to notice the tension of skin and the color of lips. Companies are bought out by their competitors, district attorneys become defense lawyers, yet human life will always have value and disease will always be the enemy.”
I was reminded of the transcendent power of illness to unite in a brief exchange with a colleague about one of the prominent Republicans who was recently diagnosed with COVID, a senator whose rabid embrace of Trumpism had profoundly dismayed my colleague.
“Can’t imagine your schadenfreude level now,” I told him after I heard about the senator’s diagnosis.
“Actually no,” he wrote back. The senator, he explained simply, “was once one of my best friends.”
In a similar way, President Trump’s crisis offers an opportunity for the nation to regain access to our best selves, our fellowship, and our community. It could—it should—shock us out of our petty squabbles and humbly inspire us to see each other in a more generous and gracious light.
And it offers Donald Trump the same opportunity to emerge as a changed person. Imagine if, having been confronted (briefly, we all hope) with a serious illness, the president were to transform into a wiser, more understanding leader. It could bind the nation together and help commit everyone to taking COVID seriously and seeing the pandemic as a shared challenge.
Of course, not everyone emerges from the crucible of sickness transformed. Some people have a heart attack and keep gobbling up fried food and smoking a pack a day. It may be that Trump and his most committed enablers learn nothing and continue to be the kind of people who mock others for taking COVID seriously. Or mock others even for being ill.
But even if President Trump is not capable of discovering his best self, the rest of us still can. And for the rest of the country, the early signs are encouraging.
Shaken by the crisis, many of us are rediscovering, and taking comfort from our shared humanity, finding connection and accessing the empathy that had only recently seemed so elusive. People seem to understand that they need not like the president in order to hope for his swift recovery. They need not be voting for him in order to empathize with how scared he and his family must be in this moment.
It is a hopeful sign that Trump’s opponent, Joe Biden, immediately pulled all negative advertising that attacked the president’s record and rushed to publicly offer his prayers for Trump.
Jill and I send our thoughts to President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump for a swift recovery. We will continue to pray for the health and safety of the president and his family. — Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 2, 2020
This is the call of our shared humanity we should all heed. The only upside of sickness is its power to transform our hearts.
America should not let this opportunity pass.


thebulwark--2020-10-06--The Flaw in the Twenty-Fifth Amendment

The Flaw in the Twenty-Fifth Amendment

With Donald Trump just out of Walter Reed hospital after days of COVID-19 treatment and Election Day scarcely a month away , the world is understandably abuzz over the fate of his campaign .
More worrisome , though , is what happens to the commander-in-chief post if Trump , now back in the White House , were to be incapacitated by the virus—or worse , if he were to join the 210,000 Americans who have died from the scourge so far .
The Constitution ’ s Twenty-fifth Amendment was ratified after President John F. Kennedy ’ s assassination precisely to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many other parts of the Constitution , it is destined for obsolescence thanks to the Trump administration ’ s lies , obfuscation , and norm-busting .
It turns out that the Constitution mostly runs on the honor system .
But for that to work , voters must elect lawmakers and presidents who possess a core value system that calls for fidelity to the rule of law .
Alas , many of us are only just discovering this truth .
It might be too late to address it .
The Twenty-fifth Amendment says three @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were to die in office , it would automatically make Mike Pence president .
Pence could then nominate a vice president to replace him , but that pick must be confirmed by a bare majority vote of both Houses of Congress .
That ’ s the easy part .
Second , it gives Trump the discretion to decide that he ’ s “ unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office ” in the event he becomes very sick with COVID-19 .
He would then transmit a written declaration to Chuck @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Senate—the member designated to take Pence ’ s place presiding over the Senate ) and Nancy Pelosi .
Once Trump sends that message , Pence would automatically become “ acting President ” until Trump “ transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary.
” Of course , the notion that an ailing Donald Trump would step aside from his position as the most powerful man in the world for the good of the country is sheer folly .
It would never happen .
The one thing we know for sure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that he doesn ’ t care much about other people ’ s health or well-being , including that of the populace writ large .
After all , it ’ s likely that he knowingly infected people at a Minnesota fundraiser before announcing that he had tested positive , and he likely knowingly infected people—public servants who swore to protect him as president , mind you—when he took his reckless joy ride around the hospital grounds so he could wave to adoring fans .
Which brings us to the third important part of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ majority of Trump ’ s cabinet decide that the president is so gravely ill that he is unable to discharge his duties , they can send their own missive to Grassley and Pelosi .
In that event , Pence “ shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.
” The Constitution allows the president to send a counter-declaration that he is fine—although in theory , if he were fine , there ’ d be no need to invoke this emergency measure .
( The Constitution also gives Congress @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pence and a majority of cabinet officers the ability to trigger this chain of events , but Congress hasn ’ t done that , so it ’ s beside the point . )
All of this assumes not only that Trump would execute his duties and obligations somberly and for the good of the republic even if it meant yielding power ( which is all but an impossibility ) , but also that Pence and Trump ’ s executive branch appointees would do the same with regard to their respective oaths of office @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has broken down .
The Constitution is not self-executing .
It is a piece of paper .
It is only so good as it is enforced and respected .
In the last few days , the American people have heard that Trump ’ s blood oxygen levels have dropped at least twice , that he was airlifted to the hospital from the White House , and that he has been given a range of drugs reserved for at-risk patients , including “ an experimental antibody cocktail ” ; the drug remdesivir , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Drug Administration on an emergency basis ; a range of supplements ; and dexamethasone , a steroid that decreases the body ’ s inflammatory reaction to the virus .
( It is the inflammation that causes the horrific lung disease associated with COVID-19 . )
In rare cases , dexamethasone has been linked to “ grandiose delusions , psychosis , delirium , and hallucinations.
” There ’ s much more we don ’ t know .
If Trump were to succumb to delusions or psychosis due to dexamethasone , would the American public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still in the hospital , had wound up on a ventilator unable to speak—or if he were discharged from Walter Reed with some combination of COVID-19 ’ s adverse side effects to the heart , lungs , or brain , including possible strokes , seizures , or a temporary paralysis called Guillain-Barre syndrome—again , would the American public even know ?
Given this administration ’ s lies , and even the caginess of the president ’ s physicians ( not just over the last few days but over the last few years ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ put in their pronouncements ?
And it ’ s not just about what the public knows ; there is no reliable legal mechanism in place for delivering information on the president ’ s health to the other top government officials .
Nancy Pelosi is third in line for the presidency under the Presidential Succession Act , but she told Face the Nation on Sunday that “ We ’ re getting our information the way everyone else is—in the media.
” Suppose a foreign terrorist attack occurred on American soil between now and January @ @ @ @ @ @ @ president is constitutionally required to take office .
If Trump were too ill to function but nobody but his inner circle even knew , who would take the helm ?
Jared Kushner ?
With no transparency or oversight , how many more might die as a result of the inevitable White House chaos ?
The Twenty-fifth Amendment answers these questions , but its invocation requires the sycophants surrounding the president to honor it .
Once again , the Trump administration is poised to steamroll over the Constitution itself while the rest of us @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the United States government—probably for keeps .

With Donald Trump just out of Walter Reed hospital after days of COVID-19 treatment and Election Day scarcely a month away, the world is understandably abuzz over the fate of his campaign. More worrisome, though, is what happens to the commander-in-chief post if Trump, now back in the White House, were to be incapacitated by the virus—or worse, if he were to join the 210,000 Americans who have died from the scourge so far. The Constitution’s Twenty-fifth Amendment was ratified after President John F. Kennedy’s assassination precisely to deal with such contingencies, but like many other parts of the Constitution, it is destined for obsolescence thanks to the Trump administration’s lies, obfuscation, and norm-busting.
It turns out that the Constitution mostly runs on the honor system. But for that to work, voters must elect lawmakers and presidents who possess a core value system that calls for fidelity to the rule of law. Alas, many of us are only just discovering this truth. It might be too late to address it.
The Twenty-fifth Amendment says three important things. First, if Trump were to die in office, it would automatically make Mike Pence president. Pence could then nominate a vice president to replace him, but that pick must be confirmed by a bare majority vote of both Houses of Congress. That’s the easy part.
Second, it gives Trump the discretion to decide that he’s “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office” in the event he becomes very sick with COVID-19. He would then transmit a written declaration to Chuck Grassley (as the president pro tempore of the Senate—the member designated to take Pence’s place presiding over the Senate) and Nancy Pelosi. Once Trump sends that message, Pence would automatically become “acting President” until Trump “transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary.”
Podcast · August 15 2023 A.B. Stoddard: All the Ex-President’s Conspirators Donald Trump has been a low-rent mobster for his entire career, and now he’s getting…
Of course, the notion that an ailing Donald Trump would step aside from his position as the most powerful man in the world for the good of the country is sheer folly. It would never happen. The one thing we know for sure from Trump’s coronavirus episode is that he doesn’t care much about other people’s health or well-being, including that of the populace writ large. After all, it’s likely that he knowingly infected people at a Minnesota fundraiser before announcing that he had tested positive, and he likely knowingly infected people—public servants who swore to protect him as president, mind you—when he took his reckless joy ride around the hospital grounds so he could wave to adoring fans.
Which brings us to the third important part of the Twenty-fifth Amendment. If Pence and a majority of Trump’s cabinet decide that the president is so gravely ill that he is unable to discharge his duties, they can send their own missive to Grassley and Pelosi. In that event, Pence “shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.” The Constitution allows the president to send a counter-declaration that he is fine—although in theory, if he were fine, there’d be no need to invoke this emergency measure. (The Constitution also gives Congress the authority to designate people other than Pence and a majority of cabinet officers the ability to trigger this chain of events, but Congress hasn’t done that, so it’s beside the point.)
All of this assumes not only that Trump would execute his duties and obligations somberly and for the good of the republic even if it meant yielding power (which is all but an impossibility), but also that Pence and Trump’s executive branch appointees would do the same with regard to their respective oaths of office.
This is really where the Constitution has broken down.
The Constitution is not self-executing. It is a piece of paper. It is only so good as it is enforced and respected. In the last few days, the American people have heard that Trump’s blood oxygen levels have dropped at least twice, that he was airlifted to the hospital from the White House, and that he has been given a range of drugs reserved for at-risk patients, including “an experimental antibody cocktail”; the drug remdesivir, which was granted authorization by the Food and Drug Administration on an emergency basis; a range of supplements; and dexamethasone, a steroid that decreases the body’s inflammatory reaction to the virus. (It is the inflammation that causes the horrific lung disease associated with COVID-19.) In rare cases, dexamethasone has been linked to “grandiose delusions, psychosis, delirium, and hallucinations.” There’s much more we don’t know.
If Trump were to succumb to delusions or psychosis due to dexamethasone, would the American public even know?
If Trump, while still in the hospital, had wound up on a ventilator unable to speak—or if he were discharged from Walter Reed with some combination of COVID-19’s adverse side effects to the heart, lungs, or brain, including possible strokes, seizures, or a temporary paralysis called Guillain-Barre syndrome—again, would the American public even know?
Given this administration’s lies, and even the caginess of the president’s physicians (not just over the last few days but over the last few years), how much stock can the public put in their pronouncements?
And it’s not just about what the public knows; there is no reliable legal mechanism in place for delivering information on the president’s health to the other top government officials. Nancy Pelosi is third in line for the presidency under the Presidential Succession Act, but she told Face the Nation on Sunday that “We’re getting our information the way everyone else is—in the media.”
Suppose a foreign terrorist attack occurred on American soil between now and January 20, when the new or re-elected president is constitutionally required to take office. If Trump were too ill to function but nobody but his inner circle even knew, who would take the helm? Jared Kushner? With no transparency or oversight, how many more might die as a result of the inevitable White House chaos? The Twenty-fifth Amendment answers these questions, but its invocation requires the sycophants surrounding the president to honor it.
Once again, the Trump administration is poised to steamroll over the Constitution itself while the rest of us are left to witness a fundamental reshaping of the United States government—probably for keeps.


thebulwark--2020-10-06--The Weirdest 90 Seconds in Presidential History

Donald Trump ’ s photo op on the Truman Balcony following his return to the White House with COVID-19 is one of the most disturbing , absorbing , foreign images I can recall .
It does not appear to be of our time or place , and yet it is .
With respect to the great painter George W. Bush ’ s view of the Trump inauguration , I think this has to be the weirdest shit I have ever seen in my life .
If you haven ’ t seen it , just watch it now : First , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ strongly , very heavily .
This is a man who is still on several experimental medications for a deadly virus that is highly contagious and spreads through the air .
I guess he thought he would look “ weak ” with the mask ?
I would think that he would want to demonstrate that he has in fact “ learned a lot ” since contracting the COVID .
But apparently when all of the infected geniuses from the West Wing put their heads together ( over Zoom ) to hash out what the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ should be , “ lessons learned ” came in a distant second to “ übermensch.
” So we get a madman , his face pancaked under a 2mm coat of orange powder , jacked up on steroids , straining to breathe—and not caring a whit about those around him .
And I ’ ve got to hand it to him : Trump nails that image .
As the mask comes off the first thing you notice is the president ’ s complexion .
After two consecutive video appearances that revealed his Immortan Joe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ back .
Trump has an extremely prominent make-up line that goes from his right temple down to his neckline , separating the orange from his peaked , natural tone .
This is a change from his au naturel look at Walter Reed , which revealed him to be the sickly senior citizen he is—but also leant him a soupçon of humanity .
For me , that was actually an upgrade .
But I freely admit that I am not his target demo .
It is unclear how this transition came to pass .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Reed , his make-up kit got left behind .
Or maybe , once isolated , the president didn ’ t know how to put his own makeup on by himself ?
I imagine his makeup artist or unfortunate comms staffer , trying valiantly to explain to Trump how to apply foundation over Zoom , while the president fumbles , the whole time bleating about how stupid it was that other people wouldn ’ t want to touch his face due to his viral load .
Whatever the case , free of medical oversight @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and his next move on the balcony was to attempt to put his mask in his pocket very aggressively .
It took him five or six tries .
You can see him wince and get quite flustered .
After Trump successfully disposes of the mask , he takes two deep breaths to center himself before the still shots .
Very deep breaths .
Then he points at someone off camera , giving them the get out of here sign .
( Ask Chris Christie .
He knows all about it . )
Then @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wince as if he had broken ribs .
After that he spends quite a while trying to button his jacket .
The drama builds to one mammoth , labored breath .
The type of breath you would take if you were a child who was about to enter into a competition in a swimming pool over who could last the longest underwater without drowning .
That heave gave him the stamina to move into a dramatic extended salute lasting 23 interminable seconds .
He salutes with D-list caudillo energy , channeling an aging @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of power .
Throughout the salute he holds an aggressive glare .
Then he steps back and looks deep into the distance .
Fully embracing his posture as the leader of a death cult , Trump turns and enters the White House .
Without a mask .
The coup de grâce ( for whom , we won ’ t know for a couple weeks ) , is Trump moving into an extremely congested , spittle-filled soliloquy—straight to camera—about how our Dear Leader may well now be “ immune ” from the deadly virus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ currently inhabiting his lungs , and his White House .
The show must go on .
Where , exactly , the rest of us go from here , I can not say .
What feats Republican senators will be asked to perform alongside Trump to prove their commitment we can not guess .
But in the words of Jim Jones , “ Mr .
Trump tried his best to give you a good life .
In spite of all that he tried , a handful of our people , with their lies , @ @ @ @ @ @ @

Donald Trump’s photo op on the Truman Balcony following his return to the White House with COVID-19 is one of the most disturbing, absorbing, foreign images I can recall. It does not appear to be of our time or place, and yet it is. With respect to the great painter George W. Bush’s view of the Trump inauguration, I think this has to be the weirdest shit I have ever seen in my life. If you haven’t seen it, just watch it now:
Only days into his diagnosis, the first thing President Trump does when he gets back to the White House is take his mask off. pic.twitter.com/kyqvHcSbIl — Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) October 5, 2020
First, Trump takes off his mask, very strongly, very heavily. This is a man who is still on several experimental medications for a deadly virus that is highly contagious and spreads through the air. I guess he thought he would look “weak” with the mask? I would think that he would want to demonstrate that he has in fact “learned a lot” since contracting the COVID. But apparently when all of the infected geniuses from the West Wing put their heads together (over Zoom) to hash out what the optics of the president’s return should be, “lessons learned” came in a distant second to “übermensch.”
So we get a madman, his face pancaked under a 2mm coat of orange powder, jacked up on steroids, straining to breathe—and not caring a whit about those around him.
And I’ve got to hand it to him: Trump nails that image.
As the mask comes off the first thing you notice is the president’s complexion. After two consecutive video appearances that revealed his Immortan Joe old man pallor, the orangina is back. Trump has an extremely prominent make-up line that goes from his right temple down to his neckline, separating the orange from his peaked, natural tone. This is a change from his au naturel look at Walter Reed, which revealed him to be the sickly senior citizen he is—but also leant him a soupçon of humanity. For me, that was actually an upgrade. But I freely admit that I am not his target demo.
Podcast · August 15 2023 A.B. Stoddard: All the Ex-President’s Conspirators Donald Trump has been a low-rent mobster for his entire career, and now he’s getting…
It is unclear how this transition came to pass. Maybe when Trump was airlifted to Walter Reed, his make-up kit got left behind. Or maybe, once isolated, the president didn’t know how to put his own makeup on by himself? I imagine his makeup artist or unfortunate comms staffer, trying valiantly to explain to Trump how to apply foundation over Zoom, while the president fumbles, the whole time bleating about how stupid it was that other people wouldn’t want to touch his face due to his viral load.
Whatever the case, free of medical oversight, the Bad Orange Man was back and his next move on the balcony was to attempt to put his mask in his pocket very aggressively. It took him five or six tries. You can see him wince and get quite flustered.
After Trump successfully disposes of the mask, he takes two deep breaths to center himself before the still shots. Very deep breaths.
Then he points at someone off camera, giving them the get out of here sign. (Ask Chris Christie. He knows all about it.) Then he takes two more deep breaths—with another wince as if he had broken ribs. After that he spends quite a while trying to button his jacket.
The drama builds to one mammoth, labored breath. The type of breath you would take if you were a child who was about to enter into a competition in a swimming pool over who could last the longest underwater without drowning.
That heave gave him the stamina to move into a dramatic extended salute lasting 23 interminable seconds. He salutes with D-list caudillo energy, channeling an aging Pinochet or Trujillo in their last gasps of power. Throughout the salute he holds an aggressive glare. Then he steps back and looks deep into the distance. Fully embracing his posture as the leader of a death cult, Trump turns and enters the White House. Without a mask.
The coup de grâce (for whom, we won’t know for a couple weeks), is Trump moving into an extremely congested, spittle-filled soliloquy—straight to camera—about how our Dear Leader may well now be “immune” from the deadly virus that has killed 210,000 and which is currently inhabiting his lungs, and his White House.
The show must go on.
Where, exactly, the rest of us go from here, I cannot say. What feats Republican senators will be asked to perform alongside Trump to prove their commitment we cannot guess.
But in the words of Jim Jones, “Mr. Trump tried his best to give you a good life. In spite of all that he tried, a handful of our people, with their lies, have made our life impossible.”


thebulwark--2020-10-07--Who Are These Republicans?

Who Are These Republicans?

Kelly Loeffler looked like a standard-issue Republican when she was appointed senator from Georgia in December , 2019 following the resignation of the incumbent for health reasons .
She came from a super-rich family ( like plenty of Democrats as well ) , she was pro-gun , anti-immigration , and pro-business .
Originally pro-choice , her position on abortion evolved in time for her to be accepted by pro-life gate keepers .
Once in Washington , D.C. , though , Loeffler quickly got with the program .
She described the impeachment of the president as a “ circus ” and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ call witnesses , whom she was sure would “ slander @ realDonald Trump.
” This is her most recent campaign ad : It features a much-reused video clip of Donald Trump play-acting in professional wrestling .
You may have seen it put to use in the past by Trump fans with the CNN logo superimposed on the defeated wrestler ’ s face .
This one uses the image of the coronavirus .
So Trump is wrestling the coronavirus to the floor , get it ?
In case that was too subtle , Loeffler @ @ @ @ @ @ @ against @ realDonaldTrump.
” She may tell herself that it ’ s all in good fun , but encouraging hero worship of Trump , particularly at a moment when he is literally endangering others ’ lives , is nearly as reckless as he is .
When she appeared , maskless and within inches of others , indoors at the White House announcement for Amy Coney Barrett , she not only endangered her own health and the health of her loved ones , she became a soldier in the disinformation war Trump is fighting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seriously .
Only yesterday , Republicans were livid that President Barack Obama downplayed the threat from terrorism .
I recall being appalled that no leading American statesman attended a Paris rally following the 2015 massacre at Charlie Hebdo headquarters , though European heads of state were there , along with Israel ’ s Benjamin Netanyahu and even the Palestinian Authority ’ s Mahmoud Abbas .
Attorney General Eric Holder was in Paris at the time , but skipped the march .
Republicans fervently believed that failure to confront terrorist threats to the nation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ worst .
Yet now , to compensate for the inability of the current president to manage a two-car funeral , we are asked to believe that declining to confront the threat from a virus is neither malfeasance nor betrayal , but instead some sort of macho heroism .
Tomi Lahren of Fox Nation tweeted that Joe Biden should carry a purse to go with his face mask .
The fawning Rep. Matt Gaetz tweeted , “ President Trump won ’ t have to recover from COVID .
COVID will have to recover from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Greg Gutfeld said this : He suffered for our sins ?
Yep , that ’ s Trump all over .
Let me offer a few more flashbulb glimpses of the state of the GOP today .
A quick glance at the Trump fans who gathered outside Walter Reed Hospital over the weekend revealed one holding a sign mentioning QAnon ( there may well have been others ) , and another with a placard cheerily emblazoned “ Super-spreader event.
” Flash : Greg Abbott , Republican governor of Texas , apparently repenting of several @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like expanding early voting , mandating masks in some places , and closing businesses , has now announced that he will limit the number of ballot drop boxes to one per county .
Texas has 254 counties with an average of about 114,000 people in each .
But , of course , they vary in size .
The single ballot drop box in Loving County will only have to handle the county ’ s 169 residents .
The box in Harris County , home to Houston , will have to accommodate 4.7 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
And by the way , if Republicans in Texas are worried about too many people voting , it doesn ’ t bode well for the GOP nationally .
Flash : Sen. Ron Johnson , who has tested positive for coronavirus ( along with Sens .
Mike Lee and Thom Tillis ) , said he remains opposed to mask mandates because “ while masks can reduce the risk of infection , they ’ re not a cure-all.
” Also , he believes in “ personal responsibility.
” Ah , so presumably he should @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Donald Trump who fail to take responsibility for their actions and worse , heap scorn on those who do ?
And , just asking questions , is Johnson also opposed to food safety mandates , because while they decrease the incidence of poisoning , they ’ re not a cure-all ?
Flash : Sen. Pat Toomey , one of the last semi-sincere conservatives , bows out .
He never wavered from his free trade principles and opposed Trump ’ s revised NAFTA treaty because it flouted those principles .
He voted against Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ emergency at the border , and tiptoed up to criticizing Trump over the Ukraine extortion ( “ inappropriate ” ) though he did vote to acquit him .
He joins the 40 percent of elected Republicans in Washington who have resigned or retired since 2017 .
Flash : The National Republican Congressional Committee has targeted a New Jersey freshman Democrat with ads aimed at linking him to what QAnon supporters believe is a Satanic , cannibalistic , child-abuse conspiracy backed by Hollywood and Democrats .
The grounds ?
Rep. Tom Malinowski supposedly opposed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ denies this , but frankly , even if he had , it ’ s a totally reasonable position to adopt .
I ’ ve written about the gross miscarriages of justice those registries can cause .
There must be a rule of reason in their application .
And while political ads often stray from the straight and narrow , the NRCC is descending into abhorrent incitement .
The NRCC is not a fringe political action committee .
It ’ s the official campaign arm of the Republican caucus in the House of Representatives @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that read like supermarket tabloids .
“ Rep .
Tom Molinoski lobbied to protect sexual predators.
” If you like your irony white hot , consider that this is the party that gave its endorsement to a genuine child predator , Judge Roy Moore .
This GOP is inhospitable to conservatives ( see former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan among many others ) , moderates ( see John Kasich ) , and people of decency and courage ( see Mitt Romney ) .
Rather than purging its ranks of kooks and conspiracists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Rather than fight fair , it seeks to win by keeping people from the polls .
America needs a sane , serious , humane , center-right party that aims to persuade , not to dominate .
This GOP is not it .

Kelly Loeffler looked like a standard-issue Republican when she was appointed senator from Georgia in December, 2019 following the resignation of the incumbent for health reasons. She came from a super-rich family (like plenty of Democrats as well), she was pro-gun, anti-immigration, and pro-business. Originally pro-choice, her position on abortion evolved in time for her to be accepted by pro-life gate keepers.
Once in Washington, D.C., though, Loeffler quickly got with the program. She described the impeachment of the president as a “circus” and lambasted Mitt Romney for even voting to call witnesses, whom she was sure would “slander @realDonald Trump.”
This is her most recent campaign ad:
It features a much-reused video clip of Donald Trump play-acting in professional wrestling. You may have seen it put to use in the past by Trump fans with the CNN logo superimposed on the defeated wrestler’s face. This one uses the image of the coronavirus. So Trump is wrestling the coronavirus to the floor, get it? In case that was too subtle, Loeffler tweeted: “COVID stood NO chance against @realDonaldTrump.”
She may tell herself that it’s all in good fun, but encouraging hero worship of Trump, particularly at a moment when he is literally endangering others’ lives, is nearly as reckless as he is. When she appeared, maskless and within inches of others, indoors at the White House announcement for Amy Coney Barrett, she not only endangered her own health and the health of her loved ones, she became a soldier in the disinformation war Trump is fighting to dissuade Americans from taking the threat seriously.
Podcast · August 15 2023 A.B. Stoddard: All the Ex-President’s Conspirators Donald Trump has been a low-rent mobster for his entire career, and now he’s getting…
Only yesterday, Republicans were livid that President Barack Obama downplayed the threat from terrorism. I recall being appalled that no leading American statesman attended a Paris rally following the 2015 massacre at Charlie Hebdo headquarters, though European heads of state were there, along with Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu and even the Palestinian Authority’s Mahmoud Abbas. Attorney General Eric Holder was in Paris at the time, but skipped the march. Republicans fervently believed that failure to confront terrorist threats to the nation was malfeasance at best and betrayal at worst.
Yet now, to compensate for the inability of the current president to manage a two-car funeral, we are asked to believe that declining to confront the threat from a virus is neither malfeasance nor betrayal, but instead some sort of macho heroism. Tomi Lahren of Fox Nation tweeted that Joe Biden should carry a purse to go with his face mask. The fawning Rep. Matt Gaetz tweeted, “President Trump won’t have to recover from COVID. COVID will have to recover from President Trump.” And Fox News host Greg Gutfeld said this:
Maybe it’s a flaw of Trump . . . he didn’t hide from the virus. The reason he didn’t hide from the virus is he didn’t want America to hide from the virus. If he was going to ask America to get back to work, right? . . . So he took the risk, he got the virus, but he was doing it for us.
He suffered for our sins? Yep, that’s Trump all over.
Let me offer a few more flashbulb glimpses of the state of the GOP today. A quick glance at the Trump fans who gathered outside Walter Reed Hospital over the weekend revealed one holding a sign mentioning QAnon (there may well have been others), and another with a placard cheerily emblazoned “Super-spreader event.”
Flash: Greg Abbott, Republican governor of Texas, apparently repenting of several common sense measures to cope with coronavirus like expanding early voting, mandating masks in some places, and closing businesses, has now announced that he will limit the number of ballot drop boxes to one per county. Texas has 254 counties with an average of about 114,000 people in each. But, of course, they vary in size. The single ballot drop box in Loving County will only have to handle the county’s 169 residents. The box in Harris County, home to Houston, will have to accommodate 4.7 million. They better get a big box. And by the way, if Republicans in Texas are worried about too many people voting, it doesn’t bode well for the GOP nationally.
Flash: Sen. Ron Johnson, who has tested positive for coronavirus (along with Sens. Mike Lee and Thom Tillis), said he remains opposed to mask mandates because “while masks can reduce the risk of infection, they’re not a cure-all.” Also, he believes in “personal responsibility.” Ah, so presumably he should have some choice words for leaders like Donald Trump who fail to take responsibility for their actions and worse, heap scorn on those who do? And, just asking questions, is Johnson also opposed to food safety mandates, because while they decrease the incidence of poisoning, they’re not a cure-all?
Flash: Sen. Pat Toomey, one of the last semi-sincere conservatives, bows out. He never wavered from his free trade principles and opposed Trump’s revised NAFTA treaty because it flouted those principles. He voted against Trump’s spurious declaration of a national emergency at the border, and tiptoed up to criticizing Trump over the Ukraine extortion (“inappropriate”) though he did vote to acquit him. He joins the 40 percent of elected Republicans in Washington who have resigned or retired since 2017.
Flash: The National Republican Congressional Committee has targeted a New Jersey freshman Democrat with ads aimed at linking him to what QAnon supporters believe is a Satanic, cannibalistic, child-abuse conspiracy backed by Hollywood and Democrats. The grounds? Rep. Tom Malinowski supposedly opposed expanding a sex offender registry. He denies this, but frankly, even if he had, it’s a totally reasonable position to adopt. I’ve written about the gross miscarriages of justice those registries can cause. There must be a rule of reason in their application. And while political ads often stray from the straight and narrow, the NRCC is descending into abhorrent incitement. The NRCC is not a fringe political action committee. It’s the official campaign arm of the Republican caucus in the House of Representatives, and it now issues official statements that read like supermarket tabloids. “Rep. Tom Malinowski lobbied to protect sexual predators.”
If you like your irony white hot, consider that this is the party that gave its endorsement to a genuine child predator, Judge Roy Moore.
This GOP is inhospitable to conservatives (see former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan among many others), moderates (see John Kasich), and people of decency and courage (see Mitt Romney). Rather than purging its ranks of kooks and conspiracists, it welcomes and courts them. Rather than fight fair, it seeks to win by keeping people from the polls. America needs a sane, serious, humane, center-right party that aims to persuade, not to dominate. This GOP is not it.